Berlin remains top destination for meetings in first half of 2017

• 8 per cent more overnight stays, 5 million event participants, 64,000 events
• Berlin is especially in demand for events related to medicine, pharmaceuticals, and health care

Berlin, 11 August 2017 Berlin is increasingly popular with organisers of meetings and conferences. In the first half of 2017, 4.96 million people (+1.8 per cent over the same period last year) attended 64,000 conventions and meetings (+1.9 per cent) in the German capital. Business travellers spent 3.9 million nights in Berlin over the first half of the year, an increase of eight per cent. A quarter of all hotel bookings were made by conference delegates. These figures come from the latest conference statistics* by the visitBerlin Berlin Convention Office.

"As a venue for congresses, Berlin has gained an excellent reputation and continues to play in the top league," says Burkhard Kieker, CEO of visitBerlin. "We see this as a great obligation for continued service to our customers."

Particularly good news comes in the form of increased participation from abroad, especially from the United States and Canada. Berlin has firmly established its position among the top international meeting destinations. 20 per cent of the events held in the German capital now have an international character (+1 per cent). On average, more than 350 events a day speak for themselves. The digital Meeting Guide Berlin is an important unique selling point for the choice of Berlin as a congress location. In addition, Berlin is constantly developing innovative formats for its international customers: with its sustainable event concept Meet+Change and the Berlin Speakers Pool the Berlin Convention Office at visitBerlin has been offering new services since this year.

Berlin's the place to be for medicine, healthcare, politics, and IT The visitBerlin Berlin Convention Office has been actively promoting events in the fields of medicine, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare with a positive effect. Between January and June 2017, these sectors accounted for about 20 per cent of all events held in the city. Consequently, the German capital remains strongly positioned as a top location for medicine-related events. Berlin is also particularly popular as a meeting place in the area of politics and public institutions (14 per cent), as well as IT and the digital economy (13 per cent).

For more information about Berlin as a meeting destination, go to convention.visitBerlin.com.