These are the best XL meeting destinations in New Europe, according to Meetings Star, the annual ranking and award curated by the editorial board of Kongres Magazine and Conventa.
What is the Meeting Experience Index (MTLG)?
An original matrix for evaluating destinations, published every year by Kongres Magazine. It is a reference system that enables a realistic comparison of destinations over time. The Meeting Experience Index is one of the most complex destination evaluations that is not based solely on the number of congresses or events taking place at a destination but also delves into analysis holistically. The methodology addresses all key segments of the industry and MICE products. 75 evaluation criteria are used to determine the final destination score.
What is New Europe?
The answer to this question is something of an unsolved conundrum. A clear definition of New Europe doesn’t exist, the most general definition being that these are the countries of Eastern Europe that were once behind the Iron Curtain. Technically, this means 24 countries of Eastern Europe, adding Greece and Turkey to them. In our Editorial, we include the fresh, energetic and lesser-known European destinations in New Europe.
THE 10 BEST XL – MEETING DESTINATIONS
Winner: VIENNA, Austria
Vienna is a city tailored to the needs of event attendees and meeting planners. The Austrian capital is developing as a smart city of the future, which includes excellent accessibility, great public transport, an abundance of green surfaces and sustainability at the fore. You can only travel this elegantly and simply in Vienna. The airport offers superb flight connections, too. Guests only need up to twenty minutes of elegant travel to the airport terminals. Vienna is the epicentre of innovations in the meetings industry, led by creative start-up companies. Vienna has topped our evaluation for several years. The city is also incredibly successful in various comparisons, including the annual ICCA Country & City Ranking. The city’s model includes a top-down organisational structure, providing meeting subsidies and regularly reporting about meeting statistics. It is clear that a well-organised and managed destination with clear branding can easily retain the leading spot in our comparison. Vienna remains the number one destination in our comparison, which the competition should look up to with respect. Kudos to Vienna for their work in 2023/2024.
All finalists:
● Amsterdam, Netherlands
● Barcelona, Spain
● Berlin, Germany
● Brussels, Belgium
● Copenhagen, Denmark
● Helsinki, Finland
● Lisbon, Portugal
● Madrid, Spain
● Munich, Germany
● Oslo, Norway
● Paris, France
● Prague, Czech Republic
● Rome, Italy
● Rotterdam, Netherlands
● Stockholm, Sweden
● Vienna, Austria
● Zurich, Switzerland
