Think outside the meeting room The Chicago Southland offers unique venues, activites
Sometimes in planning a meeting or event, traditional is the way to go - and you'll find plenty of places to fill that need. In our 63 communities, the Chicago Southland has everything from small, intimate meeting spaces to midrange community/expo centers and college theatres to large-scale banquet halls, ballrooms and a convention center.
The Chicago Southland is affordable and convenient, located within 25 minutes of Chicago, near Midway and O'Hare International Airports. Our communities are accessible via several interstates: I-55, I-57, I-80, I-94, I-294 and I-355. We are within a five hours drive from eight different states.
We're experienced in planning more traditional meetings or events, but can offer much in the way of distinctive, unique, unparalleled settings that take your meetings and events from ordinary to extraordinary.
The Chicago Southland offers a host of unique venue meeting options with a multitude of customizable themes. Sports, food, history, arts, religion, cultural, rail fanning and nature are some of the focused themes that allow you to create great unique event adventures.
Sports venues offer minor and major league baseball, professional soccer, international live hunter/jumper equestrian competitions, shooting sports, disc golf and golf on 35 public and semiprivate courses.
Toyota Park is a world-class stadium and concert venue located southwest of Chicago and is home to the Chicago Fire Soccer Club and Chicago Red Stars. Guaranteed Rate Field is home field of the Chicago White Sox with Standard Bank Stadium hosting the Windy City ThunderBolts, a Frontier League team. With ample event space, these sports facilities make it easy to have a day of work and play.
Irons Oaks Environmental Learning Center is an ideal spot to incorporate team building into your meeting. A 1,300 square-foot conference room is paired with 38-acres of high ropes, a climbing wall and crate stacking to bring your business professionals together.
Maybe you want to get your gathering outside. Some outdoor attractions also contain indoor meeting space for a nice indoor/outdoor combo. You'll find over 40,000 acres of scenic forest preserves, a one-of-a-kind outdoor sculpture park of oversized art pieces and various nature centers offering a nice touch of outdoor recreation.
If you want to add some entertainment to your meeting or conference, the choices are many, from high speed go-karts at the newly-opened Accelerate Indoor Speedway & Events to exploring Brookfield Zoo to splashing around at White Water Canyon Water Park.
When it comes to food, the Southland offers a plethora of eateries where you can sample the area's best or customize your own little food tour. Whether you prefer thick or thin, local chains and mom and pop pizzerias give you a slice of the food scene and pile it on high. You won't want to miss out on visiting some of the Chicago Southland's 15 craft breweries, three craft distilleries, three tasting rooms and two locations of Cooper's Hawk Winery & Restaurant, an exciting, upscale concept that originated right in the Chicago Southland. Many of the Chicago Southland's food and beverage venues and eateries can accommodate large groups on site.
If your meeting fits best in a more traditional space, we have a number of mobile activities that can be brought to you, including bingo, wine tastings, escape rooms, team building, line dancing, sip & paint sessions, caricature artists, casino games and more. Mobile entertainment can be provided via dance show, DJ, comedian, psychic, game show or murder mystery dinner.
Keep in mind that social responsibility and community service projects can be intertwined with events. The Chicago Southland CVB can coordinate donation drop offs or suggest service projects that your attendees can participate in.
Contact our meeting expert, Mary Patchin at 888-895-3211 or Mary@VisitChicagoSouthland.com, who would love to help customize your next meeting or event, provide resources (including our new Unique Venue and Activity Guide), assist in securing facilities or coordinate site inspections. Ask about our complimentary event services and current meeting incentives making the Chicago Southland a perfect location for your next meeting or event. Whether you're looking for a more traditional venue for your meeting or you're thinking outside the meeting room, we're here to help.
• Mary Patchin is director of sales at the Chicago Southland CVB.