MEET IN PUERTO RICO

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29

May
2017

Puerto Rico the most sought-after group and convention destination

2018

Convention delegates enjoy the island’s distinctive experience

You can go to Las Vegas or Hawaii for your convention, but why not go to the place in the U.S. that offers the best of both worlds? Puerto Rico has world-class convention facilities, stunning beaches, and cool casinos where Frank’s Rat Pack would feel at home.

Add to the mix fine hotels and resorts, outstanding shopping and the best cuisine in the Caribbean and you have the perfect business-pleasure destination.

“Unique, one-of-a-kind shared experiences are what make group programs and meetings memorable,” said Milton Segarra, president & CEO of Meet Puerto Rico.

One of the main reasons Puerto Rico is so popular is the ease of doing business. The island is a U.S. Commonwealth and as a result U.S. citizens need no passports; they can use the same currency; they can find comfort in knowing English is the official language; and they can book flights with few or no headaches.

And the fact the digital connection between the island and the U.S. mainland is seam less makes Puerto Rico the prime destination for association gatherings, company sales meetings, and rewards trips.

  • St Regis Bahia Beach Resort Puerto Rico Rio Grande
  • El San Juan Hotel and Casino
  • Dining El Conquistador Puerto Rico
  • Puntilla Ballroom Sheraton Old San Juan Hotel Casino

Unparalleled Group Experiences

With a rich history, culture and natural beauty, Puerto Rico offers an enormous range of activities for groups to enjoy.

Old San Juan, the oldest walled city in the Caribbean, offers visitors over 500 years of Spanish cultural heritage. You’ll go back in time along quaint cobblestone streets lined with colonial buildings and old forts right out of Hollywood movies.

Group tours of Old San Juan can be inventive, including delicious culinary adventures, cool scavenger hunts, and lively theater replete with costumed actors playing the roles of historic figures like Christopher Columbus, Ponce de Leon.

Take a team-building jaunt to El Yunque Rainforest and explore the natural flora and fauna that define the only tropical rainforest in the U.S. National Park System. Or you can go spelunking in the cathedral-like caves at Rio Camuy, the third-largest underground river system on Earth.

Perhaps Indiana Jones-style adventure is not your style. Not a problem ––  you can get in a nice round of golf at one of the many perfectly manicured championship courses, take a dip along white sand beaches, lounge around beautifully designed hotel pools, or indulge in a day of shopping in Old San Juan or Plaza las Americas—the Caribbean’s largest retail
mall.

In the evening, groups can enjoy a wonderful range of culinary selections including traditional Puerto Rican fare, Latin Fusion and other creative, contemporary cuisine options in a private setting or as part of a dine-around program.

Evening activities for groups include live music, salsa dancing and trying your luck at one of the island’s intimate and friendly hotel casinos.

Sophisticated Meeting Spaces, First-Rate Accommodations

Puerto Rico has the most meeting space in the Caribbean with more than 1.3 million square feet of meeting space and conference facilities in hotels and resorts across the island. Meeting venues range from intimate boardrooms for small groups to the largest ballroom in the Caribbean.

Puerto Rico has added an array of new resort properties in recent years such as the luxurious St. Regis Bahia Beach Resort, W Retreat & Spa in Vieques, and the Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve.

Today, Puerto Rico offers more than 14,000 guest rooms island wide ranging from mid to high-end luxury, with well-known hotel brands such as Sheraton, Marriott, InterContinental, Hilton and many more.

Along with hotels offering top notch service for meetings, Puerto Rico is proud of the visually stunning 580,000 sq. ft. Puerto Rico Convention Center with the largest Grand Ballroom in the Caribbean, measuring 39,500 sq. ft.

At the Convention Center, groups of up to 10,000 delegates can enjoy a high-tech, high-touch experience. The Center features a 152,700 sq. ft. exhibition hall divisible into three individual exposition spaces, the Grand Ballroom and 36,400 sq. ft. of meeting space, including 15 separate meeting rooms on two levels, divisible into 28 breakout rooms.

Located next to the Center is the 503-room Sheraton Puerto Rico Hotel & Casino providing a luxurious ‘urban oasis’ for convention delegates and guests with more than 40,000 square feet of flexible meeting and event space.

Plans are currently underway to add three more properties to the District. Under construction and slated to open in late 2014 is the 126-room Hyatt House San Juan set to offer studio, one and two bedroom kitchen suites.

Additional properties in the planning stages include a 252-room Courtyard by Marriott and a yet-to-be-named property that will bring additional 200-plus rooms to the District.

Part of an ambitious waterfront development initiative, the Puerto Rico Convention Center District is comprised of beautiful promenades and walkways, surrounded by fountains and views of San Juan Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean.

Plans to add other elements, including a World Trade Center, dining, shopping, residences and entertainment venues are well underway.

“Puerto Rico has so much to offer visitors, and we have the expertise to provide delegates with a distinctive experience that offers excitement and lasting memories for groups who choose to gather here,” Segarra concludes.

No matter if you visit Puerto Rico for work, little will keep you from wanting to venture out and play.