Meeting Focus on: Lake Geneva
Just about halfway situated between Milwaukee and Chicago, there’s far lesser known Lake Geneva, Wis.
It has a similar climate and shares with those two cities a long history.
Unlike the Windy City of Chicago or Milwaukee’s fame as a beer capital, Lake Geneva has nicknames such as "Newport of the Midwest" or the "Myrtle Beach of Wisconsin." A major reason is that it caters to a wide variety of interests.
That means delegates who might want to spend their free time on anything from historical architecture and old mansions to more immediate concerns such as golf. Lake Geneva has almost two dozen courses, many of which offer championship quality (ala Myrtle Beach).
The Lake Geneva area encompasses the communities of Lake Geneva, Lake Como, Fontana and Delevan. It got its modern-day start in the early 20th century as wealthy Chicago residents came here for summer vacations.
O’Hare International Airport is a 90-minute drive away, but once visitors arrive in Lake Geneva, they are far from an urban center.
Their drive-in market from Illinois and Wisconsin is strong but the small area of only 7,000 residents also offers 2,300 hotel rooms, making it popular for national and even international conventions.
The outdoor is also prominent here. A popular site for smaller conventions is the Lodge at Geneva Ridge, where attendees have access to 80 wooded acres along Lake Como plus 16,000 square feet of meeting space. The property also includes 146 suites, plus a new restaurant, lounge and bar.
Hugh Hefner was apparently attracted to the area’s 19th century look and brought a Playboy Club here. It was known for its opulent parties until the Playboy publisher closed it in 1983.
It is now a 355-room Grand Geneva Resort, the area’s only AAA Four Diamond resort. It has 62,000 square feet of meeting space, a whopping 35 breakout rooms, a 7,680 square foot Grand Ballroom and an airstrip for private planes but, alas, no more Playboy bunnies.
By David Wilkening
David
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