Win big by sharing your event sourcing insights.
Complete our latest survey on event location selection for the chance to win a cutting-edge VR Headset!
Take the survey.

This Week in Event Venues: Inside the Emmys' New Party Venues, Canada Goes Red for Events, and More

Rounding up the latest news from hotels, convention centers, meeting spaces, restaurants, and other event venues across the United States and Canada.

In Cleveland, 10,000-square-foot event space Gordon Green is slated to open Sept. 26. Located in the Gordon Square Arts District, the property features a blend of historic architecture and modern amenities, including original hardwood flooring, an ornate tin ceiling, and panoramic windows. Amenities include a full-service kitchen, a private courtyard, and an on-site team to help with vendor sourcing, floor plans, and more.
In Cleveland, 10,000-square-foot event space Gordon Green is slated to open Sept. 26. Located in the Gordon Square Arts District, the property features a blend of historic architecture and modern amenities, including original hardwood flooring, an ornate tin ceiling, and panoramic windows. Amenities include a full-service kitchen, a private courtyard, and an on-site team to help with vendor sourcing, floor plans, and more.
Photo: Nate Migal

As hotels and event spaces begin to cautiously reopen after coronavirus-related shutdowns, we're here to round up the biggest news of the week—in one convenient place. Got a tip? Get in touch! 

1. Emmys-related parties looked a bit different this year.
The Primetime Emmy Awards typically see a slew of parties blanketing Los Angeles venues such as the Microsoft Theater, Event Deck at L.A. Live, and the Pacific Design Center. But like everything else this year, Sunday's award show looked a bit different—and that includes the host venues.

Jimmy Kimmel hosted from an audience-less Staples Center, while most nominees and winners tuned in from their own homes. Some casts, however, chose to host their own small viewing parties. Up in Toronto, the cast of Emmys-favorite Schitt's Creek gathered together at Casa Loma. The small group of cast and crew—which was reportedly made even smaller at the last minute due a spike in local COVID-19 cases—all wore masks and sat at spaced-out tables; each attendee had reportedly tested negative for the virus.

The cast of Insecure, on the other hand, went a bit bigger—an entire football field bigger, that is. Star Issa Rae watched the show from inside the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., a new 70,000-seat stadium that hosted its first NFL event on Sept. 13. The large, outdoor space was an appropriate choice for the show, which is set in the Los Angeles-area city.

2. Canadian venues lit up in red to support the event industry.
We've seen it in the U.K. and the U.S.—and now Canada has gone red for events. On Tuesday night, a group called Live Event Community organized #LightUpLive, which lit buildings around the country in red to draw attention to the struggling live event industry. According to the organization's website, 86% of businesses in Canada's arts, entertainment, and recreation sector have been affected by pandemic-related shutdowns. 

3. A D.C. hotel is helping its guests register to vote.
While more and more stadiums and other venues have announced they will open as voting centers, Washington, D.C.'s Hamilton Hotel is getting in on the action in a different way. The property has begun offering an in-room "election amenity" to help guests register to vote. Each guest room has an iPad that opens directly to When We All Vote's voter registration page, which provides information on how to register along with state-by-state resources.

The hotel, located blocks from the White House, is no stranger to focusing on politics: Last month, it opened its Suffrage Suite: Women Win the Vote, a themed suite celebrating the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote.

4. Marriott has partnered with the National Parks Association.
Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International's travel program, has announced a new partnership with the National Park Foundation. The hotel brand has introduced a dedicated travel-planning website that offers discounted stays at Marriott's 406 properties that are located near national parks; travelers can also redeem points that can be donated to the park foundation.

5. Outdoor space continues to be key.
Marriott isn’t the only brand embracing the great outdoors. Acknowledging that COVID-19 is thought to spread less rapidly in open-air environments, more and more venues are revamping their alfresco options for events and unique stays. For example, the Eastwind Hotel & Bar, located in the Catskill Mountains in New York, recently debuted seven new "glamping" accommodations, increasing its overall room count from 19 to 26. Called Lushnas, the unique standalone suites are insulated for year-round stays and sleep between two and four guests, with the larger options offering private outdoor decks, individual fire pits, and hammocks. The Eastwind Hotel & Bar in New York has debuted seven new 'glamping' accommodations.The Eastwind Hotel & Bar in New York has debuted seven new "glamping" accommodations.Photo: Lawrence Braun

Bonus: Upcoming Openings to Have on Your Radar
Virgin Hotels Las Vegas—which will be announcing an official opening date later this month—has unveiled plans for its more than 1,500 chambers and suites. Designed by design firm Studio Collective, the rooms will have a "modern desert" ambiance, with touches including ergonomically designed lounge beds, custom lighting, seating nooks, and more. The hotel will also feature an upgraded mobile app called Lucy, which allows for a touch-free experience. When it opens, the Virgin property will include three towers, the 60,000-square-foot Mohegan Sun Casino, a five-acre pool area and event lawn, a 4,500-square-foot theater, and 12 food and beverage options. 

The Mondrian South Beach, located in Miami Beach's Biscayne Bay, is undergoing a $20-million property-wide transformation scheduled to debut on Nov. 16. Spearheaded by local designers Peter Oleck and Danny Cubes of OS Design Group, the 220-room hotel will feature a new indoor-outdoor restaurant and bar, new open-air common areas, socially distant meeting spaces, a renovated spa and wellness center, and an exclusive membership club. The hotel has over 25,000 square feet of event space. 

Michelin star Italian restaurateur Mario Iaccarino is opening his first restaurant project in the U.S. inside The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis. Casa Don Alfonso is slated to open in November with 187 seats, a 2,500-bottle wine room, coastal Italian dishes with artistic twists, and an elegant design featuring hand-painted tile and a cascading wisteria chandelier. Casa Don Alfonso is opening in November at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis.Casa Don Alfonso is opening in November at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis.Rendering: The Johnson Studio

Page 1 of 47
Next Page