Event Currents - WOW! Las Vegas

May 25, 2011

Tyler Davidson

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Francine McKanna, DMCP,
President, PRA Destination Management Las Vegas

Tel.: 702.973.1400
Fax: 702.973.1414
http://lasvegas.pra.com

What are a couple of your favorite restaurants in Las Vegas for groups?

Canaletto at the Venetian offers great ambience and is very flexible on space and pricing. We also enjoy showing things off the beaten path that people may not find on their own. A good example is Vintner Grill—a fantastic restaurant off the Strip with indoor and outdoor seating.

What primary services does your DMC provide, and what competitive advantages do you have?

The depth of experience on our team is a competitive advantage. Everyone has been in the DMC business for many years. In addition, we are an ADMC office, which is an industry accreditation in which you must meet certain criteria in order to receive it. I hold a DMCP as well.

We have a fantastic in-house florist, Jorge Cornejo, and a full-time product development manager, Elena Paige, who is constantly sourcing what is new in our city, as well as what meets our standards or has fallen below our quality-assurance levels. Also, we are part of a very large global company that ensures we meet quality standards within our organization and ensures a consistency for clients across the board.

What unique programs do you offer for groups?

Beer tasting in a local brewery, a tour all about the Mob in Las Vegas and a customized road rally that involves playing poker. We recently did a road rally that included guests driving luxury vehicles throughout the city. We also custom-design each and every decor and entertainment event that we propose. Nothing is off the shelf or coming out of a warehouse.

About the author

Tyler Davidson is the vice president and chief content director for Meetings Today, which publishes the meetings industry trade magazine Meetings Today as well as MeetingsToday.com, various newsletters, webinars, the in-person Meetings Today LIVE! Hosted-buyer events and other meetings and events industry B2B channels.

Tyler has covered the travel trade for nearly 35 years. In his role with Meetings Today, which recently won the prestigious FOLIO: Eddies Award for best magazine issue, Tyler leads the editorial team on its mission to provide the most in-depth meetings content in the industry. Previously, he worked as the Asia, Canada, Pacific Northwest and Western U.S. editor at Travel Weekly magazine and TravelAge West. Before joining the dual editorial staff producing destination sections for Travel Weekly and TravelAge West, Tyler was the Africa, Israel, Middle East, Switzerland and Pacific Northwest editor at TravelAge West. He also undertook general news and feature assignments while working at the magazines.

Besides reporting on the travel trade, Tyler has covered the real estate industry, held various editorial positions at the San Francisco-based national satire magazine The Nose, wrote freelance technology industry pieces and covered the San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders for a bilingual newspaper in San Francisco. He has a B.A. in Journalism from San Francisco State University, where he worked in various editorial capacities on its award-winning student magazine, Prism.

Contact: tyler.davidson@meetingstoday.com