The ICCA Congress is the meetings and events industry’s premier event. Year after year, our Congress draws delegates from all corners of the globe and attracts attendees from throughout our community. It’s the place for everyone in the business events space to gather, connect, and form the friendships that make us strong and successful.   “I’m honored to announce today that ICCA board has selected the next two destinations for the ICCA Congress. From November 9 to 12, 2025, we’ll be heading to Porto, Portugal, and from November 8 to 11, 2026, we’ll set a course for Panama City, Panama,” said Senthil Gopinath, CEO of ICCA. “ICCA is thrilled to head to these world-class cities for the meetings and events industry’s flagship event, two locations that share ICCA’s vision for a dynamic, innovative, and forward-thinking business events industry.” Every year, ICCA works with destinations in cities around the globe to determine the location for this landmark event. Through a long process of deliberation, the ICCA Board narrows down the potential candidates and ultimately select one city to host the Congress, an event that not only brings together the best and brightest of our industry but provides unmatched opportunity for the host […]

Link: www.iccaworld.org  Link: www.iccaworld.org  FRANKFURT, GERMANY, 16 MAY 2024 — ICCA, the International Congress and Convention Association, is thrilled to announce that the 2024 Global Influencer Award was presented last night to Marie Hunter, Managing Director of Conferences, Events & Experiences (IEEE).   Each year at the IMEX Gala Dinner, ICCA announces the winner of the Global Influencer Award, which recognises an individual’s outstanding contribution to — and influence on — the global meetings industry. On the evening of 15 May at the Sheraton Frankfurt, ICCA President Marta Gomes and CEO Senthil Gopinath were delighted to present the 2024 award to Ms. Hunter. Marie Hunter is a passionate advocate for event technology and professional development. As a business strategist, executive producer, and global events leader at IEEE, Marie’s transformative initiatives have significantly expanded the organisation’s virtual event product line. Her leadership in driving cross-cultural business development and emergency response has set new standards in the industry.  Marie’s role as the executive producer and founder of the annual premier event IEEE Convene highlights her innovative approach to creating platforms that foster engagement and disseminate knowledge globally. Her work extends beyond event management to influencing IEEE’s strategic direction and enhancing its mission through […]

In a unique event centred around exploring the future of association meetings and how they can impact societal change, ICCA hosted a half-day programme in which participants shared challenges, collaborated on solutions, and engaged in focused discussions on the topics that matter most to associations.

ICCA, the International Congress and Convention Association, announced today that it is expanding its strategic presence in Latin America and the Caribbean with the establishment of a new office within the Panama Association Hub (PAH).

New Board Welcomed as EIC Experiences Significant Membership Growth and Increased Research, Standards and Programming Activity

At Convening Leaders 2024, speakers delved into the landscape of generative AI, followed by the announcement of a new feature in PCMA and Gevme’s AI Spark. Nina Schick asserted that AI can surpass the Turing test, convincingly mimicking human behaviors with advanced cognition.

Across four magical days in Bangkok, the 62nd ICCA Congress (12 – 15 Nov 2023) emerged as a beacon of industry leadership, innovation, and advocacy for the international meetings and events industry.

On December 11, 2023, at an inaugural signing at the Panama Convention Center in Panama City, Panama, the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) Board Members and Chief Executive Officer, Yannis Apostolopoulos with SCA Board President, Konstantinos Konstantinopoulos, joined a welcoming crowd alongside

ICCA – stronger than ever – is delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with the Luxembourg Convention Bureau, ushering in a new era of professional development within the global business events industry.

KUALA LUMPUR, 13 September 2023: The region’s leading professional triathletes are set to descend on Langkawi, Malaysia for the 2023 IRONMAN 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship on Saturday 7 October 2023. Langkawi, a stunning tropical paradise known for its pristine beaches and lush landscapes, will become the epicentre of endurance sports in the Asia-Pacific region as it welcomes the return of IRONMAN Malaysia alongside the IRONMAN 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship in Langkawi. This event will mark a significant milestone for triathlon in the region as Malaysia plays host to the IRONMAN 70.3 Asia-Pacific Championship for the very first time with the support of Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB). The picturesque Langkawi Island, with its breathtaking vistas and challenging terrain, will provide the perfect backdrop for the event.  After a hiatus of several years, Langkawi will once again welcome professional athletes, marking their return to Malaysian shores since 2019. The event has already garnered interest from athletes, with more than 1,200 triathletes already committed, representing a wide spectrum of global talent and enthusiasts eager to take on the challenge.  Professional athletes will go head-to-head for a prize purse of USD $75,000, with some of the top triathletes from across the region to take on […]

At the end of 2022, ICCA made the proactive decision to revert to normal rankings again based on the observation that approximately 85% of all meetings were held in-person. However, we do recognise that certain countries and territories were still working within the confines of COVID-19 restrictions.

Each year at the Gala Dinner at IMEX, ICCA announces the winner of the Global Influencer Award. This award recognises an individual’s outstanding contribution to – and influence on – the global meetings industry

Destinations International, the world’s largest resource for official destination organizations and convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs),

Panama’s aerial connectivity has become more relevant for the region and the world thanks to the “Hub of the Americas” –one of our main fortes when choosing us as a destination for your upcoming event.

Legacy Building: ICCA and BestCities Global Alliance Proudly Present Our 2022 Incredible Impacts Winners

TravelMart LatinAmerica is returning to this popular Central America tourism destination after a 16-year absence.

Meeting Professionals International (MPI), the world’s largest industry association for meeting and event professionals, is excited to announce destinations for the next four editions of the World Education Congress (WEC).

IMEX in Frankfurt takes places 31 May – 2 June, with a dedicated day of tailored education on Monday 30 May for specialist groups such as corporate, association and agency buyers.

Industry revenues are expected to double in 2021 compared to 2020, when revenues represented just 28% of 2019 revenues

Panama Convention Center to open in 2021 with four international events

Your next conference, convention, or business meeting in Panama can be highly beneficial for US-based companies. And we are not referring in this case to the benefits related to the modern infrastructure, aerial connectivity or to the relaxed environment the country offers.

Attention, MICE-industry members! This year, FIEXPO will host two major international trade events in Chile. They are the Workshop & Technical Visit (March 23-26) and the 2020 Motivation Luxury Summit 2020, which has been scheduled for October 11-15, 2020.

One of the most important segments of the tourism industry worldwide is incentives travel, which also constitutes a major element of the MICE sector. The truth is that the incentives travel sector, which includes all trips, meetings, and special events offered by corporations to motivate partners and special clients, represents 15% of all travel expenses, and creates 2.4 million jobs per year, according to the U.S. Travel Association.

Panama’s med students will have a great challenge ahead of them during the course of the next eight months: the organization of the “2020 August Meeting” –the second and most important annual assembly of the International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations, which will be held in Panama City August 2-8, with ‘pre-assembly’ activities starting on July 30.

Panama and Costa Rica will be the joint organizers and hosts of the 2020 FIFA U-2’ Women’s World Cup, scheduled for August 2020.

The organizing committee of the 2022 FIATA World Congress in Panama is already working on the details of the event, which is considered the most important of the freight forwarding industry at the global level.

Since opening 57 years ago, Panama City’s Continental Hotel has been an important childhood icon for many of us who are part of the so-called ‘Generation X and up’, as it is remembered by many for its multiple family-oriented Sunday events.

SAHIC, one of Latin America’s most important conferences specialized in hospitality/real-estate investments, will host its 13th version in Panama City next year. The event was announced in the 12th version of the conference, which took place in Quito, Ecuador last month.

Fernando Duque, president of the Board of Directors of Panama’s Fondo de Promoción Turística (Tourism Marketing Fund,) recently revealed the hiring of a private firm to create a new web page for the Visit Panama brand. According to Duque, the new website –which is now managed by the “Fondo de Promoción Turística”—will allow the country to promote private tourist venues and services (hotels, restaurants, tours, etc.) in a legal manner –an attribute that the Panama Tourism Authority currently lacks. He also stated that the new page will be designed to cater to the most demanding needs of the international tourism industry. Imágenes Relacionadas:

Panama’s Tourism Marketing Fund (PROMTUR) and the Spanish airline, Iberia, recently signed a marketing agreement with the purpose of strengthening Panama’s visibility as a tourist destination in Europe.

After three years of extensive remodeling works, Panama will recover one of the most historic and emblematic venues of its MICE industry with the reopening of the National Theater, September 15.

Several major international organizations related to the aviation sector (IATA, ACI, AAC, ALAP & ALTA) have joined forces to host the Aviation Day Panama –a top-level discussion on the opportunities and challenges of the field in Panama. Featuring industry experts, senior airline and airport executives, and government authorities as keynote speakers, the event will take place on September 10 at the Hilton Panama City Hotel.

Founded on August 15, 1519, the city of Panama has had, from its beginnings, a clear mission since the dawn of the colonial period: to serve as a cultural meeting point and seaport for the exchange of merchandise between Europe and the Americas.

The eighth version of the ICCA Latin America and Caribbean Meeting, an event that will coincide with the 13th edition of the Client Supplier Business Workshop, will take place in the city of Salta, Argentina, August 5-8.

Although a number of Latin American destinations –such as Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina, to name a few—have done remarkably well in the international MICE industry in recent decades, it is also true that the proper distinction between the meeting-and-conference sector and leisure tourism remains a challenge in many countries of the region –a fact that could cause a number of simple, yet costly mistakes in their quest to attract more events.

Good news for Panama’s MICE industry! The signed contract between the government of Panama and the firm, SMG Latin America for the management and promotion of the new Amador Convention Center (CCA) was recently approved by the former.

As part of a field trip to some of Panama City’s tourist attractions, the 250 international wholesalers that recently arrived in Panama for the Expo Tourism Internacional 2019 trade fair visited the facilities of the Amador Convention Center.

The Chilean capital is getting ready for the 12th version of FIEXPO Latin America, the largest MICE-industry trade fair in Latin America and the Caribbean, which will take place June 10-12.

With merely ten days before the opening of EXPO TURISMO INTERNACIONAL, Panama’s No. 1 exhibit for tourism-industry wholesalers, 200 companies have already registered for the event, which will take place May 24-25 at Panama City’s Atlapa Convention Center.

The adoption of international standards and the accreditation of professionals are two of the main objectives of the 34th Congress of the Union of Pan American Valuation Associations (UPAV), scheduled October 16-18 at Panama City’s Megapolis Convention Center.

It was recently announced that the delivery of Panama’s new Amador Convention Center, the largest of its kind in Central America, has been extended until September 30, 2019.

Thousands of passengers from Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala will soon enjoy better air connectivity to Europe, thanks to a recently-signed code-share agreement between Copa Airlines and Air Europa, the latter of which will start flying between Panama City and Madrid on June 3.

Observing Global Meeting Industry Day, the Association of Panamanian Professionals in Meetings, Exhibits & Related Activities (APPCE), held a breakfast meeting with representatives of its active membership.

The third version of the Global Business Form successfully concluded today in Panama, gathering public and private-sector leaders from throughout the Latin American and the Persian Gulf regions. The event, the theme of which was “New Hubs, New Regions”, sought to explore the perspectives of amplifying economic cooperation and the forging new alliances between both parts of the world.

The mola, the famous reverse-appliqué textile art form of the Guna Native American culture, is being highlighted with the exhibit, “Molas: Layers of Wisdom”, at Panama City’s Inter-Oceanic Canal Museum.

The most important golf circuit of the region, the PGA Latin American Tour, will start this month at Buenaventura Golf Club of Panama’s Pacific coast, according to a recently issued press release by Hotel Hilton Panama, one of the event’s sponsors.

Each year at the Gala Dinner at IMEX, ICCA announces the winner of the Global Influencer Award. This award recognises an individual’s outstanding contribution to – and influence on – the global meetings industry

The adoption of international standards and the accreditation of professionals are two of the main objectives of the 34th Congress of the Union of Pan American Valuation Associations (UPAV), scheduled October 16-18 at Panama City’s Megapolis Convention Center.

Panama City’s Hacienda Country Club recently hosted the 12th annual Panama Polo Open, an exclusive event that attracts expert polo players from throughout Central America.