thetravelingeventplanner-blog

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Travel Tips

Traveling abroad not only gave me a chance to see more of the world but I also had a chance to learn about traveling and tourism. Some of the major things I learned are tips that I’d like to share with future or veteran travelers who might benefit from them.

1.       Google maps works without data.

I discovered late in my travels that you can actually use google maps offline. It won’t let you search for locations but it essentially acts as a map with a somewhat accurate marker of where you are. This is very helpful for navigating because it doesn’t require internet access and you can even save locations to your phone so you can see where they are offline.

2.       Plan

 Make sure you plan thoroughly. When I first decide to study abroad me and my friends went and planned a few trips for weekends. We decided to leave some weekends to plan while we were there. Although the trips ended well, we weren’t able to fit as much in to the ones we planned later on and thus missed out on several things.

 3.       Know the currency

 It’s important to know what currency you need in each country. It’s easy to assume everywhere in Europe uses the euro but several place actually use their own currency (U.K. , Switzerland, etc,). So whenever you travel to a new country, be sure to bring some cash in the local currency so you don’t get stuck anywhere with no money or the wrong currency.

4.       Pack light

 This was a lesson I learned day one. I had to carry my bags up a flight of stairs and nearly pulled a muscle doing so. This is especially key when doing day trips on the train or bus since there isn’t a lot of room for baggage. The tricks with packing light are to pack, the repack, then repack again. Every time you pack, remove something you don’t need. I even recommend removing things you only think you might need. For example, I brought with me a huge laptop despite having a smaller already packed. I figured I might use it at some point but I never did, and it wasn’t easy lugging it around all the time. Packing light also gives you room for souvenirs when you eventually head home.

 5.       Go to events

 I want to stress this point a lot as I don’t think it’s often considered. It’s easy to go to tourism attraction when you travel however I highly recommend looking into events in the city or towns nearby. This is because usually events are one time things or don’t happen very often. Additionally, it isn’t something you can do back home. You might have events in your own city, but they will be different. It also gives you a chance to really experience the culture. Good local events are often related to the culture of that location so it gives you an idea of how they might live.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Rothaus

While on a day trip to Germany we had the pleasure to visit Rothaus, one of Gemrany’s most famous breweries. It is a brewery that has existed since 1771. It is a state owned brewery within the Black Forest. It has a variety of beers including one of my favorites, a half lemonade half beer mix usually called a radler.

We had a chance to tour the brewery and visit their tasting room/bar afterwards. I was interesting being able taste the beer after watching the process it goes through.

For me the whole brewery had this event feel, and that’s because it actually does host events. Not only can a tour/tasting be considered and event, but they also told us they host weddings and other events on site as well.

I personally think this is a great location for a wedding. It acts as a unique venue. Also you can set up tours and tastings to go on during the reception portion of the wedding. Additionally, the brewery is surrounded by great scenery that it is a great place for wedding photos too.

Brewery tours are a great way to engage tourists in the local culture, especially in Europe where beer and wine making is so important.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

The O2

While in London we did a wide variety of things but one of the reason we chose London was because of a unique event that was being held at a venue known as The O2. The event was an interactive exhibit about star wars. Guests can go through the exhibit and take pictures with props and concept art from the movies. Guests are also given a bracelet they can use at interactive stations scattered across the exhibit to create a custom character that they can see on screen at the end of the exhibit. It’s a very interesting way to give guests a unique experience and is something I’m going to remember when planning my events. The event was really fun but it’s not exactly what I wanted to talk about for this blog. What I wanted to focus on is the O2 because it’s become one of my favorite venues I’ve seen in a while.

 The O2 was built in 1999 but not used as it currently is until 2007. It hosts a wide variety of events every year ranging from music, sports, entertainment, exhibition, cinema, etc. It is a multi-purpose complex filled with various types of venues and restaurants. The complex surrounds an arena used in the 2012 Olympic Games and is currently used for concerts and sports events. Around the arena is what’s known as the Avenue. It holds several restaurants and small shops. Throughout the whole complex there are several smaller venues used for clubs and small concerts. Additionally there is a two floor exhibition centre which is where the star wars exhibit was. On top of all of that it also contains a cinema that can be rented out for screenings. It’s also right near a bus station and train station for easy transportation.

 The reason I like this venue so much is because of its flexibility for any event. It’s sort of like an entertainment hub which I find really appealing for the types of events I want to eventually plan. Someday I hope to come back to London and plan some sort of exhibition or large party in The O2.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Lucerne

I spent this last weekend in the city of Lucerne, Switzerland and it was amazing. As both a traveler and an event planner I was so pleased with everything I saw. Not even minutes after stepping off our train we were greeted by a local marching bands playing for what appeared to be a festival taking place right there in the train station.

It was truly a unique experience to walk through an event right inside a train station. For that weekend I was inspired to look for odd or different venues that people might not always think of.

The first one I noticed was The Kapellbrücke, a wooden bridge in the city center crossing over the river that divides the city. I specifically thought of this as a perfect spot for some sort of cocktail party. Whether it’s for a wedding, business, or just a social it really creates an unforgettable experience. In terms of feasibility however it seems pretty plausible. Guests can enter the event through either end of the bridge. Hor d'oeuvres will be walked through the bridge for guests to enjoy. Music can be played throughout the bridge with speakers hooked up to the ceiling as to not abstract the beauty of the bridge. The only concern would be washrooms, however it possible to set up washrooms at both entrances for guests to use.

We took a boat tour through the lake and while on the boat I was thinking it would a really interesting place to hold a meeting. The boat had tables that could be rearranged to suit the meeting space. A small kitchen is on board so some snacks or light meals could be prepared. It offers a relaxing view for what could be a strenuous meeting.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Traube Tonbach

After seeing Badan Baden we got to spend time seeing a hotel in The Black Forest called Troube Tonbach. It was a very high end location that showed a lot of potential as an event venue.

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to see any of the meeting rooms but I’ve gathered information on their website and discovered that not only do they host events but they also have several other venues around the black forest.

Hotels are great places for events because they offer guests a convenient mix of entertainment, residence and food. Guests can live and eat in the same location as their event allowing them to travel to the event and experience more events on a world wide scale.

Some of their venues include:

Traube Tonbach Restaurants

The various restaurants within the hotel offer plenty of unique space for various events.

Blockhütte

A rustic cabin like restaurant in the black forest.

Pudelstein cabin

A cabin not far from the main hotel available for any event.

Traube Court

A large venue for bigger scale events

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Baden Baden

Baden Baden

 When going through unique and fun venues for an event, Baden Baden comes straight to mind. It combines eloquent architecture with beautiful colors to provide a luxurious venue for any event. I had the pleasure to see firsthand what it had to offer and I was far from disappointed.

Firstly you are greeted with a fabulous lobby that truly captures its atmosphere. Here is an excellent location for registration or perhaps cocktails before the main part of the event. This area has washrooms separate from the rest of the casino allowing a cocktail reception to take place without guests needing to walk through the other rooms to use the washroom.

Here is just one of the many amazing rooms found throughout Baden Baden. The first thing to note about these rooms is the intricate detail on the walls and ceiling. This effectively eliminates the need for decor because the rooms themselves are so stunningly beautiful that it creates an atmosphere its self.

Bars are one of the most important things at any event so any venue with its own bar is an event planners best friend. The bar at Baden Baden includes a wide variety of drinks as well as plenty of space for guest to spread around without the need for a long line. Surrounding the bar are also plenty of tables and chairs. It goes without saying that these are essential in every event so planning an event here knowing the tables already fit is another relief off an event planners back. This area of Baden Baden is a restaurant which means the venue comes with a well-stocked kitchen for hor d'oeuvres or main meals to be prepared in.

This is just another example of the grand room’s available in Baden Baden. There are so many rooms with unique styles that it creates potential for small and large scale events alike. Conferences can have booths set up in some rooms as well as guest speakers in others. Weddings can have the ceremony, reception, and diner all in a different rooms so that all the set up can be done pre-wedding.

 Now despite being an excellent place for any kind of event it has one major flaw which is that it only hosts weddings and only holds one a year. This makes sense considering it is primarily a casino however still disappointing from a event planners point of view. That said, these ideas and topics can still be applied to the weddings they hold and any potential events should they decide to host more.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

Agora

Earlier this week I joined my peers as we made our way into the city center to visit a club recommended to us by our coordinator. It was my first experience going to a club so I was excited to see how it would go. When I got there it sparked inspiration in me to write a post about clubs being used as venues. I will be mostly talking about Agora as it is the club we visited.

 On top of what I’ve learned in my studies, I’ve always considered clubs to be a very versatile type of venue.  Although they don’t work well with large scale events, clubs like Agora provide excellent space for smaller more intimate kinds of events. The space allocated for dancing in the club also gives room for various styles of décor or even tables if the event includes a sit down dinner. In the case of Agora, and some other clubs, there is a small stage/up rise in the floor that can allow for a speaker or presenter to be seen more easily by attendees at the event. Additionally since the club is already equipped to handle music, this will cut costs on the AV side of the event planning process. Some clubs are also attached to bars which often include kitchens. It ranges from club to club but the ones that do have kitchens provide one less thing an event planner would have to worry about. The obvious benefit to the club is also the pre-equipped bar and well trained bar tenders. Having a bar is key in most events and in many cases it can be difficult to set up and find good bartenders. Using a club as a venue removes that hassle and provides a secure bar service. The last major point to touch on are the bathrooms. Events need lots of bathroom space and since clubs are set up to accommodate a large amount of people and so are their bathrooms, meaning they could handle the likely smaller group of people attending an event.

 Now having looked at those pros there are a several cons to this as well. First off being the types of events the club might allow. It differs from club to club but some only allow club like events while others are more open to various styles. Another potential issue is space. I know I already talked about space in the pros part of this entry however is fits in as a potential con as well. This is because although clubs have plenty of space, the space isn’t always oriented in a fitting way for an event. Clubs have steps, slants, pillars, walls, bars, benches, etc. spread all over the club that could get in the way of the event set up.

 I also had a chance to briefly interview someone from agora to ask them a few questions about the events they hold.

How many events do you hold?

She told me they only host around 1-2 events a week. Some weeks they don’t host any events because they either don’t have any inquiries or they want to keep the club open for a peak night.

What types of events do you host?

Mostly just birthday parties, business parties, or some other type of event. I also asked if they do wedding parties and they said they’ve never had a request for one but the person I was talking to didn’t think they ever really would since Agora isn’t really easy to get to from anywhere a ceremony would take place.

What is the price range?

Unfortunately she wouldn’t give me and specific numbers unless I was making a serious inquiry, however my research for clubs told be roughly $1000-$3000 for the night.

[thetravelingeventplanner-blog]

The Events Industry In Strasbourg

To start my blog entries off I wanted to broadly talk about the events industry within Strasbourg and the Alsace region. In this post is going to talk about a two things specifically. First, I’m going to share my thoughts on the city of Strasbourg in terms of the event industry and venue space. Secondly, I will talk about what I’ve discovered through researching the events industry in Strasbourg.

 At first glance Strasbourg seems like a small town with little to offer in terms of events. However once I began to explore the city and seeing what it offered I gained a better insight on what Strasbourg can do in terms of events. The first thing I noticed was the constant stream of both locals and tourists. With Strasbourg housing the European parliament, as well as being an iconic landmark for unique culture, it creates a hotspot for tourism. This increased tourism in my opinion is a great asset for the event industry here as it creates new demographics that are easy to target for events. The second thing I noticed was the unique culture. Strasbourg has had history as both a German City and a French city which has given it a unique cultural footprint. The reason I am applying this to events is because a cities culture can often be seen through the events it runs. With a unique culture like Strasbourg, a city can run unique events that will draw in more attention. Another final point I am going to touch on with this topic is the venue space. Now although I haven’t been able to see inside many buildings yet to explore some of those event venues, I have noticed a plethora of areas around the city that are perfect for various types of events.

 Now that I have shared my first impressions on the industry in Strasbourg, I want to share some research I’ve done on the industry. Overall, much like any other city Strasbourg is filled with events all year round. Because of this, it was difficult to sift through and find specific ones to focus on. One thing I discovered that I was surprised by was that Strasbourg has a convention center. This is key for any city as it can bring in large events from all over the world and draw more tourism to the city. The unique thing about this convention center versus others is that it doubles as a concert hall. While searching through their website to see what events were being held I saw many concerts and shows being performed in the upcoming months. One event in particular that stood out to me was the European Exhibition of Second-hand Shops and Antiques. This is an event held 4 times per year that brings over 120 antique dealers into Strasbourg for a public show/flea market. In addition to researching events, I also tried to find event companies within the city with little to no luck. I found it difficult to find specific event companies, and was only able to find one that I could confirm as an event focused company. The company is called GL events and operates not only within Strasbourg but all over France. They do a variety of events for public and private clients.

 That is all for today’s blog. I hope you enjoyed it. I will be back later this week to talk more in depth about what I’m learning about the events industry.