MILAN
A new convention bureau is at the forefront of the rebirth of meetings and events in Milan. Paul Harvey reports. The new renaissance
I n late 2019, I visited Milan on a fam trip. More than 18 months later, it remains the last place I visited outside the UK. If you’d told me at the time, as I surveyed the city from the roof of the magnificent Duomo di Milano, the city’s imposing Gothic cathedral, what the coming months would hold for Milan and the rest of the world, it would have seemed impossible. Of course, we all know what happened next. In the first wave of Covid-19 the world watched in horror as Milan and the surrounding region of Lombardy, the most populous and prosperous in Italy, was brought to its knees by the virus. Since then, Milan has been fighting back – and it has recognised the importance of meetings and events as a tool to do so. In late 2020, the city showed its intentions by launching YesMilano, its first official convention bureau, responding to the need to support the rebirth of business tourism. The creation of the convention bureau aims to speed the recovery of the business tourism market by working across areas and sectors, so that the city as a whole is able to respond quickly to business tourists and provide them
with a full range of services. After reaching a high in 2019 with more than eight million nights spent in hotel accommodation by international visitors coming to Milan, business tourism is expected to decline by 26 per cent in 2021 and 11 per cent in 2022. In a city so closely linked with Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci, the convention bureau is now central to coordinating the renaissance of events in Milan. The new bureau will also be aiming to position Milan as a sustainable tourism option and boost the economy by attracting visitors with high spending capacity to the city. Milan is looking forward to hosting major events
The newbureauwill also be aiming to positionMilan as a sustainable tourismoption and boost the economy by attracting visitors with high spending capacity to the city.”
76 MAY 2021 mitmagazine.co.uk
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