Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/3108
Black Meetings & Tourism April/May 2009: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 80 Center hosts the annual Kwanzaa Kuumba Art Fest. Virginia Beach Park, once known as Miami's "colored beach," re-opened in February 2008. The park is accessible only by boat from a dock on the Miami River. Other cultural and sightseeing attractions include the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Miami Seaquarium, the Miami Beach Botanical Garden and Biscayne Bay. ORLANDO Large-scale events will find ample accommodations at the Orange County Convention Center, which boasts 2.1 million sq. ft. of exhibit space, along with two 92,000 sq. ft. general assembly areas, 74 meeting rooms, a 160-seat lecture hall and a 62,000-sq. ft. multi-purpose room. The convention center is going green with a recycling program already under way and a solar energy project in development. Several local hotels are participants in the Florida Green Lodging Program. Altogether, the Orlando area has an inventory of about 113,000 guestrooms. For groups that want to convene right in the midst of the city's biggest visitor attractions, there is more than 600,000 total sq. ft. of meeting and space at six Disney convention resorts, including 220,000 sq. ft. at the Coronado Springs Resort. Many famous African-American musicians stayed in the historic Wells' Built Hotel during the 1920s when playing in Orlando. A drive to nearby Eatonville, the oldest African- American municipality in the United States, offers a chance to visit the Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts, named for the Harlem Renaissance writer and folk- lorist who was the town's most famous native daughter. Orlando's popular theme parks are constantly adding new attractions. Some of the most recent additions at Walt Disney World include Toy Story Mania, Block Party Bash (an inter- active Disney parade) and The American Idol Experience. The new Aquatica Waterpark at SeaWorld opened in March 2008, while Manta, a simulation ride that lets visitors experi- ence how it feels to be a stingray, will open in the summer of 2009. Universal Studios Florida has added a new ride based on The Simpsons television show, and Busch Gardens Africa has a new exotic jungle area called Jungala. Other things to do include browsing the galleries at CityArts Factory, strolling through the Henry P. Leu Gardens and shopping at local outlet malls. PALM BEACH The 350,000-sq. ft. Palm Beach County Convention Center is the premier meeting facility for this Florida Atlantic Coast destination, while many of the area's 200 hotels also have meeting space. Delegates and family members can choose from a wide range of activities to fill their leisure time, from visiting The Breakers — Palm Beach's historic Mobil Five-Star, AAA Five-Diamond resort — to browsing the shops in the Clematis Street district, along Worth Avenue and at CityPlace, a European-style town center. Other notable attractions include the Norton Museum of Art, the Flagler Museum and Sea Gull Cottage, the oldest house in Palm Beach. Orange County Convention Center Photo Credit: Orlando CVB