Austria
www.abcn.at

Austria at EIBTM 2007
22 Austrian exhibitors from different sectors of the convention industry - ranging from modern conference centers, to meeting hotels, federal states’ convention bureaux and agencies - will be presenting their product and service portfolios at the EIBTM 2007 Austrian booth.
With its diverse and specialised offer, but also its tourist know-how, Austria offers the ideal conditions for meetings organisers, incentives, conventions and events. Optimal accessibility, state-of-the-art infrastructure, above all, service-orientation and hospitality, distinguish the Austrian offer. For congress, event and incentive professionals, the business destination Austria boasts an additional asset, which in addition to the “soft” factors is essential: quality. Quality is a brand promise that the Austrian partners from the congress, event and incentive industry pledge themselves to.
In 2004, the Austrian National Tourist Office (ANTO) established a separate business unit, the Austrian Business and Convention Network or ABCN, to manage its business on events division.
The ABCN experts are dedicated to the top-quality promotion of Austria as a host country for business, reaching out to the business community from their ÖW headquarters in Vienna and the ÖW offices in Berlin, London, Paris (for the French and Benelux markets), New York, Milan and Zürich.
ABCN maintains a presence at all the major international convention and incentive trade fairs, e.g. at the IMEX or the EIBTM, and it organizes a serie of presentations, workshops and clientele events every year. Among other duties, the ABCN teams assist potential clients with the planning of meetings, conferences and incentives. As a free service, they also relay inquiries to Austrian suppliers and provide information about competent service partners.
Vienna, the Number One Convention City
Vienna is the superstar among Austria’s convention cities. According to the ICCA’s statistics, this Austrian showpiece was the world’s most successful convention city in both 2005 and 2006. When it comes to international mega-events, Vienna led the way last year with 147 events, ahead of Paris (130), Singapore (127), Barcelona (103) and even Berlin (91). The number of overnight stays also documents this accomplishment. Convention visitors spent the night in Viennese beds 911,786 times last year.