The 27 members of the Spanish Association of Congress Centres (APCE) met at the Congress and Exhibition Centre of Galicia from 17-18 December to discuss their internal strategies to attract business and the present situation of congress tourism.
The 7th APCE Congress served to stress the important relationship that exists between positioning cities as tourist destinations and attracting a large number of business tourists. The keynote given by Jose Salinas, chairman of APCE, addressed the positive trend as regards the number of meetings held in Spanish cities, according to international statistics for the last few years, thanks to new facilities and the top events that these have hosted.
External keynote speakers included the architect Francisco Mangado, responsible for designing the Congress Centre and Auditorium of Navarra - Baluarte, the Municipal Centre of Exhibitions and Congresses of Avila, and the Congress Centre of Palma de Mallorca, who addressed some of the basic factors that should be taken into account when designing an event venue, such as the social environment, programme organization, communal areas, catering services, and building materials. Likewise, Enrique Dans, a teacher at the IE Business School, highlighted the importance of social networks and virtual communities in the environment and the need to adapt information to new formats, such as blogging. In the opinion of the association’s member centres, websites have become a complementary tool for implementing sales and marketing strategies.
As in previous editions, there were also a number of technical forums, this time revolving around three fundamental aspects: environmental regulations, safety, and maintenance cost and investment control at congress centres.
Lastly, the APCE 2009 Award was given to the Spanish Society of Ophthalmology (SEO) in acknowledgement of the association’s habitual use of member congress centres for holding its congresses and meetings.
