Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek

Type: Venue Review

Orlando, FL

Overview: Hilton Bonnet Creek has primarily taken over as the go to event venue at Disney. 

Ballrooms: There are two very large ballroom spaces.  The Bonnet Creek Ballroom and the Floridian Ballroom.  Both ballrooms share a side foyer so there needs to be attention given to audience flow if you have the Floridian Ballroom.  When we have worked in the entire Floridian, we have used the side foyer for entrances which works out well.  Some clients have used the connected foyer as an audience lounge area or vendor booths.

Event Space: Multiple breakout rooms are directly below the ballrooms and the dock is workable but is a shared space so coordination is key.  The hotel is connected to the Waldorf Astoria which also has ballroom and breakout space.

Challenge: The walk to the Floridian ballroom is a little far from the attendee elevators and you pass through the Bonnet Creek foyer. 

Solution: We have done some interesting displays (demonstrated above) to brand the Floridian space which we would be happy to share.

Producer’s Notes: Bonnet Creek is definitely a hotel that should be on your site visit list for larger events in Orlando.

Terranea Resort

Rancho Palos Verdes, CA (near Los Angeles)

Overview: When I need a high-end resort to hold an event, this is the first place that comes to mind. Located about 40 miles from LAX (closer to Long Beach airport) this is truly a gorgeous property.

Ballrooms: The property has a couple of large ballrooms and multiple breakout rooms. Rigging in the ballroom is easy and the ballrooms themselves are beautiful. The main ballroom features street level doors for easy load-in and load-out.

Note: There is truck parking but make sure you arrange this ahead of time and confirm. This property is very aware of its image and trucks need to be in select designated areas. Deliveries from outside vendors also required some attention to detail, but was easy with the right amount of pre-production.

AV Staff and Equipment: We really didn’t use in-house AV for anything other than rigging.

Location: This is a destination resort so attendees really don’t have to leave the property for anything. While expensive, there are numerous restaurants and bars on the property and the areas for outdoor receptions are, like everything else, exceptionally beautiful.

Con: The cost. This is not an inexpensive property to stay or work at but if budget allows, this should definitely be a property to look at.