The latest meetings statistics make excellent reading for Vienna, with significant growth for the entire industry in 2011. Conferences and meetings totals jumped 7% to 3,151, overnight stays were up 6% to 1,412,133 and induced GDP for the calendar year rocketed 9% to EUR 838.4 million. The Hofburg Vienna stood out with a set of particularly strong results .
Putting the impressive statistics to one side for a minute, the capital also made headlines with numerous awards during the year. Vienna led the inaugural global Smart City Ranking, leaving traditionally strong competitors such as Toronto and Paris in its wake. Smart Cities are characterised by factors such as exceptional innovation, sustainability, quality of life and digital governance. The 2011 Mercer quality of life study and the latest ICCA Congress rankings both saw Vienna claim the top spot. And according to another international study you would be hard pressed to find anyone more hospitable than the Austrians in Europe.
With all of that in mind, it’s hardly surprising that the Hofburg Vienna is in a position to offer such an impressive line-up of events each year. Upcoming highlights include the 33rd International Vienna Motor Symposium (26-27 April), which will bring together 1,000 experts from the industry. After that it’s time for a series of medical events including the MedicRes Congress (7-9 June), the TERMIS World Congress (6-8 September) and the European Neuroendocrine Association Congress (11-15 September). The Hofburg will also host a number of scientific get-togethers later this year such as theICAR – International Conference on Arabidopsis Research (3-7 July) and the Third International Symposium on Life Circle Civil Engineering (2-6 October).
