Crowne Plaza Offers Excellent Wedding Facilities
By K.J. WEBB
Contributing Writer
WELCOMING VISITORS: Crowne Plaza Weddings and Social Events Manager Rachel Neely gives professional attention to hotel guests.
LESLIE GREGORY for GTR Newspapers
Downtown Tulsa’s Crowne Plaza has recently expanded its range of professional services to include wedding and social event management.
According to Connie Otis, Crowne Plaza’s director of marketing, “It became obvious to us that we needed a person dedicated to wedding and social event management to meet the demand. It’s important to have a professional who can develop relationships, provide guidance, attend to the details and bring passion to the work. We’ve brought Rachel Neely into our organization as our wedding and social event manager for this important function.”
Neely joined the management staff in May 2008 and comes to the Crowne Plaza with a college degree in meetings and destination management and certification as a bridal consultant.
“My primary focus is on weddings,” says Neely, “I spend a great deal of time working directly with the brides, as well as their mothers. I enjoy working with them so much. It has always been a good experience and I’ve become friends with many of them along the way.”
Neely says that she treats each wedding with as much passion, dedication and importance as she would her own. She manages every aspect of the planning from the reception room layout including flatware, linen and china choice to menus, music, photographers, flowers and decorations.
Flowing chocolate fountains, punch fountains, ice sculptures, gift basket and hospitality rooms are also on Neely’s list of details to manage. “I don’t limit my role in my work for our clients,” says Neely. “In addition to coordinating the event, as a consultant I provide advice, creative ideas and offer constructive feedback to help each bride create the most beautiful and memorable wedding possible.”
Neely works with a variety of local vendors during the planning process. “Coordinating is an important part of my job. One of the things distinguishing the Crowne Plaza from other hotels in the area is that we provide total event management. Part of my job is to work with vendors and organize every single detail to ensure the wedding is exactly what the bride wants it to be.”
Neely adds that her ability to coordinate with local wedding and bridal vendors helps the brides to relax and enjoy the wedding planning process and says, “Planning your wedding should be as exciting, fun and as stress free as possible. We have several different wedding packages available to work with. I say ‘work with’ because any package can be custom tailored according to the couple’s wishes.”
Couples can select from five different Diamond Wedding Packages designed to accommodate varying budgets and parties of any size up to 800 guests. “We offer plated dinners as well as a variety of buffet options. We can also custom design any menu. It all depends on what the couple wants and the number of guests they will have,” says Neely.
Regarding the number of guests, Otis mentions the power of space. “A benefit of having a wedding reception at Crowne Plaza is our power of space. Given the amount of room we have available, we can avoid issues that arise when space is limited.” She mentions photography as an example, saying, “Crowding and jostling around to get good wedding photos is not an issue here.” She points out the importance of having just the right amount of space. “Obviously too little space is not good. Neither is too much space. You have to have precisely the right dimensions to fit your own needs. In terms of space, there is a point where everything just feels right and you know it’s going to work well. Because of the power of space at Crowne Plaza, we can size venues precisely.”
When asked what the busiest time of the year is, Neely says, “June is always a busy month for weddings. However, couples no longer feel like they have to get married in June. Fall and winter weddings are becoming increasingly popular.”
No matter what time of year a couple decides to get married, plenty of advance planning is necessary. Neely points out that the planning time for a reception depends to a degree on the size. However, she recommends starting the process about one year in advance and says, “The year has just begun and I’m already getting calls for wedding dates in 2010.”
Many of the calls Neely has received recently are the result of Crowne Plaza’s participation at the Jan. 3 Oklahoma Wedding Show. “We had two booths at the show. It was a huge success,” Otis says. “We had over 100 inquiries at the show and many calls since.” She adds that Crowne Plaza’s participation in KOTV’s Wedding Whim will generate even more interest and inquiries. “Our role is providing the reception and honeymoon. We’ll offer two or three options that will be voted on. It’s going to be a wonderful experience for the lucky couple!”
Neely says that the recent marketing efforts have generated interest from a broad demographic. “The exposure has been good for us,” she says. “I’m seeing a wide range of brides from college age to early forties and up. We reach out to everyone. It’s never too late to have a beautiful wedding.” Otis agrees, adding, “Anytime is a good time to have a wedding at the Crowne Plaza.”
For more information, contact Rachel Neely at (918) 560-2211, or by email at rneely@ascensionhotels.com
Updated 02-05-2009
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