Bella Sky Hotel Named Best Architecture In Europe

January 27th, 2012

Last week, Bella Sky Comwell in Copenhagen, Denmark was honoured for its unique architectur.
The hotel won “Best Architecture in Europe” at the International Hotel Awards. The award was presented in London to the architectural firm behind the building, 3XN.
In 2011, Bella Sky was named the Commercial Building of the Year in Denmark and now the skewed hotel in Copenhagen has once again won an award for its unique architecture.
Last week, Bella Sky Comwell was honoured in London at the International Hotel Awards in the category “Best Architecture in Europe”.
“We are very proud of the award, as our unique design is undoubtedly an important parameter that we emphasise to attract customers. This is true for our core customers in the conference, congress and “businesswoman/man” market, as well as in the private market – a customer group that we take great pleasure in having as guests.”
“Presenting such unique design and decor, which has been recognised with awards and honours in Denmark and abroad, makes it much easier to attract customers. And it is gratifying that we in little Denmark once again live up to our status as world class creators of architecture and design,” says Anders Duelund, Bella Sky Hotel General Manager.

And here’s a picture

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Most successful maritime event in the region: 8th Beirut Boat – “B2B-Event” for the international boat and lifestyle industry, from 16 to 20 May 2012 in Beirut

January 26th, 2012

From 16 to 20 May 2012, Messe Düsseldorf in cooperation with its Lebanese partner IFP Expo, the largest trade fair organizer in the Middle East, is staging the 8th International Boat & Super Yacht Show in Beirut. As one of the most successful maritime shows in the region, Beirut Boat 2011 registered over 28,000 visitors from the Lebanon (80%), the Eastern Mediterranean region (8%) and the Gulf States (12%). Over 130 exhibitors from 16 countries presented their products and services connected with the boat and lifestyle industry in the Marina Joseph Khoury to the north of Beirut.

Thanks to the restored political stability and the consistent economic growth over the last two years in the Eastern Mediterranean, for 2012 the organizers are even expecting an increase both in exhibitors as well as visitors. The key areas are yachts, boats, boat equipment and accessories from international top brands such as Bavaria, Feretti, San Lorenzo or Sunseeker.

Supported by the Arab Marine Industries Association (AMIA), Beirut Boat 2012 sees itself as THE B2B event for the international and regional boat and marine industry, also in connection with the growing maritime tourism industry. As one of the most successful maritime shows in the region, Beirut Boat offers the optimum forum for interested parties to inform themselves about numerous leading brands and names in the international yacht and water sports industry, to meet potential customers from all over the world and to also open up their channels to promising markets through excellent visitor quality.

You can find further information at www.beirutboat.com or by contacting Messe Düsseldorf, Arne von Heimendahl, e-mail: HeimendahlA@messe-duesseldorf.de, phone: +49 (0)211 4560-429.

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convention bureau DÜSSELDORF named preferred partner of the German Convention Bureau

January 25th, 2012

DÜSSELDORF. The convention bureau DÜSSELDORF has been advertising Düsseldorf, the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, as a domestic and interna-tional event destination since it was founded in 2008. Since then, the convention bureau DÜSSELDORF has established itself in the event industry as the first place to go when you want to hold a large convention, a congress or a business event in Düsseldorf. Over the past few months, the institution has entered into an extensive partnership with the Deutschen Kongressbüro (GCB – German Con-vention Bureau e.V.), giving the convention bureau DÜSSELDORF “preferred partner” status as of January 1, 2012. This partnership links the convention bu-reau to all GCB activities, further strengthening its future position on the domestic and global event markets.
The GCB has been marketing Germany as a congress, meeting and event loca-tion since 1973. Its 250 members include leading hotels, congress centers and host cities, car rental agencies, event agencies, as well as service providers from the German meeting and convention industry. One of the goals of the partnership between GCB and the convention bureau DÜSSELDORF is to increase its pres-ence at the three leading industry trade fairs: IMEX Frankfurt (May 22-24), IMEX America in Las Vegas (October 9-11) and EIBTM in Barcelona (November 27-29). In addition, the convention bureau DÜSSELDORF has begun advertising prominently on the umbrella organization’s web site, newsletter and client news-paper.
“The convention bureau DÜSSELDORF was established based on a concept developed jointly by Düsseldorf Marketing & Tourismus GmbH (DMT) and DüsseldorfCongress Veranstaltungsgesellschaft mbH to provide a centralized platform for the meeting and congress industry in the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, Düsseldorf. We achieved this goal extraordinarily well. Thanks to the convention bureau, DMT’s and DüsseldorfCongress’s existing activities in the convention market were effectively bundled together, offering those interested an unmistakable central source of options. This has proven to be a valuable com-plement to Düsseldorf’s own marketing as an attractive city in which to do busi-ness. Now we want to make use of GCB’s good contacts and platform to attract even more world-class conventions and events to Düsseldorf,” explains DMT’s managing director Dr. Eva-Maria Illigen-Günther.
“Over the past years, Düsseldorf has established itself as one of the leading cit-ies in the German event market. Many high-profile congresses have been hosted by the North-Rhine Westphalian capital. We are optimistic that our partnership with GCB will enable us to position ourselves on the market even more inten-sively in the medium and long term and make Düsseldorf an even more popular destination in the German and international meeting industry,” adds Hilmar Guckert, management spokesperson of DüsseldorfCongress.

convention bureau DÜSSELDORF
The convention bureau DÜSSELDORF was founded in April, 2008 and cele-brated its official kick-off during the IMEX Frankfurt. The institution was set up collaboratively by Düsseldorf Marketing & Tourismus GmbH and DüsseldorfCon-gress Veranstaltungsgesellschaft mbH. The core objectives of the joint project include actively marketing the city of Düsseldorf as a German and international congress destination. The institution manages complex applications for large-scale congresses and offers competent and comprehensive services. The con-vention bureau team helps event organizers choose the ideally suited event loca-tion, reserve hotel rooms, and provides advice on organizing additional activities during the congress. For detailed information about what makes Düsseldorf such an attractive place to hold your next event, please see www.convention-duesseldorf.com.

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SpoBiS – Düsseldorf hosts Europe’s largest sport business convention

January 24th, 2012

The annual Sports Business Summit (SpoBiS), Europe’s largest sport business convention, will be held in Düsseldorf for the second time on February 13-14, 2012. Approximately 1,500 participants and 150 top German and in-ternational experts in sports, politics and business are expected to gather at the CCD Congress Center Düsseldorf in the capital of North Rhine-Westfalia for the two-day convention. The convention will be hosted by the European Sponsoring Börse (ESB) and the trade magazine SPONSORs.
Every year, a steady stream of the who’s-who of the sporting world takes the SpoBiS stage. This year’s all-star lineup includes the managing director of Borussia Dortmund, Thomas Treß, the chairman of the supervisory board of FC Schalke 04, Clemens Tönnies, and the founder of SAP, Dietmar Hopp. The key points on the agenda at this 16th
Before SpoBiS was held in Düsseldorf for the first time in 2011, it used to be held in Munich. In cooperation with sportAgentur Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf-Congress Veranstaltungs-GmbH bid to host the trade convention and won out against competitors in Berlin, Leipzig and Munich. The convention will be held in Düsseldorf for the next four years. Sports Business Summit are sustainability in sports, how sport reporting has changed in the digital era, and of course the upcoming Olympic Games in London. The winner of the “Sports Marketing Award” will also be announced during the SpoBiS convention again this year.

More information here.

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The Hague Visitors & Convention Bureau nominated for ‘Best Overseas Convention Bureau’

January 23rd, 2012

Readers of the leading British magazine M&IT (Meeting and Incentive Travel) have nominated The Hague Visitors & Convention Bureau as best overseas convention bureau in the meeting industry. The Hague faces Vienna, Monaco, Malta and Switzerland. The winner will be announced on March 5th in London. Marco Esser, acting director of The Hague Visitors & Convention Bureau: “I am extremely proud of our staff. All the other nominees work with much larger budgets, but our people truly excel at providing service. This nomination from clients is their reward.”
The Meeting & Incentive Travel Industry Awards have a 15 year history and have become highly valued within the business. They aim to emphasize the market’s best practices by letting those who use providers’ services choose their favourites. It is the only British voting system that allows clients to determine who will take the honours. The process is supervised by the independent Audit Bureau of Circulation in order to safeguard quality. There are many different categories, including best hotel, best conference centre, best airline and best convention bureau. There are Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards in each category. The winners will be announced on March 5th during a gala dinner in London.
The Hague was The Netherlands’ second conference city in 2011. The Hague Convention Bureau provides free consultation and assistance to parties organising business meetings or conferences within its borders. The Hague The Hague Visitors & Convention Bureau boasts ample experience in the acquisition of association and other conferences and incentives, always operating to the highest standards of service. (source)

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Survey Reveals Industry could do more for Responsible and Sustainable Travel

January 23rd, 2012

The travel and tourism industry could do more for responsible and sustainable tourism, reveals a survey that took place at World Travel Market 2011 – the leading global event for the travel industry – by exhibitor SustainIt.
As the travel and tourism industry continues to grow there is an increased emphasis on responsible travel. During WTM 2011 Technology and Online Travel exhibitor SustainIt, the leading software and data consultancy that specialise in sustainability performance, surveyed more than 200 WTM participants. This was to understand the industry’s experiences of sustainability and responsible tourism and work out whether the industry really is engaging in the principles of sustainability.
More than seven out of ten industry professionals including hoteliers, airlines, resorts and tourist attractions believe the travel and tourism industry could do more to reduce poverty and support sustainable local economic development in destination communities. Only 18% of companies questioned have sustainable supply chains and procurement policies in place.
An increasing number of companies offer their customers carbon offsets, but only 26% of companies were looking at their own carbon footprint. Six out of ten industry professionals asked felt their company could do more to promote sustainability overall, with only 29% of employees not knowing if they had an targets or objectives to meet in these areas.
When WTM delegates were asked to identify the key responsible tourism issue for 2012, the survey ranked ‘Increasing employee and customer engagement in sustainability’ as the top issue. With only 29% of respondents believing their company is doing enough to promote sustainability and responsible travel/tourism to its employees and customers.
These two statistics coincide to unveil that the industry is informed and aware of sustainability on one hand but has a lack of employee and customer engagement on the other hand.
SustainIT Managing Director Charlie Stockford explains: “Our survey shows that whilst there is increasing activity and concern around sustainable and responsible travel and tourism within the trade, many employees are not aware of what their own company is trying to achieve and therefore are unable to share it with their customers.
We really hope that 2012 is a year where businesses start communicating and engaging far more with their employees about their sustainability and responsible travel programmes and that those companies who are just starting out realise the real positive impact a good sustainability programme can make to both their profitability and to the future of our planet.”
Reed Travel Exhibitions Chairman World Travel Market and pioneer of responsible tourism Fiona Jeffery expressed that the key observations revealed are ultimately the key reasons why WTM World Responsible Tourism Day – an international day of action dedicated to help protect the world – was formed.
“Travel companies, destinations and professionals worldwide recognise that responsible tourism offers a valuable and exciting new dimension to travel and tourism. With this in mind, one of the key objectives of WTM WRTD is to help drive change by educating more responsible behaviour with the travel and tourism industry and travelling public.”
This year WTM World Responsible Tourism Day will take place on Wednesday 7 November at WTM, ExCeL London.
(source: World Travel Market)

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Birmingham Convention Bureau Reaches National Awards Final

January 20th, 2012

Birmingham Convention Bureau (BCB) has been nominated in the ‘Best UK Convention Bureau’ category in the 2012 Meetings & Incentive Travel Industry Awards.
BCB will face competition at the awards ceremony from Staffordshire Stoke on Trent Conference Bureau, Glasgow City Marketing Bureau, Jersey Conference Bureau and NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau.
Organised by Meetings & Incentive Travel magazine, the annual event celebrates excellence of service and product in the various sectors of the business tourism market.
Birmingham Convention Bureau (Meet Birmingham) provides services including free venue finding, online accommodation booking and social programme planning, along with an award-winning Event Support Package.
Ian Taylor, Commercial Director at Marketing Birmingham, the city’s strategic marketing partnership which operates the Birmingham Convention Bureau, said:
“Birmingham is a truly global events destination and being nominated for this prestigious award reflects the very high quality of service offered by our committed Convention Bureau team.”
“The city has a reputation for hosting and delivering first class events, including party political conferences and world-renowned exhibitions. The continued investment in our hotel infrastructure and retail and transport offer, combined with our unrivalled location at the heart of the country, demonstrates that Birmingham boasts all of the credentials to remain the UK’s meeting place.”
Other venues in the region celebrating nominations include Warwick Conferences, considered to house the largest concentration of meeting space in the UK, in a hat trick of categories – ‘Best Value for Money Conference Centre’ (Scarman), ‘Best Academic Venue’ (The Conference Park) and ‘Best UK Management Training Centre’ (Scarman).
Aston Villa, offering a wide range of executive boxes, suites, restaurants and lounges across the four stands of its Villa Park football stadium, have been shortlisted for an award in the ‘Best UK Unusual Venue’ category.
Conference Aston, situated at the heart of Birmingham with three conferencing and event venues and a number of residential and non-residential options, are celebrating inclusion in the ‘Best Value for Money Conference Venue’ category.
The ceremony, featuring a total of 21 awards, will take place on Monday 5th March at the Park Plaza Hotel, Westminster Bridge in London.

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KölnKongress registers its highest turnover since company was founded

January 19th, 2012

The year of 2011 was a very successful year for KölnKongress with another high level of occupancy in all objects.
“We were able to continue where we left off with our good balance sheet result of 2010 and are extremely satisfied with the 2011 congress year”, said KölnKongress Managing Director Bernhard Conin. The number of events at KölnKongress declined slightly, since a large number of the supporting events were lost as a result of the regular rotation of the trade fair programme. At the same time, the overall occupancy of the facilities of KölnKongress increased in comparison with the previous year. The number of visitors remained at almost the same level. With the start of the general renovation the Flora Köln in September 2011, its reopening has also came a little closer.

Facts and figures on the congress year 2011

KölnKongress was able to increase its turnover with a provisional total of 12.5 million Euros by 11 percent compared with the previous year (2010: 11.26 million). That is the highest turnover figure since the foundation of KölnKongress. Bernhard Conin, Managing Director of KölnKongress GmbH: “We are very satisfied with the year of 2011. Our locations were generally well occupied. We are also already now very optimistic about 2012, and hope to be able to match the high levels of recent years”.

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Students Invited To IMEX Essay Competition

January 19th, 2012

Organisers of IMEX Frankfurt, together with research partners, Fast Future Research, are inviting students from all over the world to enter a prestigious new essay competition as part of its new ‘Power of 10’ research study.
The Power of 10 study is designed to commemorate the global meetings, events and incentive travel industry trade show’s 10th anniversary in 2012 and, at the same time, the essay competition gives students with an eye to working in the industry a valuable opportunity to get themselves and their ideas noticed.
The competition is open to full and part-time students over the age of 18 studying at an academic institution anywhere in the world. It invites them to submit either their ideas and visions for how the meetings industry will evolve over the next 10 years or a real life case study detailing how a particular destination is already preparing in an innovative way for the next decade. The competition picks up on the objectives of the Power of 10 study, which will take a look back 10 years and take a vital look forward over the same period by interviewing 100 meetings and non-meetings industry professionals, be they established and known leaders or personalities, rising stars or influencers.
Two winning submissions will be chosen from all the entrants. Their prize will include free travel to IMEX in Frankfurt this May 22 – 24, two nights’ accommodation and participation in the IMEX-MPI-MCI Future Leaders Forum during the show where they will take the stage to present a summary of their findings. Their winning submissions will also be published on the IMEX in Frankfurt website and shared virally via social media.
Each student will also be presented with a Certificate of Special Achievement by IMEX Group Chairman, Ray Bloom, with coverage in the show’s Daily Paper which is read by thousands of exhibitors and buyers attending the award-winning trade show.
The 10 best entries will also be published as part of the final Power of 10 research report, the findings of which will be presented during IMEX in Frankfurt and also circulated globally thereby giving students an unparalleled international platform and further, strong incentive to participate.
Says Carina Bauer, CEO of the IMEX Group: “This is a really exciting opportunity in a landmark year for two students to really make their mark on the industry and to get noticed by prospective employers and industry leaders. We are looking for ideas, visions and case studies that are going to get the industry talking and that demonstrate strong, clear communication skills. That means showing imagination, flair and enthusiasm for everything the global meetings industry stands for, and a sense of – or desire to – influence its future direction.”
“Given the tough economic climate we are all working in, this is a great chance for a couple of students to take the spotlight and stand out from the crowd. I urge any students who are serious about pursuing a career in the meetings, events or incentive travel sectors to enter. By doing so they will get a tremendous chance to put themselves ahead of the pack and accelerate their careers.”

All essays must be presented in English only and should be no more than 1500 words long. Entries must be received by midnight GMT March 9th 2012. Winning entries will be announced by March 30th 2012. For full details and conditions of entry, see http://www.imex-frankfurt.com/studentcasestudy.html
Rohit Talwar, project director of the Power of 10 study and CEO of Fast Future Research, added: “This is a very exciting time for the business meetings and events industry. The pace of innovation is picking up globally as the sector responds to emerging opportunities and a rapidly changing business climate. Young talent is being given an ever greater voice in the sector and the future of the industry lies in the hands of these young innovators – we look forward to seeing their ideas on how the industry might evolve in the decade ahead.”
The IMEX Power of 10 research study will be conducted by Fast Future Research who run the highly acclaimed Convention 2020 study on the future of business events. The founding sponsors of the study are four organisations that have worked closely with IMEX in Frankfurt since the show’s launch. They are: IMEX’s strategic partner, the German Convention Bureau (GCB); the show’s venue – Messe Frankfurt; its ground-handlers, CPO Hanser and the Frankfurt Tourist Office.

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International tourism to reach one billion in 2012

January 18th, 2012

International tourist arrivals grew by over 4% in 2011 to 980 million, according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer. With growth expected to continue in 2012, at a somewhat slower rate, international tourist arrivals are on track to reach the milestone one billion mark later this year.

International tourist arrivals grew by 4.4% in 2011 to a total 980 million, up from 939 million in 2010, in a year characterised by a stalled global economic recovery, major political changes in the Middle East and North Africa and natural disasters in Japan. By region, Europe (+6%) was the best performer, while by subregion South-America (+10%) topped the ranking. Contrary to previous years, growth was higher in advanced economies (+5.0%) than in emerging ones (+3.8%), due largely to the strong results in Europe, and the setbacks in the Middle East and North Africa.

“International tourism hit new records in 2011 despite the challenging conditions,” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai. “For a sector directly responsible for 5% of the world’s GDP, 6% of total exports and employing one out of every 12 people in advanced and emerging economies alike these results are encouraging, coming as they do at a time in which we urgently need levers to stimulate growth and job creation,” he added.

Europe surpasses the half billion mark in 2011
Despite persistent economic uncertainty, tourist arrivals to Europe reached 503 million in 2011, accounting for 28 million of the 41 million additional international arrivals recorded worldwide. Central and Eastern Europe and Southern Mediterranean destinations (+8% each) experienced the best results. Although part of the growth in Southern Mediterranean Europe resulted from a shift in traffic away from the Middle East and North Africa, destinations in the Mediterranean also profited from improved outbound flows from markets such as Scandinavia, Germany and the Russian Federation.

Asia and the Pacific (+6%) was up 11 million arrivals in 2011, reaching a total 216 million international tourists. South Asia and South-East Asia (both +9%) benefited from strong intraregional demand, while growth was comparatively weaker in North-East Asia (+4%) and Oceania (+0.3%), partly due to the temporary decline in the Japanese outbound market.

The Americas (+4%) saw an increase of 6 million arrivals, reaching 156 million in total. South America, up by 10% for the second consecutive year, continued to lead growth. Central America and the Caribbean (both +4%) maintained the growth rates of 2010. North America, with a 3% increase, hit the 100 million tourists mark in 2011.

Africa maintained international arrivals at 50 million, as the gain of two million by Sub-Saharan destinations (+7%) was offset by the losses in North Africa (-12%). The Middle East (-8%) lost an estimated 5 million international tourist arrivals, totalling 55 million. Nevertheless, some destinations such as Saudi Arabia, Oman and the United Arab Emirates sustained steady growth.

Receipts confirm positive trend in arrivals
Available data on international tourism receipts and expenditure for 2011 closely follows the positive trend in arrivals.

Among the top ten tourist destinations, receipts were up significantly in the USA (+12%), Spain (+9%), Hong Kong (China) (+25%) and the UK (+7%). The top spenders were led by emerging source markets – China (+38%), Russia (+21%), Brazil (+32%) and India (+32%) – followed by traditional markets, with the growth in expenditure of travelers from Germany (+4%) and the USA (+5%) above the levels of previous years.

International tourism on course to hit one billon in 2012
UNWTO forecasts international tourism to continue growing in 2012 although at a slower rate. Arrivals are expected to increase by 3% to 4%, reaching the historic one billion mark by the end of the year. Emerging economies will regain the lead with stronger growth in Asia and the Pacific and Africa (4% to 6%), followed by the Americas and Europe (2% to 4%). The Middle East (0% to +5%) is forecast to start to recover part of its losses from 2011.

These prospects are confirmed by the UNWTO Confidence Index. The 400 UNWTO Panel of Experts from around the globe, expects the tourism sector to perform positively in 2012, though somewhat weaker than last year.

Governments urged to facilitate travel
As destinations worldwide look to stimulate travel demand under pressing economic conditions, UNWTO is urging governments to consider advancing travel facilitation, an area in which in spite of the great strides made so far there is still much room for progress. UNWTO advises countries to make the most of information and communication technologies in improving visa application and processing formalities, as well as the timings of visa issuance, and to analyze the possible impact of travel facilitation in increasing their tourism economies.

“Travel facilitation is closely interlinked with tourism development and can be key in boosting demand. This area is of particular relevance in a moment in which governments are looking to stimulate economic growth but cannot make major use of fiscal incentives or public investment,” said Mr. Rifai.

More here.

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