How much fun can you take at your work conference?
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. PHOENIX—The conference at the 950-room JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort in early October had everything hotel industry folks could want: Panels with the CEOs of Marriott, Motel 6 and Wyndham. Outlooks on the economy, room rates and travel trends.
And an inner-tube race in the pool. Conferences and corporate retreats are back, and with them the heaping side of scheduled fun. Scan the lineup for your next conference.
Beyond the usual happy hours and golf outings, there’s karaoke, pickleball, yoga, casino night, guided hikes and, yes, lazy river races. It’s reinvigorating the age-old debate for attendees: Just how all-business are you? Are these conference extras a priceless chance to meet a prospective client or new employer outside the hotel ballroom—or cringey, forced fun that could even land you in the HR office or urgent care? Elyse Kirby, a national relationship manager for a company that helps property owners navigate insurance claims, is a fan. She has been to eight conferences this year.
In North Carolina, she signed up for goat yoga and a walking tour. At the Lodging Conference in Phoenix this month, she flew in early for a guided 6 a.m. hike in the Sonoran Desert the first day of the conference.
She was initially on a wait list and kept calling for a spot to open up. The Nashville resident calls the activities outside the regular sessions crucial. She switched jobs this year and was the only person in her company at the Phoenix conference.
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