Barcelona consolidates its meetings and events activity

Barcelona received more than 580,000 delegates for congresses, conventions, events and incentive trips in 2014, which has resulted in a 7% increase in the number of overnight stays in the city, according to the balance sheet of the Barcelona Convention Bureau.

 

The Catalan capital will be able to maintain this trend over time, as it has guaranteed a total of 223 congresses between now and the year 2021, which represents the arrival of 753,000 delegates.

However, Barcelona Convention Bureau has indicated in the report of its annual balance sheet that the classic character of some of the most important congresses, which in each edition of the congress, is the result of the fact that each time they are held, the number of delegates is higher than in previous years;The fact that some of the most important congresses, which are held in different cities each year, detract from the year-to-year evolution of the meetings tourism segment, which should be taken into account with more perspective.

For this year, the BCB will work specifically on attracting economic activity in the U.S. market, taking advantage of the depreciation of the euro against the dollar in recent months. In addition, the meetings tourism program of Turisme de Barcelona will also prioritize other markets, such as the US and Germany;Germany, United Kingdom and France, with some selected actions also in the Asian continent, among others.

To the 223 new congresses already confirmed in the city for the 2015-2021 period, we must add the additional 104 candidatures for new events that the Barcelona Convention Bureau currently has in the pipeline.