Spain's capital city climbs to fourth position in the world convention city rankings ahead of Singapore, Barcelona and London
Madrid, 13 May 2013.- In 2012, IFEMA's conventions made a clear contribution to Madrid climbing the world convention city rankings. According to the 2012 ranking recently published by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), the capital of Spain reached fourth position in this ranking only trailing Vienna, Paris and Berlin. The city has risen up the ranking from sixth position in 2011 to lead other cities such as Singapore, London and Barcelona; making it the leading business tourism destination in Spain and fourth most popular in the world. It has also reached the peak of its convention activity, hosting 164 international events; up 26% year on year.
The news is a huge boost for Madrid and recognition of its ability to organise conventions, in which IFEMA is actively involved as a major trade fair organiser specialised in international events, and one of the main drivers of business tourism in the capital. Over the previous year, IFEMA organised ten conventions (the most noteworthy being those concerning medical care and technology) – which had an especially positive impact on Madrid's economy – and a total of 378 events, attracting 260,457 participants from around the world.
Feria de Madrid hosted international conventions such as CPhI Worldwide 2012, the major international trade fair for the pharmaceutical ingredients sector, which brought together 1,700 companies and 26,000 professionals from all four corners of the world. The SAP TechEd Global Conference was also held – a prestigious multinational event on business management software that attracted 10,000 international visitors. Other conventions of equal international importance were also held last year such as the European Planetary Science Congress and the ESRI European User Conference on GIS and localisation systems.
The performance and specialisation of IFEMA's Congress and Conventions Department has helped attract major international events in recent years such as those that will be held in June: Microsoft TechEd Europe and the European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR). These two events will attract more than 20,000 participants from around the globe, having an impact on Madrid's economy with 75,000 hotel rooms already booked.
IFEMA hosts conventions at what are among the most modern installations in Europe, comprising 12 halls boasting 200,000 m2 of interior exhibition space, as well as 14,000 car parking spaces, fully-equipped facilities, and unbeatable communications systems with access to the Madrid Metro and close proximity to Barajas International Airport offering many international connections.
IFEMA CONGRESS AND CONVENTIONS Press Officer:
Jesús González, Tel. 34-91-722.50.95; Fax. 34-91-722.57.93; E mail: jesusg@ifema.es