31 MARCH 2015
and three outdoor pools with decks spanning 129,166 square feet, which make for
ideal meeting spaces.
BRITISH CHARM
London is investing heavily in its infrastructure, and new attractions, venues,
and restaurants are enlivening this leading
city. It touts 120,000 hotel rooms, several
green transportation options, direct flights
to nearly 350 destinations, and houses
three of the world’s top five museums and
unique meeting spaces like no other. The
city is seeing a host of dazzling new venues
in 2015, including the much-anticipated Sky
Garden at 20 Fenchurch Street.
Diverse new hotels opening in 2015
include the 111-room Z Hotel Shoreditch, as
well as The Gansevoort, which will feature
120 guest rooms and over 6,000 square
feet of meeting space. In September, the
452-room InterContinental London The
O2 will debut. The property will feature a
32,000-plus-square foot ballroom. An established favorite is the NH London Kensington,
which is within walking distance of Harrods.
The QEII Centre underwent an 18-month
rebranding and officially debuted its new
look in November. In the fall, IET London:
Savoy Place will open after an extensive,
two-year renovation. In 2016, ExCeL
London will host major association events
for organizations such as The European
Respiratory Society.
Birmingham was named one of the top
20 business travel destinations in Europe,
according to an Egencia study. The high-profile city’s expanded hotel offerings and
transportation infrastructure upgrades are
enabling Birmingham to welcome more
attendees than ever before.
This year also brings the arrival of the
Rugby World Cup and the high-end retail
development Grand Central. Vox Conference Centre recently opened at Resorts
World Birmingham, a new leisure and
entertainment complex.
Liverpool is known as the home of the
Beatles, and for its culture and sports. The
UNESCO World Heritage Site, offers two
international airports, top international
hotel brands, and most major attractions in
this walkable city are nestled close together.
Liverpool offers some of the greenest
convention venues in Europe. The expansive
ACC Liverpool, boasting more than 6,000
hotel rooms within walking distance, will
link to the Exhibition Centre Liverpool when
it arrives in 2015.
New hotels include Pullman Liverpool,
which will open in the fall. The city is home
to the Hilton Liverpool, the 159-room
Crowne Plaza Liverpool, and the 110-room
Hard Days Night Hotel is the world’s only
Beatles-inspired hotel.
CLASSICALLY EUROPEAN
Germany, a center of technology and
innovation, is a key international conference
destination. The country offers excellent
infrastructure and value, and is one of
Europe’s most accessible destinations. The
vibrant capital city, Berlin, boasts over
60,000 guest rooms, famed museums,
avant-garde galleries, and pop-up restaurants. In 2014, the city commemorated 25
years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, and
2015 is bringing more excitement with the
opening of Estrel Convention Hall II. Debuting in the fall next to the Estrel Congress
& Messe Center, the convention hall will
feature two venues to accommodate up to
5,200 and increase overall meeting space to
270,000 square feet.
Accor Hotels recently opened the Sofitel
Berlin Kurfurstendamm. The five-star hotel
includes 311 guest rooms and 21 meeting
rooms. The luxurious Riu Plaza Berlin, opening this year, will offer 357 rooms, exquisite
dining options, and a fitness center.
In September 2014, Hamburg hosted
the 9th Reeperbahn Festival, which drew
30,000 delegates from the music and digital
industries to the city. The colorful waterfront city is home to picturesque canals,
nearly 1,4000 parks, and spacious gardens.
The stage is set for the revitalization of
the Congress Center Hamburg, which will
begin renovations in January 2017. The
reopening of the convention center is set
for 2019.
Nurnberg touts multiple meeting spaces,
8,750 guest rooms, a flourishing economic
center, rich culture, and warm hospital-
ity. Novotel Nurnberg Centre Ville hotel,
opening in May, offers 240 guest rooms, a
spacious spa, and easy accessibility to the
Nurnberg Convention Center. The conven-
tion venue can host events for 11,000-plus
delegates, and features a multi-purpose
hall, three congress centers, 41 meeting
rooms, and six restaurants.
Imperial Vienna is among Europe’s most
sought-after destinations, playing host to
more than 2,000 national and international
meeting and corporate events each year.
In 2013, Austria’s lively capital ranked
third in the world for international events,
according the International Congress and
Convention Association. This is due in no
small part to the city’s easy accessibility,
plentiful state-of-the-art meeting spaces,
and its spectacular array of cultural, artistic,
and gastronomic attractions.
The Park Hyatt Vienna, situated in a
complex of historic buildings, opened its
doors last June, bringing an additional 143
guest rooms to the city. The Rubie Sofie
Hotel also opened last year with 154 guest
rooms. Offering a truly regal experience,
the magnificent Schonbrunn Palace is now
giving visitors the chance to stay inside
a suite teeming with imperial charm. In
addition, the new, 253-room Melia Vienna
occupies several floors of Austria’s tallest
building, the DC Tower 1, and is a popular
spot for group events.
The Messe Wien Exhibition & Congress
Center is a modern and flexible meetings
powerhouse, featuring more than 171,124
square feet of conference and exhibition
space, as well as access by underground
train. Directly linked to the United Nations
Organizations Headquarters is the Austria
Center Vienna, which is ideal for conferences, trade shows, and corporate events
for up to 4,320 attendees.
For a truly unique and historic meetings
experience, groups convene in Hofburg
Vienna—where monarchs once held court
and where composers such as Haydn,
Beethoven, and Mozart held their world
premiers. The Hofburg Congress Center
offers 182,000 square feet of floor space
spread across 35 rooms. It is situated in the
heart of the city, with 8,000 hotel rooms
and more than 40 restaurants nearby.
Switzerland is a markedly diverse
destination. Not only is the country home to
8 million inhabitants sharing four languages
and cultures, but the settings are also
spectacular and varied. With its rugged
snow-capped peaks, shimmering glacial
lakes, rolling verdant hills, and even soaring
palm trees, Switzerland is a picturesque and
