In This Issue

How to Select Wines
Six Dynamic Team Building Activities
Remember the Forum
Question: What's Your Favorite Wine?
Around the Industry
Krisam & GEP News


How to Select Wine and Turn it Into an Event Itself
Interview with Mark Jensen, wine director, Bernardus Lodge, Carmel Valley, California

How much red? How much white? Chardonnay or Viognier? Merlot or Cab? California or France? How many bottles for how many folk? Do I have the budget? What goes with lamb? With dessert? Wine selection can challenge even the most seasoned event planner.

Mark Jensen, wine director of the Bernardus Lodge in Carmel Valley, has some basic advice on wine selection but encourages you to take your audience "up one rung", by introducing them to something new. He loves to see someone with "a moderate liking" for wine "get passionate about it," as he obviously is. Just a little wine education can make the difference.

Mark suggests some guidelines on estimating how much wine you'll need, what wine to pair with what food, and how to hold a memorable tasting. Read about his guidelines on choosing wines for your next event.

Six Dynamic Team Building Activities to Adapt or Adopt
Interview with Jim Waller, president of Catalyst Events, America

A corporation with many branches may want to bring its geographically separate staffs closer in spirit. As association with a single office may be concerned about morale and cooperation. An organization may have a new product, campaign, or vision and wants to encourage staff buy-in. These are just a few scenarios that can be helped by team-building sessions in meetings and conferences.

Some activities bring hundreds of people together as one team, others create competition between teams, and some do both - all depending on what your goals are, Jim Waller, president of Catalyst Events, America, Alexandria, VA, explains. Sales people, for example, Jim says, are very competitive and need to see winners in their activities. But, the point is creating winners, without losers.

From music to rockets, take a look at six proven team building ideas.

Remember the Online Planners Forum

If you feel like you are caught in the Alamo with a few too many obstacles outside, check out The Event Insider's Planners Forum. It's there to fortify you with advice from experts and your peers. Pose your tough questions and come back to find some answers. Do encourage your fellow event planners to visit the forum too so we can all benefit from our combined experience. Visit the Planners Forum.

Question of the Month
This month's poll question is: What is your favorite wine?

Choosing wine for yourself, much less for a major meeting, can be a challenge with so many varieties available. Take the poll at left and let us know.

Please respond by June 18th. Results will be published in the next newsletter.

Last month's poll results:

Will you be holding any events in the following locations this year?

• Europe (33%)
• Canada (24%)
• Latin America (10%)
• Other overseas (19%)
• Only US (14%)

Around the Industry

• Non-Attrition Formula: A hard-nosed, mathematics based approach to avoiding attrition is outlined in a current story in Association Meetings, complete with pros and cons. Find out how one planner avoids attrition.
• Las Vegas Monorail: It keeps getting postponed, but latest news is that the Las Vegas Monorail will open this summer connecting eight major Las Vegas resorts and the Convention Center. Plans call for the monorail to eventually run between downtown Las Vegas and McCarran International Airport. Check on the Las Vegas Monorail progress.
• Big Year for Boston: In addition to completing the Big Dig, Boston has also completed its new Convention and Exhibition Center which opens in June. The Democratic Convention meets there in July. The Center boasts 516,000 sq. ft. of contiguous exhibit space, 160,000 sq. ft. of meeting rooms, and a 40,000 sq. ft. ballroom. Learn more about the Boston Convention Center.
• Singapore Tops Again: The top three favorite airlines in the world are Singapore, Emirates, and Cathy Pacific according to the Skytrax annual survey. The only U.S. airline in the top ten was Continental. Top airports were Hong Kong, Singapore, and Amsterdam. No U.S. site made the top ten. Three best airlines in North America were Continental, Jet Blue, and American Airlines. Best airports: Cincinnati, Vancouver, and Denver. Get more Airline of the Year 2004 results.
• Brighter Hotel Summer: According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers analysis, from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend U.S. lodging occupancy will be 69.1 percent, the highest since 2000 when occupancy reached 72.1 percent, and a two percent increase from last summer when occupancy reached 67.7 percent.
• New New York Cab Fares: New York City's 12,187 medallion taxicabs were reprogrammed May 3 for the city's first fare increase since 1996. The new rates increase the 1/5 mile rate by 10 cents, the 4-8 p.m. surcharge by $1, and the fare from JFK to town by $10. Specific new rates include: Initial drop: $2.50; 1/5 mile rate: $.40; JFK to Manhattan: $45. Newark Airport Surcharge: $15.
• Flight News: New Longest Flight. Last month, LA to Singapore was the world's longest non-stop flight. Next month, it won't be. Singapore Airlines introduces a Newark-Singapore flight on June 28 that covers 9,000 nautical miles vs 7,971 nm for LA, and takes 18 hours. O'Hare Cutbacks. In an agreement with the FAA, O'Hare will drop 29 more flights from its 1 to 8 p.m. schedule in June to help reduce congestion and delays at connecting airports. Airport Auction. Dallas Fort Worth Airport netted $322,036 from an online auction of surplus goods last month. If you left a snowboard or Britney Spears poster there, sorry, they've been sold.

Krisam & GEP News

Karen Lovell Named GEP Vice President of Sales.
Global Events Partners (GEP) has announced the promotion of Karen Lovell to vice president of sales. Ms. Lovell has been with GEP for two years in the New York sales office and will continue her work in making it one of GEP's highest producing offices as its lead sales executive.

Chris White, chairman & CEO of Global Events Partners, states, "The GEP New York office is now producing as it always should have been with Karen at the wheel. She's a spectacular sales person and she continues to raise the bar at GEP."

Originally from Barbados, Ms. Lovell came to GEP after advancing through the ranks in the field of harbor-cruise group sales. Prior to this, Ms. Lovell was the banquet sales manager with The Fireman Group, handling private function sales and planning for several renowned New York restaurants. Additionally, Ms. Lovell gained extensive experience through progressively more responsible sales positions with Spirit Cruises, a division of Sodexho Alliance.

Krisam Group to Open New West Coast Office.
Krisam Group is opening a new office on June 14 in Oregon to serve the Northern California area. It will be headed by Christie Post, formerly of our Krisam New York office. Look for the complete announcement, including contact information, in June.

New Krisam Members
Daufuskie Island Resort & Breathe Spa, Hilton Head
Island, SC
Half Moon Montego Bay, Montego Bay, Jamaica
Ocean Place Resort & Spa, Long Branch, NJ

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