Destination Madison

By Nikki Kallio | Photo: © Sharon Varorny, The Terrace

As the home of the University of Wisconsin, Madison already has the benefit of being a dynamic university city with plenty of nightlife, restaurant options and cultural events. What planners might not know is that Madison and its surrounding communities are located within Wisconsin’s most beautiful natural areas, situated between two popular and scenic lakes, with plenty of outdoor opportunities for its visitors to enjoy.

The city has direct flights to and from major cities, and the airport recently completed a major upgrade to its terminal system to allow larger planes, says Jamie Patrick, Executive Vice President of Sales & Sports Strategy for Destination Madison.

“Madison is an incredibly easy place to get to, and once you get here, it’s so walkable to other destination from the hotels like bars and restaurants,” Patrick says. “We’re finding more and more planners are really liking sustainability as well, so walking always plays a part in that.”

Madison, Wisconsin’s state capital is situated on an isthmus between Mendota and Monona lakes, part of a chain of five area lakes. For organizations who are seeking to make the destination even more memorable, Destination Madison can help arrange activities focused on sustainability or even to offset carbon use if they select the city to hold their meeting.

“We always want to work with the event planner to figure out what’s most impactful for their group,” says Amber Wiza, Director of Destination Services for Destination Madison. Options include activities focused on social responsibility, such as a lake cleanup, visiting a nature center, or working with a local nonprofit on a restoration project. “It’s an ongoing area that continues to build.”

As a Gold-rated walk-friendly community, the city has more than 200 miles of biking and hiking trails to explore, says Sarah Warner, PR and Communications Manager for Destination Madison. That leads to “easy ways for people to connect outside the conference at our incredible restaurants, diverse museums and attractions — most are free — and urban outdoor adventure with a very unique direct connection of city nature with our lake-city-lake layout, one of two U.S. cities on an isthmus.”

For the foodies Warner explains that Madison has 43 James Beard nods to date, with four best chef Midwest winners. “That all kind of ties in directly with our connection to agriculture, and having the largest producer-only farmers market in the country,” she says. “That’s another thing that meeting attendees could tack on an extra day for if they’re here for a conference during the week.”

Plenty of options for meetings of all sizes

Madison has more than one hundred unique venues for meetings, events and conferences, and about 8,000 hotel rooms in the area ready to accommodate guests. For the largest events, concerts and conventions, Madison offers multiple options including the Alliant Energy Center, which includes a 255,000-square-foot Exhibition Hall, as well as its New Holland Pavilions, which total 290,000 square feet for trade shows and other events.

The center’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum can host more than 10,000 visitors, and the venue also offers the 29-acre outdoor space Willow Island for seasonal outdoor events. The center is close to Lake Monona, and two bike path systems connect to the complex.

Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, located in the heart of downtown Madison on the isthmus, is a multi-level LEED-certified convention center with about 250,000 square feet of event space. This Frank Lloyd Wright-designed structure was built with the surrounding landscape in mind, meaning “you’re getting very natural curving geometric forms, that kind of converge with the breathtaking beauty of where we’re at here in Madison,” says Steve Dongarra at Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center. The building’s rounded structure complements the symmetry of the nearby state Capitol dome. With more than 300 restaurants and attractions within a mile of Monona Terrace, the venue has a prime location.

With four levels of rentable space, “We host everything from a ten-person board meeting all the way up to a 10,000-person Iron Man event every September,” Dongarra says. Monona Terrace contains two ballrooms as well as a 37,000-square-foot exhibition hall with the ability to allow a semi-trailer to drive directly in for unloading.

“Our crown jewel is our 68,000-square-foot rooftop garden,” Dongarra says, a space which is home to dozens of community events like concerts and dances as well as private events like weddings. It’s a prime spot for groups to host networking events, and the café on the rooftop is open to anyone who would like to enjoy good food with a beautiful view overlooking the lake, he says.

Visitors are “very amazed at the vibe of the building and its circular organic architecture,” Dongarra says. “When we get to our community terrace, or grand terrace and show those spaces, it’s almost like their breath is taken away.”

Monona Terrace has exclusive in-house catering as well as AV services. “We vertically integrate those departments to be just ours so that we can control quality and make sure that folks and businesses and guests are experiencing the best they can experience,” Dongarra says. The venue also features a climate-controlled skywalk to the adjoining Hilton Monona Terrace hotel, perfect for those winter meetings and events. It also has a lecture hall with a stage and theater seating with state-of-the-art acoustic walls.

Cindy Delaney of Delaney Event Management of Winooski, Vermont, says Monona Terrace is one of her favorite places to hold a meeting, including the recent Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies Annual Meeting. “The staff are extremely professional; the facility is top notch and the location amazing.”

Delaney says she frequently hosts meetings in Madison and always enjoys it but “somehow, it got even better since the last time I held an event there,” she says. “The addition of the Embassy Suites downtown is a game changer. The dining scene is innovative and delicious.” The Embassy Suites by Hilton Downtown Madison, completed in June 2024, has four event rooms with 2,732 square feet of space for smaller gatherings and meetings.

For small meetings, parties or corporate groups up to 1,500 guests, the Overture Center for the Arts offers multiple performance spaces, galleries, studio and lobby spaces with fine dining and theatrical and lighting capabilities. Hotels, restaurants and downtown Madison are within walking distance. Plan your meeting to include a show; Overture hosts hundreds of performances annually.

For groups seeking a comprehensive on-site experience, Ho-Chunk Gaming Wisconsin Dells has more than 30,000 square feet of event space for trade shows, events and meetings. This venue, located in a resort town with plenty of entertainment options for all ages, recently upgraded all of its audiovisual equipment, and offers multiple restaurants and entertainment. The Ho-Chunk nation has five gaming properties throughout Wisconsin, including in Madison, where the casino offers 1,300 slots and on- site restaurants and is conveniently located at the Interstate 90/Highway 18 interchange.

For a sustainability-focused meeting space, Olbrich Botanical Gardens offers visitors another chance to get closer to the natural side of Wisconsin.

“Every meeting space has a view of the outdoor gardens,” says Katy Noldolf, Public Relations & Marketing Manager at Olbrich Botanical Gardens. “It’s also nice for groups to be able to take a break from their meeting and stroll the outdoor gardens or indoor tropical conservatory.”

“Hosting meetings at Olbrich (or other similar organizations) is also a great way to introduce people, whether they are locals or travelers, to places that make Madison special,” Noldolf says.

Out & About Team-Building Ideas

Madison’s natural areas, great restaurants and unique venues offer plenty of variety when planning a team-building activity to go along with an event or conference. “There are plenty of offsite and group-building activities nearby our world-class venues,” says Sarah Warner, PR and Communications Manager for Destination Madison.

As one of only five platinum-level bicycle-friendly communities in the country, Madison offers plenty of opportunities for visitors to take advantage of a group bike outing. Planners can book group e-bike tours through Madison Adventure Tours or take advantage of the city’s all-electric Bikeshare program (BCycle).

With Madison located on an isthmus between lakes Mendota and Monona, there’s no shortage of boating, pontooning or kayaking. Madison Boats operates (rentals) from four locations in and around the city. Visitors can explore a 1,200-acre arboretum managed by the University of Wisconsin along Lake Wingra.

For a unique opportunity, try group classes at Madison Circus Space, axe-throwing at FlannelJax’s, or take advantage of the Wisconsin food experience with a group cheese-tasting at Fromagination, charcuterie board-building workshop at Tricky Foods, or a cooking workshop with The Deliciouser. Take an outing to nearby Middleton for the iconic National Mustard Museum. Near the Olbrich Botanical Gardens, visitors can seasonally enjoy gathering at The Biergarten at Olbrich Park, where groups of 15 to 40 people can reserve space in the outdoor venue overlooking Lake Mendota.

And, of course, don’t miss a chance to visit the State Capitol building, which offers free public guided tours and private group tours. Madison also offers plenty of voluntourism options for visiting groups as well.