Inspiring talks, unusual aesthetics, unorthodox activities – when it comes to events, the different stands out. Even so, you could have the most inspiring talks in the world, with some truly gobsmacking activities, but if your event is housed in a grotty, damp warehouse, that’s what visitors will remember.
The point is, venue matters. Incredible surroundings can set your event apart from the ordinary, and get people talking, sharing and engaging for months after.
Increasingly, brands are looking to event agencies for forward thinking ideas about where to host their next events. Here are some gems from around the world; some quirky, some breathtaking, all memorable.
Location: Australia – Sydney
Capacity: 10 – 5,000
Events held: Dining, presentations and performances, meetings, product launches, symposia
Website: www.atpcc.com.au
The ATPCC boasts many different and characterful spaces – a stylish, contemporary dining room, 520-capacity timber theatre, versatile exhibition centre and 11 different meeting rooms. All offer WiFi and advanced audio-visual technology. All are set in and around the historic Locomotive Workshops, a cavernous industrial space that’s housed everything from fashion shows to automotive exhibitions.
Location: United Kingdom – Liskeard, Cornwall
Capacity: 30, 40, 150 or 400 capacity spaces available
Events held: Concerts, film shoots, conferences, AGMs, training days, parties
Website: www.carnglaze.com/concerts-events/private-hire/
The caves of Carnglaze range from the intimate to the spooky to the inspirational. This underground venue in the heart of Cornwall plays host to local musicians, weddings and showcase events, and makes an unusual site for AGMs, training days and one-day conferences. An event which might send attendees to sleep in the office takes on a spellbinding tone in the depths of Carnglaze.
Location: United States of America – Dallas, Texas
Capacity: 10 – 900
Events held: Dinners, presentations, receptions, heritage events, product launches
The Hall of State has a grandeur and style that set it apart from the average conference centre. Imagine a product launch in the stark grandeur of the Great Hall, or encircled in the imposing exedra at the building’s entrance. For presentations and screenings, the Hall offers the 394-seater Hill Lecture Hall, underground and comfortably apart from daytime visitors. Take a virtual tour here.
Location: United Kingdom – London, Duxford & Manchester
Capacity: Various – from 5 to 1000 at Duxford alone
Events held: Conferences, dinners, tours
Website: www.iwm.org.uk/commercial/venue-hire
The IWM – or rather, the IWMs – offer multiple locations across the UK. The three museum sites in London, Duxford and Manchester allow you to deliver training sessions in the shadow of a Spitfire, and the exhibitions are a far better break than simply shuffling outside for a sandwich. The real gems, however, are the resonant historical venues on offer. There’s nothing quite like planning your next campaign in the Churchill War Rooms or launching your product from the deck of the HMS Belfast, and you have the knowledge that your hire costs are well spent on preserving these heritage sites.
Location: Australia – Melbourne
Capacity: Varies by space – 35 to 500
Events held: Full day conferences, live broadcasts, cocktail parties and dining events
Website: lunaparkevents.melbourne
Of all the venues on our list, Luna Park has possibly the best breaks and outside activities going. The conference and meeting rooms are woven throughout the theme park, and unlimited ride tickets or even exclusive hire of the entire park are available in the corporate package. Even if your plans don’t extend to the rides, the rooms themselves are spectacular. Dining and meeting rooms overlooking the park are an option, but so’s an open-air, semi-public garden in the heart of the park, or a mobile 35-seater party tram for VIP and social events
Location: China – Shanghai
Capacity: Up to 800… but 10-15 for the best part
Events held: Meetings, dining, receptions
Website: www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbc2n9uuZDg
This Marriott hotel is a large, modern, flexible centre with 17 meeting rooms and a maximum capacity of 800… and it happens to house the world’s highest library, on the sixtieth floor. With capacity for 10-15 guests, the library also has a concealed door leading onto a rooftop balcony.
If you’ve a handful of attendees and a desire for something spectacular, the Executive Library is hard to match.
Location: Canada – Mont Tremblant, Québec
Capacity: 40/150
Events held: Conferences, team builds, association gatherings, receptions
Website: www.tremblant.ca/plan/groups-business
Firstly, this venue offers a gorgeous location: eighty miles northwest of Montréal, in the shadow of the ‘trembling mountain’. Secondly, there’s the host of outdoor activities – the village of Mont Tremblant itself is a skiing resort that also offers hiking, cycling, ziplining and canoeing, all making for excellent team building or recreation around longer events. Thirdly, space for 150 attendees, or 40 in the VIP suite, is set in a casino with a vast choice of game tables, a potent networking opportunity if ever there was one.
Location: Russia – Moscow & St. Petersburg
Capacity: 20-40 per tram
Events held: Dining, cocktails, live music, tours
How do you feel about an affordable, intimate, mobile venue, which takes a fixed two or four hour route around Russia’s first and second cities? Ideal for staff and industry socials, the hirable Russian trams are a novel, attractive alternative to restaurants or cafés if you’re looking for neutral ground or a break from your regular premises.
Surroundings count for a lot when you want your meeting, conference or launch to stand out. A drab, everyday venue means a drab, everyday event – an outstanding venue means something for attendees to remember.
Surroundings count for a lot when you want your meeting, conference or launch to stand out. A drab, everyday venue means a drab, everyday event – an outstanding venue means something for attendees to remember.
Rapiergroup are experts at sourcing, organising and delivering events that get people talking. Take a look at the clients we’ve helped.