Following new record tourism figures in 2011, the German capital has now also announced positive meetings and conference performance for last year with 115,700 events staged, marking growth of two percent. The functions were attended by 9.7 million participants, seven percent more than in 2010. The number of room nights jumped seven percent to 6.05 million. Meetings trade thus generates just over one quarter of all hotel overnights inBerlin. The upward trend is most clearly apparent in sales revenues: last yearBerlinearned EUR 1.8 billion from meetings and conference participants, an increase of ten percent year on year.
The events and meetings industry secured 34,000 full-time jobs, 2,000 more than in 2010. VisitBerlin managing director Burkhard Kieker sees conference activity as an important mainstay of the capital’s economy. “In future too we will do our utmost to further reinforceBerlin’s position as a meetings host.BERAirportmarks an important stage on the city’s path to becoming an international metropolis, attracting more international conferences to the German capital. New flight connections will help make it even more successful as an event and meetings destination. To provide scope for further growth, the number of potential venues inBerlinalso needs to be increased. New demand is emerging here.”
In 2011 the proportion of international conference-goers worked out at 19 percent, with German guests growing their share by one percent to 81 percent. A particularly large number of meetings and conventions from the pharmaceutical industry and retail trade took place inBerlin. Each sector carved itself a share of 10 percent.
The statistics are based on data from conference hotels, conference centres and venues inBerlin. These are evaluated by an independent market research company.
