Plan Your Meetings

Tips: October 2006

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Effective Jan. 8, 2007, all individuals traveling by sea or air from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean islands (except Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) will require a passport or another accepted form of official identification to enter or re-enter the United States. New regulations go into effect on land border crossings Dec. 31, 2007. If you’re taking your group offshore next year or to an exotic destination, now would be a good time to remind them to start the passport application process.

The World Clock Meeting Planner helps you coordinate virtual meetings and teleconferences with participants living in different time zones. Enter up to four different cities, and you’ll see a chart highlighting blocks of optimal times for virtual meetings in each zone and times to avoid.

Looking for hotel rooms at or below per diem lodging rates? Check out FedRooms, a government program that negotiates rates for planners and travelers. By 2007, the government plans to have up to 4,500 hotels participating in the program. Brand partners include Intercontinental Hotel Group and Hilton Unlike the government’s City Pair discount airfare program, use of FedRooms is not mandatory for federal travelers and employees, but it may become so as the government increases efforts to promote its use.

The new Early Bird Exclusives program offers advance-purchase savings on everything from single-day tickets to multi-day attraction tickets to vacation packages at Universal attractions in Orlando. Early Bird Exclusives are available from the Universal Orlando Resort’s Web site as well as other online travel portals, AAA locations, professional travel agencies and tour operators. The multi-day ticket gives holders up to seven days unlimited admission to both Universal Studios and Universal’s Islands of Adventure for $85.

Animal activist group PETA is keeping tabs on hotel menus, grading properties on their vegetarian and vegan options for diners. For more information, visit GoVeg.com.

Groups meeting in the Greater Phoenix area now can purchase a ShowUp Now Pass, a flexible discount pass good for museums and attractions throughout the Valley of Sun cities of Chandler, Fountain Hills, Glendale, Greater Phoenix, Mesa, Scottsdale and Tempe. One-day and multi-day passes are available in addition to special package passes; attractions include the Desert Botanical Garden and Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin West. For more information, visit showupnowpass.com.

The Atlanta CityPass helps groups make the most of their time in the city by offering up to 50 percent discounts on admission to the city’s biggest attractions: Georgia Aquarium, High Museum of Art, Inside CNN Atlanta Studio Tours, The World of Coca-Cola, Atlanta History Center and Zoo Atlanta. The passes cost $59 for adults and $45 for children ages 3 to 12. They are good for nine days from the first day of use, and may be purchased online at citypass.com or at local attractions. Directions to MARTA public transportation routes and a map of the Atlanta Tourist Loop, serviced by MARTA buses, are included with each pass. In addition, CityPass booklets have information on Atlanta neighborhoods and historic sites as well as places to dine and shop.

Also available is the Downtown Connects Card, a free, multi-day, multi-attraction card that gives visitors discounts on attractions as well as restaurants, hotels, entertainment, stores and museums in Downtown Atlanta. A citywide card, All Around Atlanta, is expected to launch in 2007. The Downtown Connects Card can be downloaded from downtownconnectscard.com; it also is available from Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau visitor information centers throughout Downtown. Visit atlanta.net  for more information.