New venues and flights add to Boston’s business appeal

Bean there: Boston business-friendly skyline.

By Mark Chesnut

Business travelers as well as meeting planners will likely welcome the news about Boston’s increased airline service, as well as new and improved venues for corporate events.

Beginning April 22, 2012, New England and Asia will be linked by new nonstop Japan Air Lines service to Tokyo. The 13.5-hour flight, which becomes daily in June, will be operated with the new Boeing Dreamliner 787 aircraft.

This year, meanwhile, JetBlue has introduced nonstop service to Portland, Oregon, and Santiago, Dominican Republic, as well as seasonal service to St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, which will operate five times a week as of Dec. 15.

This increased connectivity bodes well for the city’s position in the domestic and international meetings market. For the third consecutive year, Boston and Cambridge have been named the “Top Destination in the United States forInternational Association Meetings” by the International Congress and Convention Association. In 2010, Boston and Cambridge together hosted 43 international meetings, up from 36 the previous year, and that number is expected to rise this year as well.

In 2012, several venues will offer new options for meeting and event planners (not to mention new activities for vacationers). The Boston Tea Party Ships Museum, which opens in June, will feature interactive exhibits as well as a tavern, tearoom, and staff dressed in period clothing. The African Meeting House, set in a 1,5000-square-foot building that dates to 1806, will unveil the results of its $4 million renovation. And the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, which houses a collection of fine art spanning several centuries, will close from November 15 through January 19, to prepare for the opening of a new Renzo Piano-designed wing and restored Tapestry Room.

Area hotels are touting their options for pampering business and leisure travelers. The Charles Hotel, in Cambridge, recently debuted its new, 4,000-square-foot Corbu Spa, which features a French-inspired, organic treatment menu. And the Mandarin Oriental, Boston is celebrating the increased famed of its executive pastry chef, Nelzon Paz, who competes on season two of the TV program Top Chef Just Desserts, which debuts on Bravo on Aug. 24.

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Mark Chesnut is a travel writer, editor and publisher of LatinFlyer.com, which focuses on business and leisure travel to Latin America.

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