New Opening – Fairmont Windsor Park

A new hotel opening to me is more exciting than receiving 50% off in a Chanel sale. It is truly magical and the fact that this particular hotel opening is right on my doorstep well, that’s on par with 75% off.

The Fairmont Windsor Park is set to open in Summer 2020, adjacent to the stunning Great Windsor Park and Savill Gardens it is going to be something quite special and I cannot wait for it to open.

The property becomes the third Fairmont property in the UK of which The Savoy and the Fairmont St Andrews are part of and is situated on the site of the former Savill Court Hotel and Spa. 

The property will boast 16 meeting and event spaces with a ballroom spanning 800 square meters (pillar-free no less).  Coupled with natural daylight throughout, some spaces with outdoor terraces and able to fit up to 700 guests, the property is going to be something of an event planners dream.

The Fairmont will have over 200 bedrooms in total (including a Royal Suite) all of which will be opulent in design and as the press release advised will “redefine luxury in the UK hospitality market”.

I am not going to pretend that this is not what I am most excited about and I do feel a little disloyal with what I am about to say to some of my favourites in the region, however… The Fairmont will also have a spa will be a very impressive 2,500 square meters in size. That’s huge and apologies hubs, I can see myself spending quite a bit of time there as it is literally, on my doorstep. I have heard a rumour that there will also be a Japanese Foot spa, a salt room and a hammam.

Equally important to the spa for me is the dining options and the property will have a tea lounge, a champagne bar, a gin bar, an all-day dining restaurant and its own speciality restaurant. So many exciting options for corporates and leisure alike. 

I cannot wait for this property to open and am really hoping for an invite to the launch party!

Do also make sure you subscribe to the Event Consult YouTube Chanel here where we will shortly be talking to John Swift, Head of Sales of The Fairmont Windsor and Windsor Mice in anticipation of the hotel launch.

Photo credit: The Fairmont Windsor

Spotlight on The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead venues…

Great Fosters is one of those properties you have heard of and, if you are a local like me, have some of the best memories of weddings, parties and family celebrations that have taken place there over the years. What you need to know about Great Fosters is that it is also the perfect property for corporate events and I am going to tell you why!

Not only is Great Fosters a four-star luxury property with its own Michelin Star, it has some of the most stunning meeting and event spaces and grounds just made for those all-important team building activities but, before I go on, I need to start from the beginning, from the journey your delegate would take and that ultimately is how they get there.

Great Fosters is a short taxi ride from Egham Station and only 42 minutes on the train from London’s Waterloo – mid-week, there tends to train every 30 minutes and the journey a pleasant one via South Western Trains.

On arrival into the 50 acres of beautifully appointed, landscaped gardens, Great Fosters stands glorious in all seasons, your arrival sets the tone for what’s to come and it is indeed beautiful.

The property boasts 43 bedrooms (a mix of suites), all individually styled and each more beautiful than the next with the majority having beautiful four-poster beds. 

When it comes to meeting rooms, as mentioned above you have a range of choices and the property can take up to 120. You can find the capacity chart here.

Great Fosters is a fabulous choice for your offsites, conferences and retreats and their rates are super competitive.

 For more information, reach out to the team here.  

Eventprofslive – Venue Showcase with Leading Hotels of The World & Mortimer House

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We Event Managers are a busy lot so last night’s event was a dream.  We had presentations from six different properties in a property none of us had been to before so it was a double win!

Last nights event was held in conjunction with Leading Hotels of The World and held at Mortmier House. Leading Hotels have their London office in the stunning Mortimer House and what a fab members club it is.

Mortimer House is located right in the middle of London in Fitzrovia and just a short stroll from Tottenham Court Road Station.  It is a hub for those who wish to create, work and unwind and find a balance between the three.  Its classic design over a variety of meeting and event spaces is well worth a look whether it be to take on a membership or, hire one of their unique spaces for one of your events.  As well as the various meeting and event spaces, the ground floor of the building is home to Mortimer House Kitchen servicing Mediterranean cuisine to the public as well as their members…  You can find more details on Mortimer House here.

On arrival our guests where checked in an taken up to the sixth floor where champagne was waiting.  After a quick catch-up with new members and old, it was time to meet our hotels and listen to a brief presentation on each.  Leading Hotels have 375 uncommon properties in 75 countries (worldwide) each one more stunning and unique than the next and we were fortunate the hear from the following properties each of which were all gorgeous and would all make wonderful properties for your offsite retreats, conferences and events.

You can click on below property links to find out about each property.

Hotel Plaza Athénée – New York
La Réserve  – Genève
Majestic Hotel & SPA – Barcelona
Okura  – Amsterdam
The Lowry – Manchester
Waldhaus Flims Alpine Grand Hotel & Spa – Switzerland

We learnt that The Lowry is the place to stay in Manchester (which we will be seeing on Friday), that the Hotel Plaza Athénée is refurbed every six months, that the Majestic Hotel & Sap in Barcelona is in the best location in Barcelona and that the Waldhaus Flims property is basically like a fairy-tale, it was out of this world gorgeous.

After our presentations, we had some pretty perfect bowl food and canapes.  A truffle ravioli, my all-time favourite arancini balls and the ever popular mini burgers finished off our evening wonderfully and we all had a great night.

A huge thanks to Leading Hotels of the World (Mickael) for allowing us the opportunity to see so many wonderful properties in one evening and to Mortimer House for their fabulous hospitality.  It really was a great Tuesday.

If you would like further information on any of the properties please reach out to us and we can put you in touch!

Eventprofslive FAM – Sopwell House

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We all agreed that Sopwell House is one of those hotels that you have heard great things about but for some reason you have never actually seen it and when we did, we were a little cross with ourselves…

Located in the stunning Hertfordshire countryside on 12 hectares of picturesque grounds, Sopwell house has 128 rooms and suites and over 300 years of history and… it is only 20 minutes from St Pancras international or, less than one hour from Heathrow by car.
We had a lovely group for our FAM with one new member joining us who was (quite rightly) a little nervous about her very first event with us but I am proud to say, loved it! Ha ha

We started our event by checking into our gorgeous rooms and then meeting Dina (Sopwell House’s wonderful Key Account Manager) in the relaxed lobby for a quick chat before commencing our site visit.
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Sopwell House has 18 meeting and event spaces, all with that important natural daylight and each one furnished to a high spec. We loved the private access to the main meeting rooms with a purpose build registration desk that would be very impressive on welcoming your groups to your event. You can see full capacity charts here.

One of the stops on our site visit was The Mews which is are something dreams are made of (for both leisure or corporate). The Mews are separate from the main hotel, located within secure gates and offer greater privacy. All of the suites have access to a hydro pool and communal gardens (designed by RHS Chelsea and Hampton Court Palace Flower Show Gold award winner Ann-Marie Powell) as standard some feature fireplaces, four poster beds and their own double ended romantic baths! There are 16 in total and would be perfect to take all of them for your board level meetings. Totally private and very high-end. We were fortunate to have our own private waiter within the stunning gardens where we sipped on champagne and some lovely canapes whilst on our site visit, we felt like proper celebrities.

After our site visit, it was off for an interactive BBQ on the terrace which was a great and would also be a great idea for your delegates, something different rather than the normal private dinner, in a meeting room (not that the meeting rooms weren’t lovely).

After dinner, we had a few wines in the main hotel bar, with more gossiping and then off to bed ready for a early start at the spa. Partnering with my favourite (Clairns) and ESPA (also one of my favourite spa brands), the spa offers a fitness centre, indoor pool and an abundance of treatments that you could add-on to your guest experience.

We loved Sopwell House, it is very well priced for events and the located to London makes it perfect for away days and conferences. For more information you can reach out to Dina here and for more information on Eventprofslive, you can email us here.

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Paris for events

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I would like to say it has been a while since I blogged… it hasn’t.  I am just over on eventprofslive and those blogs take up to a week to write (currently two) between my full time corporate events manager role, running Eventprofslive with Kate and having a bit of life, this blog gets a bit forgotten and I am going to try hard (get up even earlier?!) to get it back on track! I have had it for years and I loved writing for it…

Am currently in Paris on day two of a three day trip to scope out the best venues for a gala dinner, smaller dinners and just to build up my venue database so stay tuned. Blog to follow… Paris eventprofs

My Event Bucket List

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In the last two weeks I have introduced a bucket list at work.  The lovely ladies and I have stared a weekly bucket list of things we want to accomplish in the next week.  The list is everything from go to the gym 5 times this week to emailing our moms.  It got me thinking about my events’ bucket list so here is my top 5 locations I want to run events in the next five years:

  1. The Rainbow Room – NYC – I have been to NYC 15 times and it is one of my favourite places.  Every time I go I can visualise all the amazing conferences or events I could do there. The Rainbow Room opened in 1934 and was THE celebrity place. It has been mentioned in everything from a JD Salinger novel to numerous shout outs in Friends and to me, it is the epitome of NYC and to do an event there would be fab! 
  2. Grand Hotel, Wein – Vienna – Vienna is just stunning and to hold a conference  or a meeting followed by a Viennese themed ball would be amazing.  This hotel is breathtaking. You need to have a look!
  3. Burj-al-Arab – Dubai – I lived in Dubai for two years so am well versed with all the amazing venues.  Despite living there, I have run only one event, in the Mall of the Emirates,and would love to do something at some of the more opulent locations. The Burj-al-Arab has some amazing spaces for meetings & events.  Who wouldn’t want to hold a cocktail reception where Tiger Woods teed off. 
  4. MGM Grand – Las Vegas – Ahhh Vegas. I have only ever been to Vegas for holidays and running an event in the 6000 person capacity Marquee Ballroom would be just fantastic
  5. Galle Face Hotel – Sri Lanka – My husband and I stayed here a few years ago and it is so regal and the hotel is just so grand. I would love to run a smaller event here with a gala dinner in the grounds.  Everything about this hotel is perfect.  Great distance from the airport, amazing service and just beautiful.  

What are your top 5?

The Aviator by TAG

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I have found hotel heaven. Throughout my carer as a flight attendant, I have stayed in the most amazing hotels across the globe and now, as a Event Manager I am lucky enough to do the same.  Hand on heart however, The Aviator has just become my favourite.  Located in Farnborough, Hampshire, the hotel is just 35 minutes by train from London’s Waterloo and from there, just a 2 minute taxi ride to the hotel.

The Aviator was created by the TAG group, based overlooking their own private Farnborough airport.  The hotel oozes glamour and really is a design masterpiece. At every turn, you are reminded of aviation with the influence reflected throughout minute detail in the hotel.  There are 169 bedrooms in total, with a mix of studios, rooms and suites. My husband and I were lucky enough to stay in a suite on the 4th floor of the hotel (we were told this is the suite favoured by the owner) and it was just stunning. The suites contain a huge bath (with television), a wet shower, and feature an open plan design, making it fluid feel a little like home!  The king size bed was pretty terrific and a the room offers a complementary mini-bar which NEVER happens.  I usually get a bill for £50 for all the water and bottles of diet coke I get through after a big night out!

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When we arrived, Bradley and I had a tour with sales manager Simon. Simon is so passionate about the hotel and you can tell just how proud he is of it the way he talks about it.  It really is refreshing and his enthusiasm is contagious. The Aviator has 5 meeting rooms all aviation themed (obviously) with the smallest capacity being the Cody (20) and the largest Bleriot (150).   As well as the dedicated meeting spaces, the hotels restaurants, lobby, terraces and bars can all be used for an event. The things you could do with that lobby would be endless. It reminds me of the Guggenheim in NYC.  It is however, designed to look like a planes engine.

Dining wise, you have three options. The Brasserie which has an emphasis on locally-produced ingredients paired with boutique wines or One Eleven.  One Eleven is an informal British-American dining experience. I didn’t get to eat there but I will next time. It looked very cool and as I am partial to a burger or six, I am pretty sure it would be great.

Basically, #eventprofs (or anyone really), you need to see this hotel. The events you could hold here would win you an award! With 169 bedrooms, taking it exclusive use would be amazing. There are more than enough breakout areas, an event room that will take 150 theatre style for your seminar and the terraces would make for some fab entertaining spaces.

There are some amazing offers on this hotel at the moment. The best deal is £175 per room with breakfast for one of their Aviator rooms.

The Aviator Hotel

Farnborough Road, Farnborough,

Hampshire, GU14 6EL

T: +44 (0)1252 555 890

 

I love a wedding

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I love weddings, what’s not to! Being both a wedding and event planner meant I planned everything for ours however we still needed to pay (a lot) for a coordinator to actually run things on the day. Little things like getting the bridesmaids suitcases out from the hotel room, giving the string quartet the nod to start the music for me to walk down the aisle and most importantly all of those payments that needed to be made at the end of the night! I even needed mine to arrange more reception drinks and extend the bar tab because my guests drank a lot! What I could have used was just a well priced, qualified on-the-day coordinator to help me which is where Run My Wedding comes in.

Very reasonably priced for both a one off meeting to run through your plans or, full support on the day, the website is well worth a look!  Run My Wedding means you can plan the whole thing yourself and just have someone help you on the day!

Even just a meeting for an hour or two to go through everything with someone whom is a qualified professional can put your mind at ease.  They can also help to give you some alternative suggestions and advice on how to keep the cost low or if your wedding is a while off, help with venue suggestions or that all important bridal shower.

Runmywedding.weebly.com