The new Michelin Guide to Florida describes Tampa’s SuperNatural Food & Wine as “a bright mood-elevating kind of place,” which might also be a suitable description for the city. It’s pretty rare for a restaurant specializing in sandwiches to earn a Michelin star—and that’s just one of the delicious surprises about tasty Tampa.

“In 2023, the culinary scene in Tampa Bay saw significant recognition as three of its restaurants—Koya, Rocca and Lilac—were awarded prestigious Michelin stars,” says Adam DePiro, vice president of convention sales for Visit Tampa Bay.

And that trend continues this year with even more restaurants in Tampa receiving the notable nod, bringing the total number of Michelin-starred restaurants here to 30!

The accolades continue as Tampa Bay is listed as “one of the Coolest Cities in America,” “Most Fun Cities in America,” “Best Places to Travel in 2023,” “10 Best Beer Cities” and more, giving groups a lot to work with, whether for a conference or incentive.

The Tampa Bay Convention Center has completed a $44.5 million expansion which brings their waterside space up to 600,000 square feet, conveniently serviced by more than 3,000 nearby hotel rooms.

“With new products like JW Marriott, EDITION and renovations to existing properties like Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, Tampa is attracting more corporate meetings and conventions than ever before,” DePiro says.

The JW Marriott has 579 bedrooms and 88,325 square feet of meeting space, the 172-room EDITION Tampa has 28,026 square feet of meeting space and the recently renovated Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay has 443 rooms and 28,000 square feet of event space. The Epicurean Hotel completed a $21 million expansion, bringing their room count to 188 and pushing their event space to over 7,300 square feet.

“Attendance figures are strong,” DePiro continues. “Tampa, as a destination, frequently draws above-average registration due to its destination appeal. With the support of our hospitality community, meeting professionals have been able to increase contracted room blocks and add overflow properties to keep up with the demand. Recent hotel openings in the convention district have helped.”

Another local innovation is a turnkey offsite event called Unlock the Block.

“Unlock the Block elevates attendee engagement—it is an exclusive block party at one of Tampa Bay’s premier offsite event spaces,” DePiro explains. “Attendees are treated to a night of culinary delights and entertainment, with private access to the event spaces. Furthermore, attendees can explore complimentary offerings from various participating vendors, ensuring a dynamic and immersive experience.”

Fort Lauderdale

Crossing the state, Fort Lauderdale welcomes guests to 24 miles of sandy beaches and 300 miles of inland waterways. It also boasts 35 golf courses, all of which provide planners with numerous fun and team-building program elements.

“The Fort Lauderdale Water Taxi is a great way for groups to experience the city via waterway,” says Mike Pouéy, CHIA, vice president of business development and sales operations for Visit Lauderdale. “It grants you access to 20 stops and offers historic tours to famous landmarks.”

The Water Taxi has five styles of boat which are available for charter for groups of up to 125 guests. There are, of course, numerous other charter options to enjoy the area.

On land, the Broward County Convention Center’s recent expansion has taken their largest exhibit space to 350,000 square feet.

“This allows us to host much larger shows,” Pouéy says. “The center is currently open, however, there is ongoing construction as we are in the middle of phase 2 of a billion-dollar expansion which includes a new east convention center building with a 65,000-square-foot waterfront ballroom and a six-acre outdoor tropical waterfront plaza with dining and entertainment in a park-like atmosphere.”

An 801-room OMNI headquarters hotel attached to the convention center is scheduled to open in 2025, bringing the venue’s total square footage to 1.2 million, Pouéy says.

Adjacent to the convention center is the 595-room Hilton Fort Lauderdale Marina Hotel which has a further 37,050 square feet of meeting space.

Fort Lauderdale has 155 beachfront hotels and resorts, an inventory that will grow later this year with the addition of the 32-acre Pier 66 Resort & Marina.

“It will be in a luxury category of its own, offering glamorous restaurants, stunning views of the marina and intracoastal waterways and 40,000 square feet of space in three dividable ballrooms, eight meeting rooms and three pool decks and lawn,” Pouéy says.

If you thought you knew these destinations, there are a lot of new properties, tastes and experiences to work into a program.