Event: Amway AKL Leadership Seminar
Client: Amway Korea
Numbers: 4,550 in total, split into groups of 650
Accommodation: Sanya Marriott Resort & Spa
China’s tropical island of Hainan is featuring ever more business events from outside the country. More regular flights are certainly one reason, the quality of hotel accommodation another, but a winning factor is also the climate.
The warm weather was particularly appealing to Amway Korea when it was looking for a destination for its top sales people’s incentive and seminar programme. Arranged during the winter months of November and December, when Korea is chilly, Hainan was a perfect choice to motivate and excite.
Amway Korea needed to find a venue that could accommodate 4,550 of its senior people for a month-long seminar in a series of four-day groups, with one team checking in as the other checked out. The company chose the Sanya Marriott Resort & Spa as property that would be able to handle the logistical challenges as well provide a great atmosphere and facilities for the groups.
A family-friendly resort was necessary as the company encouraged its sales people to bring family members. Again the company felt comfortable choosing a property with such a strong reputation as Sanya Marriott.
One of the resort’s function rooms was converted into a game room complete with PlayStation consoles and computer games for the participants’ children to come in and play with if they’d had enough swimming and needed to get out of the sun for a while.
Given Korean parents’ obsession with their children’s education and learning, the resort also converted another one of its meeting rooms into an English-teaching centre, where English lessons were offered daily to the participants.
Hainan had other attractions for the Koreans too. First was the ease of access, it’s only four hours’ flight from Korea. Second was the availability of several world-class golf courses conveniently located in Yalong Bay (both of which are just a two-three minute drive from the resort), and the third was the pristine 4km stretch of sandy white beach at the resort, a very enticing option for those travelling with children.
An Amway Korea spokesperson said: “These factors made Sanya the perfect choice for the Amway AKL Leadership Seminar because it is a destination where we could not only talk about business but at the same time have the opportunity to relax and spend time with our families.”
Tina Bai, assistant director of marketing communications, said the hotel’s event managers worked together with Amway Korea’s own event team, and were on hand in every function to take care of every detail.
Aside from the many activities that can be arranged on-site at the Sanya Marriott, there are many good off-site venues in Hainan.
Bai mentions Nan Tian Hot Springs has fish massage therapy, which offer a relaxing outdoor treat for business and leisure groups alike; Five Fingers Mountain provides a great venue for river rafting and is perfect for adventure-seeking groups; Wu Zhi Zhou Island offers spectacular diving into the beautiful coral-filled ocean.
End of the Earth is known for the colossal rocks that stand by the coast; Nan Wan Monkey Island is the only destination in Hainan where playful monkeys run free and is a good choice for families; while Nan Shan Temple offers a cultural Buddhist experience that blends with a peaceful walk amidst the surrounding lush gardens – all spectacular places that provide unforgettable memories when visiting Hainan.
According to Amway Korea’s own Customer Satisfaction Survey, almost 95 percent of guests were very happy with their stay.
The survey showed that they particularly liked the Sanya Marriott Resort & Spa because it had so many features that catered to their needs. This included the tennis court, two-tier swimming pool, lap pool and children’s pool, a pristine beach, children’s club and Marriott’s Quan Spa, where participants could have special therapy massages.
Another important reason why participants said they enjoyed their stay was because of the food. They especially loved the authentic Korean food, which the hotel prepared especially for them. To make the group feel more at home during their stay, the hotel even imported special kimchi from Korea and brought in a handful of Korean chefs from other Marriott properties worldwide to assure that the food was cooked and prepared to perfection. n
