Congresses and conventions: Prague ranked 8th in the world

A yearly survey by the ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) has revealed that Prague is ranked 8th in the number of high participant events held in it and is considered to be one of the most popular sites in the world for conventions and congresses. This ranking represents an ascension of 3 ranks since the 2016 survey. The five leading cities, by the way, have remained unchanged since 2015: Barcelona, Paris, Vienna, Berlin and London (Though their relative rankings have shifted).

The survey includes cities in which regular conventions numbering over 50 participants take place. In Prague over 150 such conventions have been held since 2017 , which won it the 8th rank, previously held by Amsterdam, which descended from the 7th to the 16th rank. In fact, Prague was considered to be the great surprise of this survey, and this is the first time it had won a place among the leading ten cities.

However, not all the conferences held in Prague were included in the survey – the CSU (Central Czech Bureau of Statistics) records show that over 4000 conferences and conventions were held in Prague, in which over 500,000 people participated, most from the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland and France.

The Manager of the Central Czech Bureau of Statistics, Roman Mushka, declared in a press release the following: "Prague is considered to be a popular destination for various congresses and conventions and spring and autumn are considered to be the most popular seasons in the field of congresses and conventions in Prague". He noted that Prague held around 50 congresses and conventions in 2017 that hosted over 1000 participants each and that he projects that this trend is projected to continue…

For example, the CEO of ICCA Martin Sirk claims that in a world which is increasingly unpredictable and ever changing the number of international congresses and conventions is bound to rise. He claims that the best way to face the tsunami of information and knowledge is through conventions in new academic fields, or conventions that reach new audiences. The bottom line is that as new challenges arise the field of congresses and conventions is expected to continue to grow.