Trinity Triple Challenge Auction site goes live to raise £20,000 for charities
For the fourth year Trinity is raising money for local charities through an online auction, with a target to raise over £20,000 for four charities. The site can be found at: www.trinityauctions.co.uk
The Trinity Triple Challenge is an annual event for each member of staff to visit 20 venues in a weekend either in the UK or overseas. Each venue is asked to donate a prize and those prizes are now being auctioned off for charity.
Over 300 ‘lots’ are up for auction and include: dinners, afternoon teas, weekend breaks, theatre and theme park tickets and much more.
Jacqui Kavanagh, CEO, Trinity Event Solutions said: “The Trinity Triple Challenge offers us a great way to raise money for charity whist the team enhances their venue and destination knowledge. The Challenge ties in to our ‘Destination Champion’ programme, where members of staff become a specialist in a city or region, carry out site visits and work with the hotels and venues to give first-hand advice to clients, as well as providing advice about the logistics and suitability for events.
“The Triple Challenge is now an integral part of our CSR values called ‘It’s not what you give it’s how you live’. We have a strong CSR programme and it is at the core of what we do. I’m proud that the challenge is now in its fifth year; I urge the industry to dig deep and help us to beat our £20,000 target.”
The site went live on Sunday 1st October and will be live for a month. The site launches with 100 lots and more will be added each week throughout October.
The four charities being supported were chosen by the Trinity team, they are:
According to a recent report by the Food Standards Agency, more adults are having allergic reactions to food because of the peer pressure to try different cuisine, take risks with foods they are unsure about, and not admit to known allergies due to embarrassment.
Unfortunately, the NHS does not hold data on specific food allergies but figures for overall allergies, which include food-related cases, are rising sharply. According to NHS Digital data, there were 25,093 hospital admissions for allergies in England in 2016, up by 36% from 2012.
For meetings and event planners, this presents significant challenges when menu planning.
Therefore, here’s our checklist of four things to consider when discussing food choices with hotels and venues.
Don’t be the cause of kitchen chaos
You may think that a choice menu for 600 guests will circumnavigate some of today’s potential dietary issues, but have you considered what impact that could have on the kitchen? If guests see a dish being carried to a nearby table of something they’d prefer, it’s amazing how quickly they remember a forgotten chicken allergy, just so they can switch to their favourite sea bass. At a hotel or venue, the catering staff have to treat everyone the same so if somebody says they’ll be ill if they eat a certain dish, that has to be believed and dealt with accordingly.
Leave individuals in expert hands
The advice from Executive Chefs is to select the best possible menu for the majority of your guests and don’t worry about the CEO who doesn’t like mushrooms or is gluten free. An experienced catering team will handle individual exceptions professionally, leaving you to focus on creating the right impression with exciting food for the majority of guests.
Put the onus back onto guests
As an organiser, ensure that you’ve done everything within your power to communicate to guests that, should they have an undeclared food allergy, they can discuss it in private with a senior member of the catering team or make staff aware with the use of a table card. Ideally, you want to focus on medical requirements rather than food preferences and be aware of the sensitivities of early-stage pregnancies. If you’re planning a buffet, all foods will need to be labelled with the correct dietary information.
A secret of the trade
The majority of hotels prepare for the unknown by catering for an additional 10% of guests who change their mind or reveal food allergies. This trade secret should be confirmed with your hotel catering team and increased if thought necessary. If someone has a serious allergy to an ingredient such as nuts, their dessert will need to be prepared in a completely separate area of the hotel or bought in from the outside. It is safer to assume that most hotel pastry kitchen are already contaminated by nuts (and that’s not just the pastry chefs!).
These four considerations were discussed in-depth at our most recent Meetings Voice forum, held at the Royal Lancaster London. Should you wish to join our next event or would like to discuss menu planning for events, please contact Trinity Event Solutions or email paula@trinityeventsolutions.co.uk
We recently held a Meetings Voice Forum for our clients and one of the items for discussion was pairing wine with the appropriate food. The team at the Royal Lancaster suggested following this great advice when discussing the wine choice at your next banqueting event to guarantee that perfect match between food and grape.
Event audiences will have diverse preferences so why not increase the appeal of the wine by serving two white and two red that match the food but have subtle differences in taste.
Sauvignon Blanc is a zingy wine that won’t be overwhelmed by tangy foods so it is well matched to dressings and sauces.
Delicate white wines, such as an Italian Pinot Grigio or French Chablis take on more flavour when matched with light seafood starter dishes.
Light-bodied, easy-drinking reds complement a chicken main really well and will hold their own with a jus. Try a 2014 Yering Station Pinot Noir from Australia to bring a bit of fruitiness to the meal.
If it’s a juicy red meat main such as steak or lamb, match it with a Cabernet Sauvignon. The firm tannins will refresh the palate after each bite of meat.
Beaujolais from the Brouilly area is meant to be enjoyed young and often, so can be a refreshing red wine to enjoy throughout the summer months, served chilled. It goes well with white meats but can also take a fairly strong fish such as sea bass or tuna.
Some cheeses match better with white wine, some with red. Yet almost all pair well with a dry rosé.
Ruinart Champagne is a delightful match with most desserts, especially raspberry cheesecake. It’s the oldest Champagne house still in operation and the bubbles die off quickly, making it both refreshing and easy to drink.
If you’d like to join us at a future Meetings Voice forum, please contact paula@trinityeventsolutions.co.uk or call Paula Calton on 01780 484050.
A recent industry report has looked at the effect of terrorism in cities where incidents have taken place as well as the impact on other destinations.
In the week following the March 2016 bombings in Brussels, occupancy rates in London fell by 24% and in Paris by 15%. The longer-term impact of the attacks in London and Manchester remain to be seen, the indications for May and June 2017 show that it has been less significant than expected. In the first week after the London Bridge attack, flight bookings from overseas travellers were down by 12% compared with the previous year. The following week this dropped to just 5%. After a small dip from 6-9 June, London’s hotel market was quick to recover.
Paris and Brussels suffered far more than London and Manchester, following the attacks in November 2015 and March 2016. Paris had 1 million fewer visitors in the first half of 2016 compared with the previous year. Hotels in Paris recorded a decline revenue in every month following the attack until December 2016. Brussels suffered a severe decline in the summer of 2016, although it did recover later in the year.
Recent currency movements appear to have helped the UK with the weaker pound increasing foreign visitors to the UK in 2017. It appears that although performance of hotels in Manchester and London can suffer because of global political insecurity, they are sufficiently robust that these one-off incidents only caused a small set back to an otherwise strong performance.
It also includes one of Aloft Hotel’s hip W XYZ bar, featuring live music from local musicians — part of the Live at Aloft Hotel series. A fitness center, a luxe lounge with complimentary Wi-Fi, and grab-and-go marketplace equipped with everything from light meals and healthy bites to make-your-own cappuccinos are other offerings.
It also has plenty of space for groups. There is 1,200 square feet of flexible function and event space, including Exchange (644 square feet), Tactic (582 square feet) and an outdoor terrace, called the “Backyard” (800 square feet). The meeting space includes fast and free Wi-Fi, 50″ flat-screen TVs with laptop hookup, DVD players, and A/V equipment.
It also includes one of Aloft Hotel’s hip W XYZ bar, featuring live music from local musicians — part of the Live at Aloft Hotel series. A fitness center, a luxe lounge with complimentary Wi-Fi, and grab-and-go marketplace equipped with everything from light meals and healthy bites to make-your-own cappuccinos are other offerings.
It also has plenty of space for groups. There is 1,200 square feet of flexible function and event space, including Exchange (644 square feet), Tactic (582 square feet) and an outdoor terrace, called the “Backyard” (800 square feet). The meeting space includes fast and free Wi-Fi, 50″ flat-screen TVs with laptop hookup, DVD players, and A/V equipment.
It also includes one of Aloft Hotel’s hip W XYZ bar, featuring live music from local musicians — part of the Live at Aloft Hotel series. A fitness center, a luxe lounge with complimentary Wi-Fi, and grab-and-go marketplace equipped with everything from light meals and healthy bites to make-your-own cappuccinos are other offerings.
The Aloft Philadelphia Downtown, has opened its doors. Directly attached to the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the new hotel features 179 loft-inspired guest rooms, with a modern, free-flowing design. Housed in the historic Liberty Title & Trust Building (constructed in 1925), the new property aims to maintain historic design details, such as the second-floor lobby’s grand ceiling and colossal windows.
It also has plenty of space for groups. There is 1,200 square feet of flexible function and event space, including Exchange (644 square feet), Tactic (582 square feet) and an outdoor terrace, called the “Backyard” (800 square feet). The meeting space includes fast and free Wi-Fi, 50″ flat-screen TVs with laptop hookup, DVD players, and A/V equipment.
It also includes one of Aloft Hotel’s hip W XYZ bar, featuring live music from local musicians — part of the Live at Aloft Hotel series. A fitness center, a luxe lounge with complimentary Wi-Fi, and grab-and-go marketplace equipped with everything from light meals and healthy bites to make-your-own cappuccinos are other offerings.
Aloft Philadelphia Downtown opens
The Aloft Philadelphia Downtown, has opened its doors. Directly attached to the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the new hotel features 179 loft-inspired guest rooms, with a modern, free-flowing design. Housed in the historic Liberty Title & Trust Building (constructed in 1925), the new property aims to maintain historic design details, such as the second-floor lobby’s grand ceiling and colossal windows.
It also has plenty of space for groups. There is 1,200 square feet of flexible function and event space, including Exchange (644 square feet), Tactic (582 square feet) and an outdoor terrace, called the “Backyard” (800 square feet). The meeting space includes fast and free Wi-Fi, 50″ flat-screen TVs with laptop hookup, DVD players, and A/V equipment.
It also includes one of Aloft Hotel’s hip W XYZ bar, featuring live music from local musicians — part of the Live at Aloft Hotel series. A fitness center, a luxe lounge with complimentary Wi-Fi, and grab-and-go marketplace equipped with everything from light meals and healthy bites to make-your-own cappuccinos are other offerings.
Trinity Event Solutions appoints Paula Calton as sales director to target growth
We are delighted to announce the appointment of Paula Calton as Sales Director.
Calton will be responsible for leading the new business team and for growing the agency’s venue finding client base. Her remit will also include the development and retention of existing clients.
Paula Calton, comments: “I’ve been with Trinity Event Solutions for nearly ten years and so I know our clients and the market really well. Not all venue finders are the same and we pride ourselves in our personable, creative and thorough approach. Our success has been built on relationships and developing a mutual trust – something I will enjoy nurturing with new clients as we continue to grow and build the agency.”
Jacqui Kavanagh, managing director, Trinity Event Solutions said: “We will be growing the agency in this next financial year – building on our existing growth from the many new venue finding client wins we have achieved in the past few months. Paula is perfectly suited to undertaking this role and in leading our agency in achieving even greater success.”
Calton was previously account director at Trinity Event Solutions for a number of key venue finding clients.
Security and Risk – Six top tips to select a venue
With the recent events of London and Manchester at the forefront of everyone’s minds, keeping event attendees as safe as possible has become another topic that corporate event professionals need to be expert in. Trinity Event Solutions hold regular Meetings Voice Summits for clients and potential clients to network and learn, and last week’s event focused on these issues. Venue selection can have a considerable impact on the security of an event, so here are six tips to consider:
Consider the venue’s location – is it set back from the road or does it have a private entrance? Venues that are set back will be harder to attack in a vehicle, and less likely to suffer from criminal surveillance too.
Check that the venue has CCTV on all entrance points so that they can monitor everyone who enters or leaves the venue. If they have CCTV then this is a great indication of a well designed security plan.
Does the venue have the ability to close off access to the building? Also is there an alternate route out of the building should one road be cordoned off?
Ask the venue about safe havens and invacuation. Do they have enough capacity for everyone attending and are they spread around the property?
Prepare your own simple security and emergency plan. Brief key staff and give them a printed copy. Discuss your plan with the venue and ask to see their security and emergency plan. They should be happy to share their plans with you.
Make sure you have the contact details and location of the nearest police stations, hospitals and if you’re abroad, the British Embassy
The next Meetings Voice Summit will focus on food and drink planning in the events industry and will be held in September, if you are interested in attending, please contact Paula Calton, Sales Director of Trinity Event Solutions on 01780 484050 or email paula@trinityeventsolutions.co.uk
Five new properties will open in San Francisco this year, and 20 more are in various stages of planning and development. Among the new hotels opening in the city are YOTEL San Francisco, a Japanese capsule-style hotel that will open this fall with 203 “cabins”; Virgin Hotels San Francisco, which will open this summer with 196 rooms; and Waldorf Astoria San Francisco, which will open in 2020 or 2021 with 171 rooms. Already opened, meanwhile, is Hotel VIA, which opened last week with 159 rooms and a 3,000-square-foot rooftop available for private events.
In recent years, San Francisco has seen increased hotel demand but stagnant hotel supply. Now that’s changing, according to the San Francisco Business Times, which reported last week that San Francisco has 4,685 new hotel rooms in the pipeline — 1,400 of which already are under construction. (For comparison, just 253 new rooms opened last year, when San Francisco welcomed a record 25.1 million visitors — the city’s seventh consecutive year of record-breaking tourism growth.)
Five new properties will open in San Francisco this year, and 20 more are in various stages of planning and development. Among the new hotels opening in the city are YOTEL San Francisco, a Japanese capsule-style hotel that will open this fall with 203 “cabins”; Virgin Hotels San Francisco, which will open this summer with 196 rooms; and Waldorf Astoria San Francisco, which will open in 2020 or 2021 with 171 rooms. Already opened, meanwhile, is Hotel VIA, which opened last week with 159 rooms and a 3,000-square-foot rooftop available for private events.
1,400 New Hotel Rooms Under Construction in San Francisco
In recent years, San Francisco has seen increased hotel demand but stagnant hotel supply. Now that’s changing, according to the San Francisco Business Times, which reported last week that San Francisco has 4,685 new hotel rooms in the pipeline — 1,400 of which already are under construction. (For comparison, just 253 new rooms opened last year, when San Francisco welcomed a record 25.1 million visitors — the city’s seventh consecutive year of record-breaking tourism growth.)
Five new properties will open in San Francisco this year, and 20 more are in various stages of planning and development. Among the new hotels opening in the city are YOTEL San Francisco, a Japanese capsule-style hotel that will open this fall with 203 “cabins”; Virgin Hotels San Francisco, which will open this summer with 196 rooms; and Waldorf Astoria San Francisco, which will open in 2020 or 2021 with 171 rooms. Already opened, meanwhile, is Hotel VIA, which opened last week with 159 rooms and a 3,000-square-foot rooftop available for private events.
Germany hosted 3.02 million events in 2016, a year-over-year increase of 18 percent, and 394 million event participants, up by less than 1 percent from 2015 figures, according to the annual Meeting & Event Barometer compiled by the German National Tourist Board (GNTB), the European Association of Event Centres and the German Convention Bureau.
The report also revealed that conferences, meetings and seminars made up more than half (58 percent) of the total of events held in Germany in 2016, a 5.6 percent jump over last year’s numbers. Another Barometer finding: The number of international delegates attending meetings, conferences and events in Germany last year increased by 18 percent year-over-year, for a total of 32.9 million international participants.
Germany Welcomed More Than 3 Million Events in 2016
Germany hosted 3.02 million events in 2016, a year-over-year increase of 18 percent, and 394 million event participants, up by less than 1 percent from 2015 figures, according to the annual Meeting & Event Barometer compiled by the German National Tourist Board (GNTB), the European Association of Event Centres and the German Convention Bureau.
The report also revealed that conferences, meetings and seminars made up more than half (58 percent) of the total of events held in Germany in 2016, a 5.6 percent jump over last year’s numbers. Another Barometer finding: The number of international delegates attending meetings, conferences and events in Germany last year increased by 18 percent year-over-year, for a total of 32.9 million international participants.
The site of the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow is in the city’s West End, only 300m away from the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) that includes the Clyde Auditorium for 3,000 guests and the Hydro Concert Arena with 12,500 seats. Also, the International Financial Services District, the Glasgow Science Centre and the Glasgow Media Centre are in close proximity to the hotel. The city centre and international airport are 2km and 10km away, respectively.
Besides 176 guest rooms, the Radisson Red will comprise a stylish Oui Bar & Kitchen, a rooftop bar, meeting space, a gym, and 78 parking spaces.
Opening in Q1 2018, the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow will be located adjacent to Scotland’s largest exhibition centre, and will feature 176 rooms. The new-build lifestyle select hotel ideally compliments Carlson Rezidor’s existing portfolio in Glasgow: the group already operates a Radisson Blu and a Park Inn by Radisson in the city.
The site of the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow is in the city’s West End, only 300m away from the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) that includes the Clyde Auditorium for 3,000 guests and the Hydro Concert Arena with 12,500 seats. Also, the International Financial Services District, the Glasgow Science Centre and the Glasgow Media Centre are in close proximity to the hotel. The city centre and international airport are 2km and 10km away, respectively.
Besides 176 guest rooms, the Radisson Red will comprise a stylish Oui Bar & Kitchen, a rooftop bar, meeting space, a gym, and 78 parking spaces.
Carlson Rezidor, one of the most dynamic hotel groups worldwide, is gearing up for the opening of the United Kingdom’s first Radisson RED hotel.
Opening in Q1 2018, the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow will be located adjacent to Scotland’s largest exhibition centre, and will feature 176 rooms. The new-build lifestyle select hotel ideally compliments Carlson Rezidor’s existing portfolio in Glasgow: the group already operates a Radisson Blu and a Park Inn by Radisson in the city.
The site of the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow is in the city’s West End, only 300m away from the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) that includes the Clyde Auditorium for 3,000 guests and the Hydro Concert Arena with 12,500 seats. Also, the International Financial Services District, the Glasgow Science Centre and the Glasgow Media Centre are in close proximity to the hotel. The city centre and international airport are 2km and 10km away, respectively.
Besides 176 guest rooms, the Radisson Red will comprise a stylish Oui Bar & Kitchen, a rooftop bar, meeting space, a gym, and 78 parking spaces.
Carlson Rezidor, one of the most dynamic hotel groups worldwide, is gearing up for the opening of the United Kingdom’s first Radisson RED hotel.
Opening in Q1 2018, the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow will be located adjacent to Scotland’s largest exhibition centre, and will feature 176 rooms. The new-build lifestyle select hotel ideally compliments Carlson Rezidor’s existing portfolio in Glasgow: the group already operates a Radisson Blu and a Park Inn by Radisson in the city.
The site of the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow is in the city’s West End, only 300m away from the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) that includes the Clyde Auditorium for 3,000 guests and the Hydro Concert Arena with 12,500 seats. Also, the International Financial Services District, the Glasgow Science Centre and the Glasgow Media Centre are in close proximity to the hotel. The city centre and international airport are 2km and 10km away, respectively.
Besides 176 guest rooms, the Radisson Red will comprise a stylish Oui Bar & Kitchen, a rooftop bar, meeting space, a gym, and 78 parking spaces.
Carlson Rezidor to open their first Radisson RED hotel in the UK
Carlson Rezidor, one of the most dynamic hotel groups worldwide, is gearing up for the opening of the United Kingdom’s first Radisson RED hotel.
Opening in Q1 2018, the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow will be located adjacent to Scotland’s largest exhibition centre, and will feature 176 rooms. The new-build lifestyle select hotel ideally compliments Carlson Rezidor’s existing portfolio in Glasgow: the group already operates a Radisson Blu and a Park Inn by Radisson in the city.
The site of the Radisson Red Hotel Glasgow is in the city’s West End, only 300m away from the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) that includes the Clyde Auditorium for 3,000 guests and the Hydro Concert Arena with 12,500 seats. Also, the International Financial Services District, the Glasgow Science Centre and the Glasgow Media Centre are in close proximity to the hotel. The city centre and international airport are 2km and 10km away, respectively.
Besides 176 guest rooms, the Radisson Red will comprise a stylish Oui Bar & Kitchen, a rooftop bar, meeting space, a gym, and 78 parking spaces.
