Plan Your Meetings

Want to shop, dine and hang out?

The historic downtown district known as Center City is the city’s real hub for shopping, dining and entertainment, as well as weekly live music events and street parties during the spring, summer and early fall. But the stretches of Main Street to the north and south of Center City also have shops, nightspots, galleries, restaurants, specialty boutiques, salons and spas.

Want to party in the street?

From March to September, Downtown Alive! is a Thursday night event that doubles as a weekly fundraiser for the Metropolitan Arts Council; between 5:30 and 8 p.m., Piazza Bergamo is transformed into a concert venue with live music ranging from pop and blues to reggae. Friday nights from April through September, Main Street Jazz at the Hyatt Regency has performances, a children’s activity area and other events from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Want to surround your group with culture?

The Peace Center not only presents theater, orchestra and ballet performances, it has multiple venues for groups, including an outdoor, riverside, 96-seat amphitheater, a conference center, onsite dining, and indoor and outdoor special event facilities. The Upstate Shakespeare Festival has a free Shakespeare in Falls Park series that plays May through August, and during the month of October.

Want to break out of the boardroom?

The Greenville Drive is a minor league baseball affiliate of the Red Sox. The stadium is a miniature Fenway Park with an interactive video screen, a party deck, group picnic area, lawn seating, and on-field entertainment and community events at each game. The Riverbend Equestrian Park has a petting zoo and instructional classes as well as corporate rentals for picnics and special events. The BMW Zentrum offers tours of a BMW factory, a 250-seat auditorium, a 60-seat conference room, a café and exhibit space. The Bi-Lo Center has executive suites and club seating for concerts and sporting events.

Want to stock up on gift bag goodies?

The Saturday Morning Market on E. Court St. downtown is open Saturday mornings from May to September; the Greenville State Farmers Market is open year-round. The Greenville Area Historical Society sells historic books, maps, artwork, notecards, and Christmas ornaments of historic buildings. The popular Mast General Store sells everything from wind chimes and tin toys to old-fashioned candies, handmade soaps and cookbooks.

Want to spice up a meal function?

Northhampton Wines hosts dinners, receptions, wine programs and parties for up to 50 guests; its Tasting Room has more than 5,000 bottles of wine, and its Wine Café handles wine-and-cheese receptions as well as formal, multi-course wine dinners. Stax’s Restaurant & Bakery also hosts wine dinners; its chef has a weekly television cooking show on Fox 21. The Overlook Grill overlooks Reedy River Falls and offers patio dining and picnic lunches. La Bastide is a fine French restaurant near the Crescent Mountain Vineyards in The Cliffs development, which also has inn accommodations and corporate programs. Coffee Underground has a café menu and a 70-seat theater/listening room, regularly hosting poetry slams and musical acts.

Want great steaks?

Chophouse ‘47 has an after dinner menu of fine cognacs and cigars. Larkin’s on the River is part of the Peace Center and caters events at the Wyche Pavilion. Restaurant O has private dining space for up to 20 people in its Wine Grotto and a 3,000-bottle wine list.

Want shopping?

Well-known retailers have shops in the $64 million Shops at Greenridge development and at Shops at The Point. Traditional malls include Haywood Shopping Mall and Cherrydale Point Shopping Center. The Prime Outlets at Gaffney has more than 80 designer outlet shops. Explore the specialty shops of Greenville’s Main Street, Augusta Road, West End Market and Historic District.

Want spousal programs or group activities?

Twigs Florist specializes in loose European-style floral arrangements and offers lectures, lunches and hands-on workshops; its special event facility Twigs Tempietto has indoor and outdoor meeting and event space. The Carolina Foothills Artisan Center in Chesnee has arts education, art galleries, educational seminars and workshops, and meeting space. Arts education also is available from Upstate Visual Arts and the Greenville County Museum of Art.

Want to entertain children?

The Children’s Garden encourages visitors to explore its flowers with all five senses; other attractions include a Hansel and Gretel cottage, a secret garden and a textile garden. The Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery has children’s tours and activities such as the Young Archaeologist Adventure Scavenger Hunt. The Hollywild Animal Park has feeding stations, a miniature steam locomotive and safari rides through the 100-acre facility. The Roper Mountain Science Center has a planetarium, a hands-on children’s lab and a butterfly garden. The Greenville Zoo has children’s play areas as well as exhibits of animals from all over the world.

Want to meet in a place with history?

The Westin Poinsett is a restored 1920s landmark that once hosted celebrities such as Amelia Earhart and Cornelius Vanderbilt. The open-air Wyche Pavilion is a converted tobacco warehouse, one of the oldest commercial buildings in the city. The Greenville Cultural Exchange Center is an historic home museum focusing on the history of Greenville’s African-American history; meeting and banquet space is available. Falls Cottage, in the Reedy River Falls Historic Park, houses a restaurant and art gallery.