Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/12999
Bergstrom International Airport is just seven miles outside of downtown. For more information: www.austin- texas.org or (800) 926-2282. BEAUMONT Head to Beaumont and discover a southern city with a swanky swagger that will spice up your next meeting. Beaumont has Texas culture, Cajun style! Located 90 miles East of Houston on I-10 and minutes from Louisiana casino gaming, Beaumont offers over 3,700 sleeping rooms and close to 187,000 sq. ft. of meeting space city wide. Ford Park Event Center is Southeast Texas’ premier convention and meeting complex with five versatile venues including a 48,000-sq. ft. Exhibit Hall; 9,000-seat Arena; 18,000-seat Pavilion; 12 championship softball/youth base- ball fields, and a midway with 25,000 sq. ft. of barn space. Located in downtown, the Beaumont Civic Center Complex offers 42,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. Beaumont also boasts two full service convention hotels including the MCM Elegante Hotel & C o n f e r e n c e Center and the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Beaumont Plaza both offering 22,000 sq. ft. of meeting space and 250+ sleeping rooms. Meeting atten- dees can experi- ence Gator Coun- try Adventure Show with over 300 alligators, Caymans and crocodiles, Gator Country offers every guest the opportunity to have a hands-on experience. At dinner, guests can meet the cast of Beaumont’s hit reality TV show, CMT’s Gator 911, and see (and even hold) live alligators. Beaumont’s new website has a meeting planner tool kit with what the Ford Park Event Center is Southeast Texas’ premier convention and meeting complex Photo Credit: Beaumont CVB Beaumont folks like to call lagniappe – a little extra something. Not only will you find details to assist in planning your next meeting but learn of the major attractions such as Crockett Street Entertainment District in historic downtown and the Big Thicket National Preserve for birding, hiking and boating. New in Beaumont, Baymont Inn & Suites a 50-room hotel property is sched- uled to open early summer 2010. Plus, Homewood Suites, scheduled to open in Black Meetings & Tourism May/June 2010: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 27