In the latest international ICCA country ranking Germany is now number one as the leading congress and meeting destination in Europe and number two world-wide.

The year 2004 was an excellent year for Germany’s hotels and convention centers. As a congress and meetings destination, Germany is now number one in Europe, according to the recently published International Association Meetings Market 2004 study by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA).

On a world-wide scale Germany ranks second just after the USA. In a world-wide city ranking Berlin came fourth, also an excellent result.

"Our goal was to turn Germany into the leading destination for congresses and meetings in Europe by 2007. The fact that we achieved this much earlier, demonstrates that we are on the right path with our strategy,“ says Lutz P. Vogt, director of the German Convention Bureau e.V. (GCB).

The GCB markets Germany as a destination for conventions, meetings, events and incentives both on a national and international level, and is the place to contact for anybody planning an event in Germany.

The ICCA's CEO Martin Sirk says: “More German sales people knocking on customers' doors with joint marketing efforts such as the largest national pavilion at IMEX indicates Germany’s proactiveness in the international association market and led to Germany's good position.

There is little doubt that the decision to hold IMEX in Frankfurt has been one of the key factors in Germany's rise in the key tables.“

"However, we won't rest on our laurels but will continue to reinforce our campaigns and efforts to win new customers and hence more meetings and conventions for Germany,“ adds Vogt. Sirk is also certain that Germany continue to make progress as a convention and meetings destination.

“From this strong foundation and with the full impact of the 2006 World Cup promotion still to be felt, Germany is in an excellent position to advance still further. The biggest challenge is the rise of new destinations in Eastern Europe but of course with cities such as Dresden and Leipzig, Germany could turn this developing interest into a competitive advantage.”

The annual ICCA statistics for the meetings and congress market - International Association Meetings Market – offers a comprehensive evaluation of trends on the international meeting market. Events under the ICCA's scrutiny must have at least 50 attendees, take place regularly and be staged alternately in at least three different countries. The ICCA, founded in 1963 and based in Amsterdam, has been collecting event data from associations world-wide since 1972.