Silver status for Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region
Event organisers around the world are increasingly seeing the advantages of the "gateway" for conventions and congresses in the heart of Europe - the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region. The results of the "Meeting- & Event Barometer 2011" recently provided impressive confirmation of the clear vote of confidence from the meeting, incentive, congress and event sector (MICE). The congress centres of Darmstadt, Frankfurt, Mainz and Wiesbaden are delighted to have been awarded second place in the rankings for the most popular congress and convention destinations in Germany. Indeed, for the first time, the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region has overtaken the area of Greater Munich. The Berlin/Potsdam area retains its No. 1 position.
v.l.n.r.: Holger Syhre (Wiesbaden), Lars Wöhler (Darmstadt), Claudia Delius-Fisher (Frankfurt),
Henning Wossidlo (Wiesbaden), August Moderer (Mainz).
The results give good cause for optimism. The Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region offers first class facilities through Congress Frankfurt, the department of Messe Frankfurt, which markets the venues on the Frankfurt trade fair site, Kurhaus Wiesbaden and Rhein-Main-Hallen Wiesbaden, Mainz Congress Centre (CCM) and the darmstadtium, Darmstadt's science and congress centre. The operators of these centres are extremely pleased with the results and view them as a confirmation of their strategy of "combined strength".
Lars Wöhler, Managing Director of the darmstadtium believes the four partners are on the right path. "Together, with our portfolio of outstanding venues, we offer the perfect setting for high quality events of all kinds. Sustainability is also an important factor for the future, and one which we are taking very seriously today. We have recognised and are responding to the trend among event planners, of whom 62% confirm the growing importance of green meetings".
August Moderer, Managing Director of CCM, describes the alliance of venues as a "gateway" for congresses. The description consciously refers to the proximity of one of the world's largest airports. This is a decisive competitive advantage, which in combination with a high level of business competence and the diverse landscape of universities and scientific research institutions, lies at the heart of the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region.
Moreover, the region offers a host of attractive tourist destinations along the Rivers Rhine and Main as well as the tranquil, rural landscapes of the Taunus and Odenwald. Impressive wine estates, sleepy wine villages, palaces and hilltop castles, world-class museums, architecture and city shopping centres create the perfect setting for events – and are all close at hand.
"Close at hand – that is our trump card," adds Claudia Delius-Fisher, Head of Congress Frankfurt. "Time is money, as we all know. Organisers and guests alike save valuable time and money thanks to the fast, direct links connecting the Frankfurt-Rhine-Main metropolitan region with the rest of the world."