BEST FOR… BIG GROUPS
ICC Berlin, Germany
www.icc-berlin.de
Last year saw the Internationales Congress Centrum Berlin host one of Europe’s biggest
medical conferences when 10,000 professionals attended the 14th United European
Gastroenterology Week.
That will be topped this year when up to 12,000 medical specialists from across the globe attend the conference for the Federation of European Cancer Societies.
The centre was the venue of choice for the 2006 Daimler Chrysler AGM, which was attended by 10,000 delegates.
Capacity is not an issue because the ICC Berlin is Europe’s largest conference venue,
hosting 796 conferences last year, against 704 the year before, which were attended
by 266,000 visitors.
With 80 halls and rooms, it seats up to 9,100 delegates. The venue is linked to the adjacent Berlin Exhibition Grounds via a three-storey walkway and there are more than 3,000 hotel rooms within a five-kilometre radius.
BEST FOR… LOCATION
Grimaldi Forum, Monaco
www.grimaldiforum.com
If your delegates are looking for a venue that is slickness personified, then the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco is it.
The forum is located on the Larvotto seafront overlooking the Mediterranean Sea and the huge glass entrance has become a glistening icon that sparkles in the 300 days of sunshine Monaco enjoys each year.
Delegates can appreciate the setting over lunch. One of the centre’s two restaurants
overlooks the sea.
What is more, the forum is within walking distance of many of Monaco’s hotels and
attractions, including the Monte Carlo Casino. The high expectations the exterior generates are met by the interior. Facilities include a 1,800-seat auditorium, 23 breakout rooms for ten to 400 delegates and two big exhibition halls.
IBM held an event there last October for 300 delegates. “The Grimaldi Forum sets standards that should represent the benchmark to the congress centre industry,” says Karen Rice, the IBM account team manager at British events management firm Banks Sadler.
BEST FOR… ACCESSIBILITY
Amsterdam RAI
www.rai.nl
Accessibility is certainly one of this venue’s strong points. Amsterdam RAI has its own railway station, is less than ten minutes by train from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and is located next to a major highway.
Although the complex is located on Amsterdam’s outskirts, the city centre is only 15 minutes away by public transport. Trams stop in front of the venue and it has its own harbour that provides a direct connection to Amsterdam’s canal network.
Each year, Amsterdam RAI hosts more than 50 international congresses, 70 trade fairs and exhibitions, and more than 1,000 conferences, meetings and smaller functions. It offers 87,000 sqm of exhibition space, 22 meeting rooms with seating for up to 1,750 delegates and 11 exhibition halls seating up to 12,900 people.
BEST FOR… HOTELS
Istanbul C&EC
www.icec.org
The recently renovated 5,000-delegate capacity Istanbul Lütfi Kirdar Convention & Exhibition Centre (ICEC) is located within the city’s “Conference Valley”.
Alongside ICEC is the Rumeli Fair and Exhibition Hall, and there are six five-star hotels offering more than 1,500 rooms within walking distance.
These include: the 498-room Hilton Istanbul, which has its own convention centre that can cater for 3,000 delegates across its eight meeting rooms; the 244-room Ritz-Carlton that can handle receptions for up to 650 guests; the 360-room Hyatt Regency, which has function space for up to 500 delegates; and the 383-room Ceylan InterContinental, which has 11 function rooms
that can accommodate up to 1,200 delegates.
Organisers opting for these hotels will find themselves ideally located within walking distance of the ICEC and Istanbul’s prime attractions, including the Blue Mosque and the Grand Bazaar.
The main ICEC building features a total of 21 meeting rooms with capacities ranging from 60 to 600 people. Its main hall can fit up to 5,000 delegates.
BEST FOR… ACTIVITIES
Disneyland Resort Paris
www.drpbusiness.com
While it offers two convention centres, with 17,000 sqm of function space, 95 meeting rooms and 13 hotels with 7,800 rooms, the main draw of Disneyland Resort Paris is its two theme parks.
Groups can hire a number of the themed restaurants and they can also enter the park after opening hours to use one or several of the rides. Other organised incentives include a treasure hunt within the park, speedboat racing or rafting on Lake Disney, buggy rallies, ice-skating and the newly introduced Davy Crockett’s Adventure.
This comprises 80 tree-top challenges, such as creeper swinging and a 17m-high
Tarzan-style leap within the oak and beech forest of Disney’s Davy Crockett Ranch.
CONTINENTAL CHOICE
As part of our continuing global series from Conference & Incentive Travel, our sister title in the UK, we take a close look at some of Europe's best big meeting spaces.
