Meeting planners consistently come away from their experiences in Boise, Idaho with a sense of surprise. This smaller but incredibly vibrant city has a range of options for visitors, who also report how easy it is to get around in the safe and friendly downtown.
Visitors will be pleasantly surprised at the adaptivity of the city’s nightlife. Despite all the challenges of the COVID19 pandemic, restaurateurs have persevered, and now the city is expecting as many as 10 new restaurants to open in the second quarter, a sign that Boise is beginning to spring forward.
Boise is buzzing with new development—including enhancements to the growing tourism industry. In the past three years, the City of Trees has doubled the number of downtown hotels that are within walking distance from the Boise Centre convention center. That translates to nearly 1,300 walkable hotel rooms.
The city’s primary meeting space, the Boise Centre, has added significant space while updating its spaces to help ensure a healthy and sustainable future. The Global BioRisk Advisory Council, or GBAC, recently granted the Boise Centre the GBAC STAR Facility Accreditation for its “commitment to ensuring a clean, safe and healthy environment for its employees, clients and their guests.” Groups have access to 86,000 square feet adjacent to the Idaho Central Arena, adding more than 17,000 square feet, for a total of 100,000 square feet, plus 5,000 stadium seats. That’s a lot of elbow room to allow for a variety of meeting sizes.
Additionally, the city of Boise has several historic, fun, and educational spaces to consider. Here’s just a few event sites that are just a little different:
- The Old Idaho Penitentiary and Idaho Botanical Garden: Whether it’s an after-hours party or an educational workshop, Boise’s once-functional prison and the beautifully curated native garden event site next door have a lot to offer event organize.
- JUMP: The one-of-a-kind facility began as an homage to the late founder of multibillion-dollar Simplot Company (and his impressive display of various tractors that have been used in various movies)and still leaves visitors shaking their heads in wonder.
- Urban Wineries: The Boise metro area has an abundance of local breweries, wineries, and cideries. Create a unique experience where meetings are moved out of a board room and into a barrel room. Local wineries like Telaya Wine Company, Cinder, and Coiled, to name a few, offer a variety of meeting spaces.
Visitors will find all of this energy surrounded by Idaho’s always-on outdoor activity, all accessible from downtown hotels and the convention center. Whether it’s hiking and biking on the nearby Boise Foothills or enjoying the Boise River there are many ways for visitors to distance themselves from the busy days in our friendly, clean, and safe downtown. Just remember, when it’s time to plan for a meeting in Boise, pack a comfy pair of walking shoes and be ready to be surprised.
Need more? Try Meeting Safely in Boise | Boise.org for travel updates and additional information.
