Theme Parks Put on Party Hats for Convention Goers

ORLANDO (Orlando Sentinel) – By day, an estimated 100,000 building industry professionals roamed the Orange County Convention Center this week looking for new customers and products. But at night, large crowds moved to the theme parks, where corporations tried to impress clients by outdoing each other with private, themed dinners with price tags in excess of $90,000 for just a few hours of exclusive access to attractions. Orlando's theme parks are often a major lure for the nation's most-attended and biggest-spending conventions and, in turn, reap the rewards of deep-pocketed corporations trying to top competi-tors. Last year Walt Disney World and SeaWorld Orlando became Gold Key Members to the convention center, a distinction that gives them an inside track to attendees and their expense accounts. Universal has held that status for about four years. In exchange for $125,000 a year in cash and products, the parks are included from the beginning stages of negotiating and planning a convention, giving them more ac-cess and time to market their private parties to each show's decision makers. "They're looking for ways to differentiate themselves from their competition at the show," said George Aguel, a senior vice president of Walt Disney World Parks and Resorts. "You can't really duplicate that anywhere else in the country."

• On Friday night, Disney planned to host a nearly 400-person party and dinner at Animal Kingdom's African village with a private showing of the park's Festival of the Lion King for Window Classics, a window and door company in town for the International Builders' Show. In addition to the exclusive access to the park, the company also arranged for buses to pick up its clients who are attending. "It's the hot ticket," said Joel Garcia, the Florida-based president of Window Classics. "Everybody wants to try to get invited." The company is spending about $90,000 on the party, about $20,000 more than it dropped last year on an event at Epcot.
• Universal hosted several private events, including a party at CityWalk on Thursday night for 4,000 members of the National Association of Home Builders. Other events at Universal include Revenge of the Mummy themed parties with food, entertainment and ride access.
• SeaWorld spokeswoman Becca Bides said the park hosted several events this week. Typically, par-ties range from luaus on the beaches of Discovery Cove to cocktails at the Shark Encounter. Prices, she said, can vary just as much. "It is a lucrative business for us," Bides said.

The parks, which also host conventions at their facilities, have for years offered event-planning services, but are now realizing the benefits of Orlando's growing convention business. Kathie Canning, deputy general manager of the convention center, said the theme parks are helpful when Orlando is competing with other cities such as Las Vegas for big conventions. "We're putting forward a united effort and the cli-ents feel wanted," Canning said. "We're showing our clients that the theme parks are not just for the tour-ists, but they can do major entertainment events with groups."