Naples: Luxurious gateway to Marco Island and the Everglades
Want golf?
The Greenlinks Golf Resort & Conference Center has 36 holes of championship golf at the only Robert Trent Jones Sr. signature course in town. Other amenities include 200 two and three-bedroom villas, and a conference center with 3,000 square feet of function space. The two Greg Norman-designed golf courses at the AAA Five-Diamond Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, have earned the resort, and its Tiburón Golf Club, top marks from Golf Digest and Condé Nast Traveler. For beginning golfers or VIPs looking to improve their game, local golfing schools offer clinics ranging from an hour to five days in length. The Tiburón is home to the Rick Smith Golf Academy; other golf academies include the Faldo Golf Institute at The Rookery at Marco (Marco Island Marriott Resort, Golf Club & Spa) and the David Leadbetter Golf Academy at The LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort. Resorts can put together custom team-building programs, too.
Want to create a shopping tour?
Fifth Avenue South, in the heart of historic Old Naples, is the place for serious shoppers to start looking for art (Jamali Fine Art, Murano Glass Gallery of Naples, Shaw Gallery), costumes (Masquerade), eclectic home furnishings (Peach Tree Designs), apparel (Brodeur Carvell Fine Menswear), jewelry and other specialty items. Third Street South is close to the Naples Pier and bordered by the Gulf of Mexico and Naples Bay; the district has restaurants, art galleries (Eckert Fine Art-Naples, Galerie du Soleil), upscale clothing boutiques (C. Orrico-A Lilly Pulitzer Signature Shop, Eileen Fisher, Tommy Bahama’s) and specialty stores. Naples’ antique district is around Central Avenue and 10th Street.
Want to make attendees feel at home?
The Bellasera Hotel has 90 one-, two- and three-bedroom suites, all of which have kitchenettes and overlook the central, Mediterranean-inspired courtyard. There also are 10 kitchenette studio units, which have views of the pool area. The hotel’s conference center has 4,000 square feet of meeting space, including an executive boardroom and an outdoor terrace.
Want group dining?
Planners can create multi-venue dine-arounds and themed events at restaurants Chops City Grill, Pazzo! Italian Café, Yabba Island Grill and Blue Water Bistro. Waterfront dining and private parties are available at the Riverwalk at Tin City (off Fifth Avenue South) and the Dock at Crayton Cove (at 12th Avenue South and Naples Bay). The courtyard at Tony’s Off Third is available for private wine tastings and cocktail parties for groups of up to 50 people; sister restaurants Ridgway Bar & Grill and Bayside Seafood Grill & Bar also have private dining facilities. Blu Sushi is known for signature cocktails and inventive sushi rolls. Bice has a private room for up to 60 guests, indoor and outdoor dining space for 180, and a catering department. Bistro 821 is a steak and seafood restaurant with a South Beach vibe, private dining (30 guests) and a 100-seat dining room.
Want creative venues?
At Ngala, a private wildlife reserve, attendees can go on safari, enjoy exotic tented banquets and outdoor torch parties, and socialize with chimps, giraffe and other wild animals. The Philharmonic Center for the Arts hosts the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, the Naples Museum of Art, touring Broadway shows and nationally known performing artists; venues include a 1,425-seat auditorium, a 200-seat theater, a glass-domed conservatory, a garden café and 15 galleries of art. Groups can take after-dark tours of the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens and private cruises through islands inhabited by monkeys. The Conservancy of Southwest Florida has educational programs and tours of Rookery Bay, Clam Pass and the Everglades; a wildlife rehabilitation center; and an outdoor pavilion. Groups can take eco-adventure tours and airboat rides around the Everglades and the islands surrounding Marco Island. The Naples Botanical Garden has a stunning banquet room and outdoor event areas
