Paris has returned to the top of the ICCA City Rankings in emphatic style, hosting 40 meetings more than second place Vienna as well as knocking Barcelona off the lead. The French capital hosted 212 rotating international association meetings in 2018, up by 22, and was last lead city in 2016. From Association Meetings International…
Expo 2020 Dubai will boost the United Arab Emirates’ economy by AED122.6 billion ($33.4 billion), and will also support 905,200 job-years between 2013 and 2031. So says an independent report from global consultancy EY. During its peak six months the event is predicted to add the equivalent of 1.5 percent to UAE GDP. From Meetings International…
Geoff Donaghy, ICC Sydney CEO, AEG Ogden Director Convention Centres and Iceberg Ambassador, just joined a panel at IMEX Frankfurt on placemaking (pictured). Here he discusses how an event precinct can sit at the heart of any destination’s placemaking strategy to drive its economic, cultural and social growth. From Geoff Donaghy via LinkedIn…
At IMEX Frankfurt last week the usual sector promotion and celebration was clearly on display. Concern about the industry’s future, though, was also common in discussion, particularly on sustainability and the health of group bookings overall. The former has become an area of increasing focus, with the aim of reducing future political risk. From Skift…
Matthias Schultze, the Managing Director of the German Convention Bureau, is adamant that meetings and events’ environmental impact on the world needs to be addressed in their design. Here he discusses Germany’s approach to sustainability and findings on its importance in GCB’s Meeting & Event Barometer. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Harrogate Convention Centre in Yorkshire has hosted more than 320 suppliers from UK and Ireland at the ExploreGB event, together with at least 250 international organisations from 31 countries. Peter Dodd, the Commercial Director of Welcome to Yorkshire, offers a north of England events perspective. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Business and professional events are key to economic and social transformation. South Africa’s Minister of Tourism, Derek Hanekom, confirmed as much at Meetings Africa 2019, held recently in Sandton, Johannesburg. Minister Hanekom acknowledged the contribution to tourism numbers from business events but emphasised that the legacies of events in healthcare and economic development were where…
Organisers have unveiled a sneak peek of the Dubai Exhibition Centre, set to host the six-month-long World Expo 2020 from October next year. Other legacy constructions that were built for the sole purpose of hosting the World Expo include Paris’ Eiffel Tower, London’s Crystal Palace and Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building. From Association Meetings International…
The Greek capital is targeting small and medium-sized international conventions with “know-how and financial resources”. So said Alexis Galinos, MD of ADDMA (the Athens Development and Destination Management Agency), at the 9th Hellenic Association of Professional Congress Organisers conference. Athens is currently 26th in ICCA city rankings. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
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Flavie de Bueil has more than 20 years’ experience in the Tourism and Meetings Industry. She began her career with diverse experiences in customer relations in the insurance and hospitality sectors and then decided to specialise in tourism, mixing her avid passion for international relations, people and cultures. Having graduated in Tourism Management and Culture…
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Melissa Riley serves as the Senior Vice President, Convention Sales and Services at Destination DC (DDC), the official convention and tourism organization for the nation’s capital. A 26-year veteran of the travel and hospitality industry, Riley leads a team of more than 30 who work in concert to generate a positive economic impact for the…
An international conference on the buying and selling of endangered animals and plants has been postponed following the Easter Sunday terror attacks in Sri Lanka. CoP18, or the 18th Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, was to have taken place from May into June in Colombo. From Association Meetings International…
The Easter Sunday bomb attacks carried out in Sri Lanka have “directly implicated” International Congress and Convention Association hotel members, according to ICCA CEO, Sri Lanka-born Senthil Gopinath. As a gesture of solidarity, Gopinath has announced that ICCA will pay its respects to the victims during a chapter meeting at IMEX Frankfurt. From Association Meetings International…
Six bomb attacks on Easter Sunday may have destroyed a decade of economic recovery in Sri Lanka that was largely reliant on tourism. The attacks left 253 people dead (revised Ministry figure), with several hundred injured, at churches and five-star hotels. As a result, venues and inbound DMCs have been deluged with cancellations. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Lyn Lewis-Smith, CEO of Business Events Sydney, recently joined a Trans-Tasman Business Circle’s #womenintechontour visiting San Francisco and Silicon Valley to gather intelligence on the skills and talent attraction strategies of US multinational corporations. Global meeting attendees present a ripe opportunity that is currently being overlooked. From Lyn Lewis-Smith via LinkedIn…
The recent terror attacks in Sri Lanka have devastated a country enjoying resurgent tourism since the end of civil war a decade ago. It is crucial that the international community, especially in incentive travel, does not abandon the destination. Rajeev Kohli is joint MD of Creative Travel DMC, which has operations in Sri Lanka. From PCMA…
Recently almost sixty incentive travel professionals took planes, trains and automobiles from sixteen countries to Verbier, Switzerland, to attend the inaugural Society of Incentive Travel Excellence’s SITE Incentive Summit Europe. SITE’s Chief Marketing Officer now reports on the four day alpine excursion of connections, education and destination discovery. From SoolNua’s Pádraic Gilligan at Padraicino…
The creation of La Nuvola Convention Centre, also called The Cloud, has lifted Rome’s appeal as a meetings destination. Despite its much-criticised spiralling costs, construction taking eight years to complete at a cost of €239 million, it’s estimated that the centre could generate between €300 and €400 million annually within five years. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
VisitBritain’s flagship business event MeetGB has been held in Windsor, and VisitScotland Expo has said that its recent staging was one of the biggest since the event began life in 1980. The exhibition took place at Glasgow’s SEC over two days, and saw 340 businesses showcasing products to over 550 buyers. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…
Canada’s capital, Ottawa, is to launch a conference ambassador programme. Together Ottawa Tourism, the Shaw Centre (above) and Invest Ottawa will offer bespoke support to local experts becoming “trailblazers” by helping the city to secure major meetings. ThinkOttawa will work with its ambassadors to prepare bid documents and provide support. From Association Meetings International…
World Travel Market Africa 2019 has been held at CTICC (the Cape Town International Convention Centre), with thousands of exhibitors and buyers from across the globe attending the leading travel and tourism event in the continent. The meeting included both the African Responsible Travel Awards, and two-day Business Case for Responsible Tourism conference. From the Event…
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