The US in the Berlin MICE market: fast and diverse
Our expert Katja Sukale talks about developments and trends in the North American MICE market. Whether meeting, incentive or congress - our team will keep you up to date with important know-ho...
What makes Berlin an attractive destination to North American meeting planners?
Summary of the blog post
DCI is a global economic development consulting firm with over 50 years of experience based in North America.
A personal view on the city through the eyes of MICE expert Natia Kvachadze
DCI is a global economic development consulting firm with over 50 years of experience based in North America. Since July this year, it has assisted visitBerlin in promoting Berlin as a MICE destination and bringing in significant business from the US and Canada. Recently, their team traveled to Berlin to meet with tourist service providers and learn about the city's meetings landscape.
We have interview questions for Natia Kvachadze, account manager for Berlin. She is actively involved in market development and all client representation pursuits in the U.S. market.
In a serie of Blog posts, Natias shares some of her impressions from the trip and offers some insights into how American meeting planners can be best capitalize on the opportunities in Berlin.
DCI Site Inspection with visitBerlin Berlin Convention Office
Berlin is well spread out, and the whole city feels like one giant museum with the freedom to explore anything you want.
When you arrived in Berlin, what was your initial impression?
After stepping out of Berlin’s airport, I got an immediate sense of the gritty energy that I love so much in places like New York. Berlin is well spread out, and the whole city feels like one giant museum with the freedom to explore anything you want. Every step within the city and every building reveals another part of Berlin’s story.
What differentiates Berlin from other cities you have visited?
After a city tour in Berlin, it was obvious that the sightseeing opportunities would unfold with minimal effort. But what stood out for me was the greenery. The entire city is rich with its green spaces everywhere you look, whether it is parks such as Grosser Tiergarten and Volkspark Friedrichshain, or extraordinarily beautiful rooftop gardens. Berliners are champions in sustainable tourism initiatives, which are superbly executed in the city and across the hospitality industry. All accommodations we visited during the immersion trip were participating in sustainable efforts and demonstrating the unity of the city environment.
Which venue, in your opinion, best met the needs of US business travelers?
What were its important characteristics?
During this immersion trip, Pamela and I visited hotels and unique venues that effortlessly fit into American business travelers’ needs. All these properties covered the needs of American business travelers including quality, accessibility, flexibility to needs, proximity to airports and the city center, inviting design. A hard question, but I personally think Messe Berlin, Estrel Berlin and AXICA distinguished themselves as unique properties.
How will DCI positively impact Berlin as a Destination?
Development Counsellors International (DCI) is constantly evolving best practices, pushing the envelope and driving hard to deliver more results for our clients. We will work closely with the BCO team to amend sales and marketing activities in response to market demands and capacity.
The impact while working together is to increase awareness and, ultimately, drive conversion of corporate events and association programs for hotels, meeting venues and convention centers in destinations we work with.
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