Private Venues to Bewitch and Beguile your Attendees

Well, it would be very cool and highly unusual and you could reasonably expect your event outcomes to be off the charts. Here are some locations where Joe Public simply cannot go and where you’re sure to bewitch and beguile your astonished attendees.

Penthouse at The Ritz Carlton, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

I was in New Orleans at the Ritz Carlton and upon returning to my guest room on the second evening of the event received an intriguing invitation from the conference chair to join her for cocktails and entertainment in the penthouse. The penthouse occupies the 15th floor of the building that also hosts the hotel but is privately owned by Julie and Stewart who rent it out for events and overnight stays. It’s the perfect exclusive events space, high above the French Quarter in your own private surroundings with massive outdoor terrace. There’s even a hot tub. What’s not to love?

Still Bend, Two Rivers, Wisconsin, USA

Frank Lloyd Wright is probably the only modern architect to have a song composed in his honour (Paul Simon’s “So Long Frank Lloyd Wright”) but that’s just an indication of his general fame and legacy. Most associated with the Oak Park district of Chicago, Lloyd Wright designed and built cutting edge homes all over the Unites States. Still Bend was designed for the Schwartz family as a spacious family home with four bedrooms and is available for rental today from its current owners Gary and Michael Ditmer. You get the entire home in all its architectural glory and can stage the perfect event there, certain to attract the most jaded and fatigued attendees.

Sand Acre, Palm Springs, California, USA

Palm Springs gained notoriety from the 1930s onwards when movie stars like Bing Crosby and Bob Hope built bolt-holes there to retreat from the limelight of Hollywood. Sand Acre is a secluded villa surrounded by 1 acre of lush private gardens and is linked with slugger Joe DiMaggio and beauty Marilyn Monroe whose eventual marriage barely lasted as long as a baseball season. For a relatively modest fee you can rent the entire property and replicate all the glitz and the glamour of the Palm Springs movie colony, all behind high walls and closed doors.

Palazzo Corsini, Florence, Italy

During the day it sits in secret silence behind a high wall on the south bank of the River Arno within clear sight of the iconic Ponte Vecchio. At night it sometimes comes to life again as an event venue, re-living its heritage and history as a place of high hospitality and classic celebration. Taking over half a century to build, Palazzo Corsini was completed in the late 1600s and remains in the ownership of descendants of the original Corsini family to this very day. My great friend Paul Eder and I ran a hugely successful event there for almost 200 guests filling the main salone with fresh flowers and the live sound of a 20 piece orchestra.

No 10 Ormond Quay, Dublin, Ireland

During the Georgian era (1713 – 1829 approx) Dublin was second to London as the most elegant city of the British Empire. No 10 Ormond Quay dates from this period but has been painstakingly restored to its original splendor without compromising contemporary requirements such as WiFi. It’s simply a stunning home with an impeccable collection of period art and works for all manner of events from elegant boutique weddings to informal house parties. No 10 has a perfect party flow with drinks receptions taking place to the front of the house, overlooking the River Liffey, and formal dinners hosted to the rear in a purpose built function suite.

In Conclusion

Cool and unusual venues play a vital role in overall event design and planning, providing you with the perfect platform or stage upon which to enact a truly successful event. For increasingly spoilt event attendees who have seen the boundaries of creativity pushed out more and more in recent years, exclusive venues and private homes offer a real chance to bewitch and beguile.