Surfside Inn and Suites opened, bringing endless summer to Orlando. Part of Universal’s Endless Summer Resort, the opening adds 750 guest rooms to Universal Orlando Resort.

Washington, D.C., has so many new and upcoming developments it can be hard to keep up. Here’s a run-down of what is new in the area for planners considering the city.

Southern Michigan’s FireKeepers Casino Hotel in Battle Creek celebrated its latest project with a groundbreaking ceremony in June 2019. Along with the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, the property began construction of a second hotel tower and additional amenities. The target completion date is late 2020.

Universal Orlando Resort announced plans for a new theme park, Universal’s Epic Universe, on August 1, 2019. The new addition marks the fourth theme park at Universal Orlando Resort and will nearly double its size, with tentative plans to open new hotels, restaurants, shops and an entertainment center in addition to the theme park attractions.

Former MPI CEO Bruce MacMillan has been named PCMA’s chief marketing officer, effective September 2, 2019. The organization also announced Michelle Crowley as its first chief growth and innovation officer, effective immediately.

Following recent mass protests that called for and resulted in Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosello’s resignation after a leaked text message scandal, Discover Puerto Rico assures travelers and meeting attendees the destination is open for business and on track for a banner year.

At Destinations International's Annual Convention in St. Louis, Missouri, the world’s CVBs came together to swap travel trends, industry insights and tourism case studies. Three meeting planners discussed how to best partner with CVBs for successful meetings.

The image of President Donald Trump standing in front of the U.S. presidential seal altered to include the symbol of a Russian double-headed eagle clutching golf clubs at Washington, D.C.’s, Marriott Marquis may be as horrifying to meeting planners as it was intentionally, or unintentionally, funny to the world.

PCMA and Destinations International announced plans to jointly launch an annual Destination Showcase event in Washington, D.C., beginning February 5, 2020. The partnership will connect meeting professionals with CVBs.

Meetings Today's Tyler Davidson spoke with Hilton's Daniella Foster, senior director of corporate responsibility, and Carole Munroe, director of portfolio, loyalty and content, about the hotel chain's many charitable efforts as it celebrates its centennial. This is a transcript of the Meetings Today Podcast interview.