Which city in Europe has an average of 10.5 million business tourism visitors a year? Or, putting it another way, which city in Europe has an annual average of 400 trade shows and over 100,000 businesses exhibiting within its boundaries every year?
Is it London? Is it Berlin or Madrid? Perhaps it might be Amsterdam? No. It’s Paris!
Yes Paris, the capital of France is the top region in the world for business events and gatherings, and the top spot in Europe for fairs and trade shows. A title it has held, apparently, since 1979. This might surprise many who would immiediately, when the city is mentioned, think of romance or culture; of the Eiffel Tower or The Louvre or of the River Siene or a café on the left bank.
But Paris as Europe’s major city for business travel or business tourism? Well that fact may well raise a few eyebrows, even among the most travelled corporate executive.
However it is for that exact reason that Paris has been chosen to host the 2011 Global Education Conference of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE). For Paris is a leading global business and cultural centre, as well as an eternally popular tourist destination and it was those reasons that helped sway the ACTE board’s decision to choose the city as the venue for ACTE’s premier European event.
The heart of Paris is just two hours and 15 minutes from the heart of London if you travel by Eurostar. If you fly, then Paris is one hour from London and slightly over an hour from Madrid! Add in that it’s under two hours from Berlin and Rome and a mere three from Moscow and it is easy to see that the French capital is ideally situated to host the business travel sectors leading industry event dedicated to bringing together hundreds of senior level business travel executives from around the world.
The president of ACTE, Chris Cowley, puts the choice of Paris as the host city very succinctly: “We believe that Paris has a similar position to that of New York on the North American continent. Most of the Fortune 500 businesses are located in and around Paris, and our members and delegates will want to take advantage of their visit to the city of lights to conduct business with colleagues and customers located in the area, which of course will give an even greater return on the time they invest in attending the ACTE Conference.”
And Crowley is correct. The quaintly named La Défense district of the city is home to no less than 1500 corporate head offices, including those of 15 of the top 50 companies in the world, which makes it the biggest business centre in Europe. Situated at the far end of the historic Parisian axis passing by the Louvre, the Champs-Elysées and the Arc de Triomphe, it is also a busy shopping area and is very well served by public transport.
Typically, the ACTE Global Education Conference, last year hosted in Berlin, Germany, sees an attendance of 800-plus corporate travel buyers, travel executives, suppliers and journalists. This year Paris may well attract even more business travel professionals than in years gone by.
So what will Paris offer the executive combining a business travel trip with a business tourism trip?
Well first some facts. France is the World’s most popular tourism destination according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), which ranks countries as part of its thrice-yearly World Tourism Barometer publication. With 78.95 million visitors annually France is comfortably ahead of the United States which ranks number two in the World’s most popular destinantions.
So what is it about France, and more relevant to the ACTE conference, Paris that attracts so many overseas visitors for business and pleasure? And what is there to see in the city immiediately before and after the ACTE Global Education Conference?
Unquestionably, the Eiffel Tower holds first position among all the many wonderful tourist attractions in Paris because of its unmatched and fascinating architecture. It is world famous for its alluring structure. Its top can be seen from any part of Paris and in the evening the Eiffel Tower lights up with colored lighting – adding considerably to the beauty of Paris.
The 300-meter Eiffel Tower, built in 1889 to celebrate the French revolution, is the most visited (paid) monument in the world and when built was the tallest structure on the globe. Millions of tourists and foreign visitors visit Paris just to take a tour of the Eiffel Tower.
For delegates to the ACTE conference there is much to do at the tower, from observing the city of lights from the top of the tower to enjoying top class restaurants such as Altitude 95 located on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower and the Jules Verne located on the second floor.
Another must see in Paris for delegates will be the Louvre Museum & Pyramid, the most visited museum in the world is also one of the biggest containing an extensive collection of almost 35,000 artwork objects.
The Arc de Triomphe, located in the heart of the city, will also feature on the list of places to see for the culture conscious ACTE delegate. A monument that honors the fighters who gave up their lives for France during the wars, The Arc de Triomphe features the names of all those fighters while in the lower part there is a tomb of the unknown soldier of World War II. There is also an observation area at the monument from where the panoramic view of Paris can be captured easily.
So the city chosen as the 2011 venue for the Association of Corporate Travel Executives Global Education Conference will offer a truly unique combination of ingredients.
We may all have preconceptions about Paris – mainly built upon the popular ideals of romance and culture – but add in to the mix that it is the most visited city in Europe for business tourism, venue to the most trade fairs and exhibitions in the world and is home to the most corporate headquarters on the continent and one can see why the board of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives chose Paris as the venue for their Global Education Conference 2-4 October 2011.
