Sustainability and wellness continue to be top priorities for most meeting planners, as attendees want to experience healthy, restorative activities when they’re out of the office. The Palms Hotel & Spa in Miami provides just that. Not only is the beachfront property an ideal escape for attendees, its Inspired by Nature program draws from the property’s natural surroundings to encourage that green practices and health ideals are brought to each attendee that stays here.
The Palms Aveda Spa, for instance, is designed to bring balance to the body and mind, with an ancient Ayurvedic holistic philosophy that encourages attendees to balance nature and life. Meeting planners can organize sessions that help motivate and inspire group members through effective services such as the stress-fix or chakra-balancing massages, according to Andrea Ferguson, director of sales for the property. The spa can also come to the group in the property’s more than 8,000 sf of meeting space.
“We are very flexible in catering to a group’s spa needs,” says Ferguson. “We can organize spa sessions including chair massages, hand massages, quick make-up touch-ups for women or facials for men taking place in the spa’s indoor rooms, meeting spaces or our outdoor tiki cabanas, and they can be scheduled at the [meeting’s] start, end or in between breaks.”
The property provides customizable catering menus that also have an emphasis on health and wellness, featuring dishes that use seasonal flavors and locally sourced ingredients. Groups can choose from the hotel’s breakfast and brunch menus (think colorful assorted fruit, parfaits, muffins and scrambled spinach and feta egg whites); buffet or a la carte lunch menus (including stuffed bell peppers, garlic grilled shrimp and seared natural sirloin filet); or the dinner menus (with ceviche, beef tartare toastettes, za’atar spiced salmon and spiced braised pork).
The property’s Inspired by Nature program is another example of the hotel’s healthy commitment. Its action plan includes green initiatives that help the hotel preserve its surrounding wildlife by reducing the negative impact its business has on the environment. In February 2013, the hotel became the only one in Florida and one of the only 40 hotels worldwide to receive a 4 Green Keys rating for its meetings and convention facilities.
“Hosting green meetings is becoming more and more common in today’s world,” says Ferguson. “With this program, we provide groups with sustainable meeting operations by reducing, re-using and recycling, as well as through other eco-friendly initiatives including quarterly beach clean-ups, an in-house Green Team and our participation in the Sustainable Hospitality Council—created to advance the awareness and adoption of sustainable practices.”
