From 30 November -2 December 2004, EIBTM moves to a new outstandingly designed venue in Barcelona…
From 30 November -2 December 2004, EIBTM moves to a new outstandingly designed venue in Barcelona, a top world destination in the meetings and incentives industry. Barcelona is acknowledged as one of Europe`s most successful cities for meetings, making it the perfect venue for EIBTM for the next five years, backed by a strong Spanish market, according to latest research findings in two major surveys.
The 2003 M&IT Trends & Spends Survey of UK outbound market this June, Barcelona is the top destination for number of groups and delegate nights, beating Paris, with Spain in first place for short haul from the UK in terms of groups and total delegate nights, taking over from Germany.
The latest ICCA DATA report, The International Meetings Market 1995-2004 shows Barcelona as the most popular city in 2002, both for the association & corporate markets by number of international meetings (jumping from 5th place in 2001). ICCA DATA`s latest statistics present a comprehensive analysis of past, present and future trends in international meetings. Every year the new ICCA figures are anxiously awaited by destinations around the world, all competing for a larger share of this lucrative market.
Independent research carried out for EIBTM in 2002 amongst group co-ordinators, Hosted Buyers and other trade professionals in the industry confirmed it was by far the favourite choice of venue to hold EIBTM in future.
Immensely popular with all key national markets, Barcelona easily tops the short-haul wish list of most UK events organisers for example, with budget airlines helping to increase the awareness of Barcelona and its accessibility for UK cities.
In 2002, Barcelona saw a rise in conference activity of 18% over the previous year, in terms of number of delegates. The city received a total of 301,500 visitors associated with the business travel and meetings sector in 2002 and 1,363 events.
Debbie Jackson, EIBTM Exhibition Director, said: EIBTM has an exciting future ahead in Barcelona and we`re putting together an event for 2004 with more innovations and an enhanced programme of seminars, awards, motivation and networking for those who attend. In Barcelona, EIBTM will provide one of the best business platforms to benefit the industry for years to come.
EIBTM`s beautifully designed venue, the Fira Gran Via exhibition hall, is one of Europe`s most modern exhibition compounds with a total area of 166,000 sq. m. Purpose-built for exhibitions by an acclaimed Japanese architect, the design encompasses every possible requirement, from stunning meeting rooms, courtyards and balconies, to function areas and convenient restaurants all around the hall, creating a very stylish new environment for the event.
Spanish Market
According to the Union of International Associations statistics for 2001 (Top International Meetings Countries in 2001), Spain`s share of the international meetings business in the world is estimated to be valued at €1.441 million. The outgoing Spanish market is estimated to be worth €30 million. Spain is in third place for the greatest number of participants (for meetings attended by between 50 and 10,000 delegates) country by country last year. At the end of 2002, The Economist predicted that Spain would be the fastest growing of the large EU economies, making it a very upbeat business environment for all those participating in EIBTM 2004.
Spanish events are highly international in nature. Figures from the Spanish Convention Bureau indicate that for all major meetings held in Spain, the average percentage of delegates from overseas is 26%. This compares with for example, 4% international attendance at meetings events held in Germany.
Spain`s impressive rate of economic growth – forecast to reach almost 2% in 2003 (one of the highest for a major economy in the eurozone), means that Spanish demand for meetings and incentive travel, both domestic and outbound, is expanding fast. Spanish consultants Grup Integral indicated that for Spain, the market for incentive trips, congresses and conventions has multiplied by two in the last two years in a 2001 Survey.
Since its hosting of the Olympic Games, Spain has witnessed the rise of Spain as a business event destination, matching the country`s unrivalled success as a holiday destination.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
