ICCA: USA, GERMANY AND SPAIN ARE THE TOP MICE COUNTRIES

International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) recently published their statistics on the most popular meetings countries and cities. USA and Vienna are on the top of the rankings in the respective categories.

According to the number of meetings organized in 2012 USA, Germany and Spain dominate the chart of the top MICE countries. Among the top 10 countries, are six nations located in Europe which comes as no surprise. Europe has been a popular destination for meeting planners thanks to its wide and eclectic cultural landscape suitable for different scenarios and opportunities.

According to ICCA, the popularity of countries as MICE destinations depends on a wide range of factors, not only connected to the countries themselves and their situation, but also to the type of meeting and how well it relates to the environment of choice.

For example, it is more likely that a major convention of Classic Literature would be hosted in Rome, Italy (considered a hotspot for Classic culture) rather than in Sidney, Australia.

Other factors affecting the meeting planners include the current social, political and economic situation of a country, its safety and its accessibility from abroad. Thus the regions currently facing social problems, economic struggles and war conflict are at the bottom of the charts, including countries such as Namibia, Zambia and Belize, among others.

TOP 10 MICE Countries

Major cities represent one of the most sought after destinations for meetings and events with beautiful European capitals such as Vienna, Paris and Berlin leading the chart in 2012. Eastern Europe is also growing in popularity at a fast rate, and cities like Prague (No. 11) and Budapest (No. 20) are climbing the charts, not only because of their cultural appeal, but also for the relative affordability.

Europe is quite easy to access for most travelers around the world, and it is not surprising that many European major cities represent the main body of this chart.  On the end of the spectrum and following the same thread line as the chart by countries, cities in countries with difficult situations are at the bottom of the chart (Tbilisi in Georgia, Ankara in Turkey), followed by smaller towns in places that are harder to reach, and probably more suitable as luxurious holiday resorts (including most islands in the Pacific ocean).

TOP 10 MICE Cities