GL : I think one of Belfast ’ s strengths is the fact that it is a small , compact city , but we have that ‘ big city ’ feel about it . We have more than 60 venues that meet all budgets and all needs . The ICC Belfast is a state-of-the-art venue and plays host to many of the largest events that come to city .
Titanic Belfast also adds an international appeal and is a key visitor attraction and more bespoke event space . We go to other venues like Crumlin Road Gaol , a 19th-century Gaol , and Hillsborough Castle , the Queen ’ s official residence in Northern Ireland and , of course , Belfast City Hall .
There has been £ 250m worth of investment in new hotel stock , mainly four- and five-star rating .
Then there ’ s the tie-in with the popular HBO show Game of Thrones , which was filmed here in large part . The studios have been turned into a visitor attraction , it ’ s a popular spot for gala dinners and more quirky , fun conferences .
There are several less conventional venues popping up now around the city , such as Banana Block and Common
Market . Many of them are repurposed from derelict warehouses and similar buildings .
Business events are so important to us a city , and I ’ m so pleased that we have such a strong venue scene to support the sector . We go the extra mile . We make it easier for conference venues , we make it better for conference delegates .
MF : What is the Visit Belfast strategy to bring in more business events and investment ; are there particular markets around the world that you want to reach out to ?
GL : Let me step back a bit there and say that what the pandemic has done is to make every destination pause and rethink their plans . One of the key things for us , we ’ re not unique here , is that the realisation is that the world has changed and that ’ s okay . We felt we had to bring balance back to it . We had to be clear about what tourism was going to do not just as a contributor to the economy , but how tourism can act as a catalyst for social benefit , for wellbeing
The ICC Belfast is a state-of-the-art venue
and for protecting our environment .
Visit Belfast is evolving from a destination marketing organisation to becoming a destination marketing management organisation . As part of that , we have launched our 10-year business tourism strategy , which will grow business tourism by 2032 , and see a 30 % increase in the international association conference market .
This has the potential to be worth half a billion pounds of economic impact .
Our role will be to lead the tactical sales marketing for the whole region , in 2022 we ’ re targeting £ 40m . There are several key elements . Starting with our ambassador programme , which has been hugely successful . More than 1,100 leaders in academia , medical and business are accountable for 80 % of our www . conference-news . co . uk