Brussels tops list of international meeting venues as tourism hits record high
Brussels remains the world’s leading city for international meetings, according to the annual ranking of the Union of International Associations (UIA). The capital also saw record tourism numbers in 2024, visit.brussels reports.
The UIA published the 66th edition of its annual ranking, one of the most important benchmarks in the convention sector, on Tuesday. For the fourth year in a row, Brussels hosted the most meetings by international non-profit organisations.
There were 8,859 congresses organised around the world in 2024: 388 (7 per cent) of them took place in Brussels. In second place is Vienna with 239 meetings and in third place Seoul with 180, followed by Barcelona and Tokyo.
Off-peak improvement
2024 also saw Brussels attain record figures for tourism, according to tourism body visit.brussels.
Tourist accommodation in the city recorded almost 10 million overnight stays last year, up 4.8 per cent on 2023 and 3.6 per cent on the previous record high in 2019.
The traditional off-peak months improved last year, with an increase in January and February. July, November and December also rose particularly strongly. “This provided a better spread throughout the year,” said visit.brussels.
The UIA is a non-profit, non-governmental research institute that documents the evolution of international civil society. Since 1960, it has prepared statistics on international meetings worldwide to compile its annual ranking and monitor trends.
A conference at Brussels' Residence Palace in the European quarter © PHOTO JONAGRAPHE
Related news
