Why Austria has lost congress business
The industry is only slowly getting back on its feet.
The more international the list of participants, the more destructively lucrative the business. This is the rule of thumb in congress tourism. Subsequently, more guests travel to international events, who tend to stay longer and also spend more money on this occasion. More than two thirds of all congress and conference overnight stays last year were generated by international congresses.
On average, a congress guest in Vienna spends EUR 541 a day, which is EUR 265 more than a typical city holidaymaker. Most recently, however, there was a yawning emptiness in the congress calendar. The industry is a long way from the pre-crisis level. In 2019, she booked more than 3.3 million guest registrations, compared to only 811,000 in the previous year. In other words, business was at best 30 percent of pre-crisis levels.
Simply because most of the events were only of national importance. Business is currently up and running again, but the big unknown remains autumn.
lost market share
No one should be surprised that the industry is still lagging behind old successes, industry insiders rave. Then the hotel doors were closed during the pandemic due to the lockdown, while business in other countries had long since started. “At the beginning of the year we lost smaller events to countries like Spain or Portugal because the restrictions there were lifted earlier,” says Christian Woronka, head of the Vienna Convention Bureau.
Scandinavia has also withdrawn business. The task now is to regain lost market shares. “This year in Vienna we have 40 congresses with more than a thousand people and ten of them with more than 5,000,” says Woronka. Among other things, the international congress of radiologists is back in the city – no longer in spring, but in July.
Enough beds
In any case, there will be no shortage of guest beds in Vienna. “This year, ten new hotels will open with a total of more than 2,000 additional beds,” says Woronka. According to those responsible for tourism, there can be no question of an oversupply. Then new chains would move into Vienna, which would also bring new guests.
Incidentally, Vienna is in a league of its own in the congress business. Every third event takes place in the federal capital. Behind the scenes it is said that more events would be possible. “Sometimes you may not get the die, for example because university exams take place in the trade fair,” complains an industry insider.
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