Conference season is upon us, and it has got us thinking. What are the main considerations when choosing a top notch venue for your meetings and conferences?
Here at the Green House Hotel, Bournemouth’s most environmentally-friendly luxury boutique hotel and corporate meeting venue, we like to think our central Bournemouth location, tranquil setting and award-winning food and hospitality give us a head start on some of the 85,000-plus conference rooms available in the town. But it is much more than that. Experience has shown there’s really no substitute for attention to detail and all-round quality of service.
Here, in a nutshell, are our tips for what to consider when choosing the perfect meeting venue.
Suitability
It is vital that the venue fits with your company’s corporate image. Does it give the correct impression and will it appeal to the target audience?
Often dubbed “the greenest hotel in Britain”, the Green House Hotel is the perfect venue for organisations who value sustainability and corporate social responsibility. As a TripAdvisor Platinum Green Leader, we are recognised as one of only a handful of establishments around the UK to have achieved the very highest environmental standards, and while we don’t make a song and dance about it, it is there in everything we do – right down to the recycled chairs in our meeting rooms, which started life as video games consoles! Within months of opening, the hotel was voted number one boutique eco hotel in the World (British Airways Highlife Magazine) and Small Hotel of the Year (Bournemouth Tourism Awards 2010). Since then we have notched up many more awards such as Gold at the Dorset Tourism awards in the Eating Out Category and Sustainable Tourism categories in 2014 as well as a Silver trophy in the Sustainable Tourism category of this year’s South West Tourism Excellence Awards.
So if you want a venue that demonstrates how sustainability and quality go together, no look further. If you like, we can even give your delegates a tour of the hotel highlighting our array of environmentally-friendly features.
Location
The venue should be easily accessible with good transport links, plenty of external events and attractions, and a quiet, safe location where the work can get done.
Bournemouth is easily accessible by car – however, why not consider leaving the car at home and making the most of Bournemouth’s fantastic public transport links? Bournemouth is well served by the rail network with a fast service from London Waterloo in as little as 97 minutes. Many lines also serve Southampton, Winchester and Basingstoke to the East, and there are direct trains to Reading, Oxford, Birmingham & the Midlands, Manchester and the Northwest, Yorkshire (Sheffield, Leeds, York), Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland.
Luckily, the Green House Hotel is located in a quiet corner of Bournemouth, yet only a 5 minute walk from the town centre and a stone’s throw from the beach and all its attractions, giving the perfect mix of tranquillity and entertainment.
Size
Is the seating capacity suitable and the meeting rooms large enough to provide a comfortable and high quality experience?
At the Green House Hotel, our meeting rooms can cater for boardroom layouts of up to 24 or theatre style layouts for 40 and 30 delegates respectively. They are separated by a small central room which can be used as a break-out area or for access between rooms if you require two separate spaces. These rooms can also cater for private dining. All rooms have plentiful natural delight and contemporary, stylish decor. One has direct lift access and the other a private external entrance.
Facilities
Can the venue offer all the latest audiovisual equipment, high quality refreshments and meals, as well as accommodation if required? What about post-meeting networking and entertainment?
The Green House Hotel’s meeting rooms have full audio-visual equipment and induction loop systems. Exclusive use of the hotel can be arranged for events, product launches, seminars and mini-conferences ensuring you and your delegates have our beautifully-restored Grade II listed Victorian Villa all to yourselves. Accommodating up to 64 guests, it offers full use of the chic private 24-hour bar, Arbor Restaurant, events rooms and gardens at the discretion of your guests only.
From our New Forest English breakfast and Dorset working buffet lunch to canapés and our ala carte menu, The Green House expertly caters for all conferencing and banqueting requirements. Should you have something else in mind, our chefs can tailor the menu to your requirements.
To discuss your event or to arrange a viewing, please contact our events coordinator on 01202 498900 or email events@thegreenhousehotel.com