Ann Arbor’s meetings and events scene is going to get another boost when The Vanguard Hotel, Autograph Collection, debuts in spring next year.
Located at 203 Glen Ave., about a half mile from University of Michigan Hospital, The Vanguard Hotel will feature 164 guest rooms and suites, along with 24 two-bedroom suites. Significant for meeting planners, the hotel will offer 12,000 square feet of event and meeting room space.
“It will be two ballrooms (one with an airway), two larger boardrooms (which will be considered breakout rooms), and an expansive pre-function area,” says The Vanguard Hotel General Manager Jason Nelson. “We could do a dinner for up to 300 in the main ballroom, and roughly 150 in the other ballroom.”
Other highlights include a fitness center and full-service restaurant and bar offering breakfast, lunch, dinner, and room service. Two full kitchens are being built—one to serve the restaurant and the other for catering and banquets. Bikes will be available for guests and transportation within a two-mile radius will be provided as well.
Nelson says The Vanguard Hotel will fill a need for more hotel rooms in the downtown area. He also expects the hotel will serve as a resource for groups associated with the University of Michigan and its medical complex, among others, being located within walking distance of both as well as downtown Ann Arbor.
Alfred Snow, director of sales and service for Destination Ann Arbor, says The Vanguard Hotel builds on the community’s strong hotel and meeting infrastructure. “The increased capacity provided by The Vanguard’s state-of-the-art meeting spaces helps to address the growing demand we have for conference and meeting space here in our market,” Snow says. “This expansion not only strengthens our ability to attract diverse groups, but also solidifies Ann Arbor’s position as a premier destination for meetings and conferences in the region.”
