The JW Marriott Tampa has unveiled a wellness-driven approach to meetings.
Blending boardroom sessions with wellness experiences is at the core of JW Marriott Tampa Water Street’s new Stay Like a Champion offering, which incorporates workouts, clean eating and restorative sleep—key components for groups aiming to stay energized, focused and productive on the road.
Following three tracks—Train Like a Champion, Sleep Like a Champion and Nourish Like a Champion—the Stay Like a Champion experience, says Erica Tortora, Director of Marketing for both the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street and sister property Tampa Marriott Water Street, was “conceptualized about a year ago and was derived from the Marriott Bonvoy Convention & Resort Network to create an experience that can be sold to leisure guests but can also be scalable to groups. We wanted to think about something that was unique to Tampa but also celebrate the luxury ethos of JW Marriott.
“The city of Tampa is a city of champions; we’ve got championship teams and the hotel is a stone’s throw from the Benchmark International Arena, where the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team plays. Our GM has an incredible relationship with the Lightning, so we thought how can we blend sports and luxury, and that’s how we came up with Stay Like a Champion.”
Inspired by Tampa’s Championship Culture
That collaboration helped shape each track through conversations with the Tampa Bay Lightning. For the Nourish track, they spoke with the team’s nutritionists, who worked with the hotel’s culinary team to curate the meals. For the Train track, they spoke with the conditioning team, who worked with fitness instructors to curate guest workouts. The Sleep track taps the onsite spa, where select therapists are trained in the Drift Somnia Ritual—a massage designed to ease muscles and senses into deep sleep—along with in-room touches like a sleep-forward beverage, a curated playlist and a sleep mask.
I got a taste of the experience during a recent 3-night stay at the hotel—where my spacious and elevated Corner King room, sitting on the 21st floor, overlooked the Benchmark International Arena. On the Nourish track, I cooked a healthy—and delicious—salmon dish with the hotel’s Sous Chef, Pedro Passalacqua, at the onsite Driftlight Steakhouse. Well, mostly he cooked and I watched, along the way getting tips on how to bring together high-quality protein, vegetables and heart-healthy fats into a well-balanced meal designed to fuel performance.
I experienced the Train track, during which I had a one-on-one with a personal trainer at the hotel’s gym. This time, I did most of the work, following a routine tailored to my needs as a frequent traveler. The trainer also shared practical, take-home tips—exercises I can do in hotel gyms or even in-room when time is tight. The two tracks I participated in were complemented by a welcome sleep mask and healthy juices—offering a glimpse of what planners can incorporate into attendee experiences.
When it comes to applying the Stay Like a Champion package to groups, Tortora tells Prevue, “Think about kick-off sessions or breakout sessions. A lot of groups will have a morning run, so the trainer can come in and curate the workouts throughout the week.” With regard to the Nourish track, “you’re not necessarily doing the cooking class but perhaps the lunch break is curated with that nourishment in mind.
“It can be scalable from a small incentive trip to a large conference. Our team is well equipped for it,” she notes.
This experience, she adds, is about “curating something based on people’s priorities outside of going to the conference, sitting in the meeting room all day….”
When it comes to their meetings and events offerings, the 519-room and -suite JW Marriott Tampa and the 727-room and -suite Tampa Marriott Water Street—connected by a glass skybridge and located a short walk from the river-facing Tampa Convention Center (TCC)—offer over 150,000 sf of connected meeting space with five ballrooms and 42 breakout rooms. Three standout meetings and events spots at JW Marriott are the 425-sf
glass Skybox, perched above the hotel lobby; the river-viewing Beacon Rooftop Lounge, located on the 27th floor and as such the city’s highest rooftop bar and restaurant; and the sixth-floor Event Lawn.
City Vibes
The Water Street area, home to the Marriott properties, is buzzing with activity and is an ideal spot for groups. Home to the TCC, the area also places many of the city’s event venues within walking distance. From the Tampa Riverwalk, groups can charter a Pirate Water Taxi for a scenic way to experience the city (among the options are sunset or moonlit cruises). Nearby, you’ll find the Tampa Bay History Center, the Tampa Museum of Art and Sparkman Wharf, all offering event space for planners. One top recommendation if you’re looking to create a dine-around program is Noble Rice, listed in the Florida MICHELIN Guide for, among other things, its exceptional a la carte sushi menu.
Santiago Corrada, President and Chief Executive Officer of Visit Tampa Bay, tells Prevue that “Tampa is a very dynamic, ever-changing place…there’s always some new offering.” Pointing from the Visit Tampa Bay offices to the rapidly evolving Water Street district just outside the window, Corrada says that’s only half of what’s happening in the city.
“We have all the stuff that’s happening in Midtown, which is between the airport and Downtown Tampa,” Corrada continues. “…Another major development is the 6-million-sf Gasworx mixed-use development linking Ybor City to Downtown Tampa.” He goes on to list other developments that will continue to transform the destination, noting that “we will bring a group here and they’ll return three years from now and say, ‘Wow, I don’t recognize it.’” That said, he points out, “It’s thoughtful growth. It’s growing but restrained.” He adds, “This continuous growth has been good for us because we have something to sell, we have something to talk about.”
He says planners can let their imagination run wild when it comes to curating events. “You could have something at the performing arts center, the art museum, the aquarium, the history center, at the historic Tampa Theatre…. And everything is so compact. You can walk everywhere. Or you can take the streetcar right into the center of the city, and it’s free—hop-on, hop-off.
“It’s safe, it’s clean,” he adds. He says they are booking groups out until 2038, and although they are busy, “we pride ourselves on being relational, not transactional. Once we sign that contract, we become your spouse…. Our services team, our PR and marketing team, they’re connected to you, wanting to know exactly how you want things to go and how we could make it better…. We’re connected at the hip until [your group] comes to Tampa.” He reminds planners that Tampa “can host just about anything and we have…. Even some groups that would probably be too big, we still make it work. We make your visit very, very special and about you.”
More info: marriott.com/meeting-event-hotels/meeting-planning.mi and visittampabay.com/meeting-planners
