congress

Is the recovery on the horizon living up to your expectations? Patrick Bontinck - I'm fairly confident that business will pick up again. But it remains to be seen when the recovery will really kick in. Among other factors, we are dependent on the provisions laid down by the European Commission and the institutions that...

Speakers immersed in a 3D universe, graphics appearing as if by magic, backdrops that move or change colour at will, all illuminated by virtual 100% lighting: the new Studio Oxygène-Technologie XR, unveiled by Chateauform', takes the animation of corporate events a step further by combining the real with the virtual....

It's certainly a meeting place in tune with the times, at a time when companies and organisers are looking to strengthen the sustainable dimension of their events. A huge rooftop combining spaces for conferences and cocktails, as well as a trendy restaurant and bar - Le Perchoir -, all extended by a terrace of...

For at least five years now, Karlsruhe has been living to the rhythm of the building sites that have invaded the city centre. The reason: the construction of new underground tracks for the tramway. The project is nearing completion, however, with the new lines scheduled for December 2021. But it's not just the tram that's causing a stir at the moment...

With business virtually at a standstill from March to December 2020, and the halls desperately empty in the first half of 2021, the Paris Region Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIP) has drawn up a bitter assessment of the past few months for the exhibition and congress market. For those who still have doubts, which are doubtless extremely rare, the CCIP confirms, with figures...

After 15 months of closure, how do you see the business resuming? Pablo Nakhle Cerrutti - For Viparis, 2021 will be very much like 2020. Last year, we worked from January to mid-March, i.e. for two and a half months, with some additional activity in September. In 2021, we'll be...

"For the past week I've been receiving messages from organisers, all pointing in the same direction: they're talking about postponements and marketing at a standstill. Exhibitors are putting their commitments on hold in the face of the uncertainty surrounding the health situation at the end of the summer": Frédéric Pitrou, general delegate...

Since its inauguration at the beginning of 1967, the sleek lines of the Versailles Palais des Congrès have interacted with the emblematic château just a stone's throw away, weaving a discreet link between the Trente Glorieuses and the Grand Siècle. The doyen of French convention centres, Versailles Palais des Congrès has undergone a major facelift. Closed for renovation in 2019, the...

The See You There (SYT) event, which brought together the key players in the events industry on 1 July, had a special flavour this year after months and months of the sector coming to a standstill. Illustrating a trend that began with the health crisis, this annual meeting of the Union Française des Métiers de l'Événement (UNIMEV) brought together...

The scene opens on the famous Plaza Mayor. Jane, who is organising a major event, gazes out over Madrid's iconic square before setting off to explore the Spanish capital under an ever-blue sky. Seduced by the professionalism of the hoteliers and the quality of the event venues she visits, Jane is also reassured by the protocols...

What is Lille Grand Palais' strategy in launching this new hybrid offering? Hervé Vauvillier - We could have positioned ourselves on a new purely digital offering, but we opted for the hybrid approach. This can be explained by the DNA of Lille Grand Palais: a convention centre is there...

It's sure to be the next guest of honour at corporate meetings and major conferences. Sustainable development is taking pride of place in the MICE sector, and will undoubtedly play a key role in its recovery after the long wait caused by the pandemic. Companies are becoming more and more involved in...

Each in its turn, the events industry is adapting to the new hybrid meeting formats. The Palais des Festivals et des Congrès de Cannes is responding to this demand with a new solution that is being presented as a major first in the exhibition and conference industry: the "Cannes Virtual Events" event space, a 3D universe that...

On Thursday 25 March, tourism and MICE professionals are gathering for a face-to-face conference at the Estrel Hotel in Berlin. The aim of the conference is to demonstrate that face-to-face meetings could once again become possible thanks to the introduction of rapid antigen tests. The conference is organised by...

How did an events institution like Suntec cope with the crisis? Arun Madhok - We had a full schedule for 2020, all our spaces were practically sold out, and we were hosting a major motor show in January... We even celebrated Chinese New Year, and wished ourselves all the best for the coming months......

A forest in the heart of Europe's leading business district may seem a surprising idea at first glance. But a forest that lends itself to business meetings in a green, high-tech atmosphere - so very much in tune with the times - all under the graceful canopy of the CNIT, makes more sense....

Hilton is strengthening its position in China's business segment with the opening of the only hotel directly connected to the Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center, one of the world's largest MICE venues with 500,000 square metres of indoor space. This position, already advantageous for business travellers, is strengthened by the plethora of...

It was the biggest urban development project in Switzerland at the turn of the century. And its inauguration in Zurich at the end of last year could not have come at a worse time. "The Circle opened at the end of November, at a time when Switzerland's leading airport was hard hit by the pandemic. The traffic of...

After three-quarters of 2020, what do you expect for the convention and events sector in 2021? Philippe Augier - The situation is serious, because after almost ten months of business interruption due to administrative closures and regular regulatory instability, the events sector as a whole is very much under threat. Above all, it is...

Vaccination, digital health passports: new obligations should govern business travel in the months and even years to come. A vaccine to revive travel in the age of covid The announcement by the American laboratory Pfizer and the German laboratory BionTech of an effective 90% vaccine against covid-19 should enable the travel industry...