The Saint Paul Hotel hosts corporate meetings, conferences, holiday parties, private dinners and weddings in eight event rooms, from an executive boardroom for eight to the Promenade Ballroom, its largest space. The hotel stands at 350 Market Street in downtown Saint Paul, the capital of Minnesota, and has received guests since 1910.
Seminars and company events
A sales and events team handles corporate bookings, from set-up and technology to catering and on-the-day service. The Cedar Room serves executive meetings and private office use for up to eight people, and the Business Center adds a closed conference room for six with two workstations, two laptop stations and a printer, with windows onto the street. Larger meetings and conferences use the Promenade Ballroom, which has built-in presentation screens, or the lower-level rooms. Audiovisual equipment is supplied in-house and listed in an event technology guide. Standard wifi covers all public areas, with a faster connection available as an upgrade. The hotel also runs a catering service for events held at other venues.
Weddings and receptions
The hotel has staged weddings for more than a century and can host the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception in the same building. The Promenade Ballroom can be split in two to move guests from ceremony to reception, and its foyer suits a cocktail hour or late-night snacks. Rehearsal dinners, showers and post-wedding brunches take place in the smaller rooms. Wedding couples receive a tasting at no charge, the dance floor is included, and the L'Etoile Room serves as a suite for the wedding party to get ready. An 11-passenger van can be chartered for guests, subject to availability. Confetti, glitter and open flames are not allowed.
Rooms and capacities
The Promenade Ballroom, on the main level, has high ceilings with gold tiles, chandeliers and a private foyer. The James J. Hill Room, a smaller ballroom on the lobby level, has tall windows and chandeliers and can also be divided. The Archbishop Ireland Room, next to the lobby, is lit by large windows and suits luncheons and private meetings. On the lower level, the Summit Room takes larger dinners and receptions, the Drake offers split levels and its own foyer for receptions and private dining, and the Lexington Room suits small gatherings.
Accommodation
Guest rooms and suites are upstairs, so attendees and wedding guests can stay in the same building as the event.
Catering
All food and drink for events comes from the hotel kitchens, and outside catering is not permitted, apart from wedding desserts made by a licensed bakery. The hotel's restaurants are The St. Paul Grill and the Lobby Bar and Cafe, and in-room dining is available.
History and setting
Lucius P. Ordway, an early investor in 3M, led the project, and the hotel opened on April 18, 1910, with railroad builder James J. Hill and Archbishop John Ireland among the first guests. In 1919 the hotel held the banquet celebrating Minnesota's ratification of the 19th Amendment, in 1927 it gave a dinner for Charles Lindbergh, and from 1928 KSTP radio broadcast from its ballroom. After a period of decline, the hotel was redesigned and restored, work that was completed in 1982.
Getting there
The hotel faces Rice Park in downtown Saint Paul, next to the Ordway Center. Valet parking is offered, and there are downtown garages and metered street parking nearby. Minneapolis Saint Paul International Airport is the nearest airport, and Amtrak trains stop at Saint Paul Union Depot in Lowertown.
