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w w w . i n s i g h t o n b u s i n e s s . c o m M a y 2 0 14 • I nsIgh t | 31 Wisconsin Dells except in terms of rates, says tifani Jones, director of sales at the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau. e Dells is home to some of the state's largest venues, the Kalahari and the Chula Vista Resort, which each have about 100,000 square feet of space. e Chula Vista also has an off-site, 90,000-square-foot multi- use facility. "We tend to be somewhat insulated from the swings that downturns in meetings can have in other types of markets, and a lot of that has to do with the number of regional and state meetings that are hosted in our area," Jones says. In June, the Dells is hosting a cluster of hobby-related groups, including the state h.O.g. (harley Owners group) Rally; Fire and Iron, a national firefighters motorcycle enthusiast group; and the hot Rod Power tour. Madison In Madison, convention bookings are up 188 percent from Q1 2009 to Q1 2014, according to the greater Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau. "We've had the highest number of confirmed events that we booked in the first quarter of this year for the future than we've had over all those (recession) years and the highest attendance for future events," says Deb Archer, president of the bureau. "so we've had a really robust first quarter." e 164-acre campus of the Alliant Energy Center is getting 300,000 square feet of new space. A stronger economic climate has allowed corporations and organizations to get back to holding and hosting events, Archer says. "at face-to-face connection is so powerful," says Judy Frankel, public relations and communications manager for the bureau. "Businesses have learned from trying different ways of meeting that this is really still the most effective way to connect their people together. so we're very lucky to be able to capitalize on that trend."