SAVANNAH, Georgia — The Savannah Convention Center completed a $276 million expansion.
This project added 100,000 square feet of exhibit space to the venue, bringing its total to 200,000. Based on data from Trade Show Executive’s (TSE) 2024 World’s Top Convention Centers report, this moves the facility from the position of 160th largest in the U.S. — in terms of prime exhibit space — to the position of 75th, alongside Duke Energy Convention Center, The Expo at World Market Center Las Vegas, Gillette Stadium, Oklahoma City Convention Center and the Exposition Center at Wisconsin State Fair Park.
TSE spoke with Jeff Hewitt, CDME, Chief Sales Officer at Visit Savannah, and Kelvin Moore, the venue’s General Manager, to learn how this move positions the center and the community for success.
Broadening Impact
According to Hewitt, conversations between industry advocates and Georgia Governor Brian Kemp helped inspire this expansion.
“The conversations centered around the impact of tourism on different communities in the state,” Hewitt said. “As he became more familiar with the Georgia World Congress Center Authority [which manages the venue], the conversations became more robust as we discussed the possibility of expanding the convention center in Savannah. Ultimately, he agreed to finance through state funding a $276 million expansion … [and] now we have an incredible, state-of-the-art facility.”
The expansion doubled the complex’s total size to 660,000 square feet and includes 14 meeting rooms, a boardroom (raising its total to five), a 900-space parking garage, and a 40,000-square-foot ballroom that has panoramic views.
“It allows us to compete, from a space perspective, with cities like Tampa and Nashville, and it opens us up to an entirely different level of event,” Moore added.
From Feb. 15-17, the Nike Savannah Showdown volleyball tournament brought thousands of attendees to the expanded venue for the first time.
Moore shared that over 100 events have booked the facility between now and 2030, and even more are in tentative status.
“If it were not for the expanded space, we would not have been able to book those additional events,” Moore explained. “The space allows us to do larger events and more consecutive events.”
Upcoming events include the Savannah Boat Show, IGNITE 2025 and the Low Country Home & Garden Show.
New Facilities
The project also added three Zoom Rooms, a huddle space and public furniture options with plug and play capabilities to the convention center.
A particular highlight for Moore is the venue’s new, Savannah-themed dining options: The Hangar, a restaurant that is situated next to the venue’s new 22,000-pound hangar door, Savannah Bean at the Brick, a coffee concept with local options, and The Port, a wine bar with design elements that mirror the container ships that pass down the Savannah River, which is next to the venue.
The expansion also included 25 restrooms, 11 elevators, six escalators and 45,000 square feet of glass, allowing the facility to bring in more natural light.
“The responses are overwhelmingly positive,” Hewitt said. “Not only does it impact the convention center itself, but it will stimulate the need for additional hotel growth and impact jobs and the overall economy.”
To balance inventory with space, a new headquarters hotel is being developed, which will be adjacent to the convention center.
A new Ritz Carlton hotel and a Recess Hotel & Club, as well as other projects, are in progress too.
Learn more about the Savannah Convention Center here.
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