GERMANY: Coming in 2009 – The Leonardo Royal Hotel Berlin

UAE: Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre Enters Phase 2

ENGLAND: Radisson Edwardian Hampshire Hotel Refurbishes

DENMARK: Wonderful Copenhagen’s Program for Congress Organizers

GERMANY: Does It Again

GERMANY: IMEX 2008 A Winner

American Airlines Takes Advantage of Open Skies Policy

What to do with a group in Berlin this summer? Bring them to a Beer Garden! What better way to soak up the local scene than sitting at large picnic tables, mingling with the locals and having local brewed beer? Two of Berlin’s most popular beer gardens are The Zollpackhof and Prater Garten. The Zollpackhof is open from noon to midnight (www.zollpackhof.de) and the Prater Garten, which is Berlin’s oldest beer garden established in 1837, is open at noon daily (www.Pratergarten.de).

At the 12th United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization) stated that more support for sustainable tourism is needed. The conference was held in Ghana, Africa at the International Conference Centre in Accra. The Centre, built in 1991, has six conference halls and accommodates 6,000 delegates. The main hall seats 1,600 delegates.

The Society of Incentive & Travel Executives (SITE) selected Aruba as the destination for the 2009 SITE International Conference to be held 3-6 December 2009.

Until next time
Best

Helena Miele, CITE
Editor electronic newsletters

The Leonardo Royal Hotel Berlin will make its debut in 2009. The new 4-Star Superior hotel is situated in a historic building complex constructed in 1956 and completely renovated in 1990. All floors of the seven-story property have 15 ft high ceilings with a 27 ft high ceiling in the lobby. The hotel will feature 347 guest rooms including 43 suites. Meeting facilities will include four banquet rooms with 450 sqm/4,844 sqft of meeting space and a VIP lounge available for events with 121 sqm/1,300 sqft of space. Food and beverage venues will include the hotel bar with lounge and the restaurant seating 400 with outdoor terrace seating in warmer weather.  Additional facilities will include the Wellness Lounge with two saunas, relaxation room and fitness area.

The property is centrally located near the Mitte, Prenzlauer Berg and Friedrichshain districts, just 5 minutes from the Alexanderplatz, 10 minutes to the Brandenburg Gate and 5 minutes to the BCC Congress Centre.
Website: www.leonardo-hotels.com
Email: g.maessen@leonardo-hotels.com
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The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), which opened in February 2007, is in Phase 2 of building. The main shell of the building is now in place and over the next few weeks glazing, marble and other key elements will begin to be installed. Some 2,300 highly skilled workmen are working round the clock so that the project is completed by September. The cost of Phase 2 building is AED 500 million. 

Upon completion of Phase 2, ADNEC will be one of the largest exhibition centers in the Middle East with over 55,000 sqm/592,015 sqft of fully interconnected and flexible exhibition space spread across 12 halls. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre has approximately 60 major exhibitions confirmed for this year, from large-scale public shows such as the Abu Dhabi Book Fair to international trade exhibitions such as IDEX and ADIPEC.
Website: www.adnec.ae
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The 5-Star Radisson Edwardian Hampshire Hotel received at £6 Million renovation, which included entire ground floor, the bar, restaurant and meeting rooms. The hotel's 127 bedrooms and suites were also upgraded and redecorated with original artwork, faux silk wall coverings, chenille curtains and throws, hand embroidered cushions, Bang & Olufsen flat screen televisions and marble bathrooms. Three accessible bedrooms and one accessible junior suite with disabled facilities were added on the first floor.

Meeting and event facilities include five function rooms accommodating 100 delegates. The luxury Penthouse Suite, located on the top floor, offers breathtaking views of the London's skyline - the London Eye, Big Ben, and Nelson's Column.  The Penthouse Suite has its own registration area, cloakroom and facilities. It is ideal for VIP meetings, formal lunches, dinners and receptions.  All event space is equipped with the latest presentation and communication technology, along with dedicated staff to ensure each event’s success. The Hampshire Bar and Restaurant offers a popular menu reflecting a fusion of modern British and Mediterranean influences. The restaurant’s opulent décor features mahogany paneling, pale raffia wall coverings, animal prints and Morosso high-backed chairs. Additional hotel facilities include a business center and Fitness Room.  The Hampshire House is located in London’s theatre district between Piccadilly and Leicester Square underground stations.
Email:  hampcb@radisson.com
Website: www.radissonedwardian.com
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"Copenhagen to Your Advantage" is a new program from Wonderful Copenhagen designed to make congress planning easier for organizers.
“Copenhagen to Your Advantage” offers congress organizers free site inspections, discounted public transportation with the Congress Travel pass, and a complimentary reception at Copenhagen City Hall with a welcome by the mayor.

Steen Jakobsen, convention director of Wonderful Copenhagen said, "For a number of years now Wonderful Copenhagen has experienced a growing interest in the benefits that Copenhagen can offer future congresses…we wanted to improve the services we offer international congress organizers…”. “Copenhagen to Your Advantage” will be available for international associations and non-profit organizations with conventions of more than 300 delegates with a minimum stay of two days.

Copenhagen is growing in popularity. This summer two large medical conferences, the European Hematology Association and the European Society of Anesthesiologists, will bring 15,000 visitors to the city. In 2009, Copenhagen will host the United Nations Convention on Climate Change, the International Olympic Congress and the European Congress of Rheumatology.
E-mail: stj@woco.dk
Website: www.meetincopenhagen.com
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Germany is Number One once again. According to the ‘International Association Meetings Market 2007’ study released by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), Germany is #1 in Europe for meetings and congresses – for the fourth consecutive year! And there is more good news for Germany. In the international city ranking, Berlin rose from 5th place last year to 2nd place this year. Lutz P. Vogt, Managing Director of the GCB German Convention Bureau e.V. said, ‘This result has not come about by chance. It has been earned by the German meetings and congress branch as a whole for they have been continually developing offers and services while at the same time raising quality and standards.’

In addition, a study of the meetings and events market in Germany conducted by "Meeting & EventBarometer 2008," rated Germany as the best event destination in Europe. Petra Hedorfer, the CEO of the German National Tourist Board said, "The results of the new "Meeting & EventBarometer" are of great importance for tourism in Germany. Our country is not only a popular vacation destination; we are also highly regarded worldwide as a business travel destination. Almost one-third of the trips taken to Germany are professionally motivated."
Website: www.germany-meetings.com
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IMEX 2008 scored another win. At his closing speech, IMEX Chairman, Ray Bloom, explained that this year’s show had been marked by a series of record-breaking highs, both on and off the show floor. Bloom said, "An indication of the robust and healthy nature of the international meetings industry currently is that IMEX welcomed well over 8,500 buyers to Messe Frankfurt, of which more than 3,600 were hosted buyers - a far larger proportion of these being from long-haul markets than ever before. Adding to this positive picture is the fact that these buyers achieved over 40,000 pre-organized appointments over the last three days, of which more than 30,000 were made through the individual online appointment system."  In addition, Bloom explained that working closely with the German Convention Bureau to market even more intensively to German buyers had clearly paid dividends this year.

As a result of the Open Skies policy between the European Union and the United States, which took place on 30 March, American Airlines moved its flight operations from London Gatwick (LGW) to London Heathrow (LHR). American recently obtained additional take-off and landing slots at Heathrow, which made the move possible and AA’s London Gatwick operations were closed after 26 years of service.

“We want to strengthen our competitive position within the new ‘Open Skies’ regime, so it makes sense to focus our efforts in London at Heathrow,” said Henry Joyner, American’s Senior Vice President – Planning. “These changes do not impact the total number of American flights to and from London. We’ll operate up to 18 daily departures to Heathrow this summer from seven U.S. airports.” American’s London Heathrow gateway cities in the U.S. will be: New York (JFK), Boston, Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago, Miami, Los Angeles, and Raleigh/Durham. In addition, AA will continue to serve London Stansted Airport with a daily service from New York’s JFK Airport and AA will add a second daily JFK/Stansted service on 1 August.

The new “Open Skies” agreement also allows airlines to add new cities within Europe to codeshare relationships and American is adding 12 new destinations through its codeshare agreement with Iberia Airlines. Among the 12 new destinations are Valencia, Seville, Gran Canaria, Brussels and Lisbon. American flies nonstop between Miami and Madrid, where passengers will be able to easily connect to the new destinations.

Website: www.aa.com