Nearly anyone who’s anyone agrees: Bigger isn’t better—when it comes to conferences and networking.

Indeed, the tech, media and finance elite have increasingly come to prefer an intimate gathering over attending anything giant and sponsored to death. Web Summit, Collision, South by Southwest and pretty much any event thrown by a media brand have lost some of their appeal and cultural cachet, say nearly a dozen of the best-connected folks we know.

Instead, many industry machers have come to prefer what might be termed “microconferences,” like Jacob Helberg’s Hill and Valley Forum and Garry Tan’s Reboot, and “private summits,” like Patrick Collison’s Frontier Camp. Generally, they’re events organized by a single distinctive personality. The best of these hosts know to keep guest lists small—a private summit feels good at 50 people, a microconference at more like 200—and they pick a ritzy location, usually a bit off the beaten path to encourage attendees to silence their phones and enjoy their surroundings.