Newark is part of the area known as Metro New Jersey Meadowlands, one of the state's busiest meeting and convention destinations; its popularity is due in part to its proximity to the attractions of Manhattan.
Downtown Newark offers the renovated 253-room Hilton Gateway Hotel, with 9,700 square feet of exhibition space, seven meeting rooms and a ballroom that can accommodate 350 people. The Gateway renewal program provided enclosed skywalks connecting Gateway projects directly to Penn Station. Other Newark convention activity focuses on Newark International Airport, where a number of nationally-known hotels offering meeting and sleeping space are located, including the 591-room Newark Airport Marriott with 20 meeting rooms and 13,200 feet of meeting space. In all, there are about 3,200 sleeping rooms at the airport hotels.
Within the Gateway Region of northern New Jersey, there are two dedicated convention centers—the New Jersey Convention and Expo Center at the Raritan Center is located in Edison and offers 150,000 square feet of exhibit space, making it New Jersey's largest venue. The facility is equipped to handle anything from banquets to trade shows and is wired for all audio-visual devices. Food service is available. At the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, conferences and trade shows are accommodated in 61,000 square feet of exhibition space, supplemented with additional meeting rooms and a banquet facility that can seat 5,000. The MEC provides two drive-doors for offloading of equipment and is conveniently located near Newark Liberty International Airport.