Meetings and Events Remain Powerful Economic Engines Globally

TYSONS CORNER, Va. –  Cvent, Inc., a leading cloud-based enterprise event management company, today revealed its annual list of the top 50 cities for meetings and events in the United States, and the top 25 cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and the Asia Pacific (APAC) regions. The lists were compiled according to meeting and event booking activity through the Cvent Supplier Network. Cvent sourced more than $11 billion in meetings and events globally through its marketplace in 2016.

The top 10 cities in each region for 2017 are:

U.S.

1. Orlando, FL
2. Las Vegas, NV
3. Chicago, IL
4. Atlanta, GA
5. San Diego, CA
6. Washington, D.C.
7. Nashville, TN
8. Dallas, TX
9. New York, NY
10. Phoenix, AZ

EMEA

1. London, England
2. Barcelona, Spain
3. Berlin, Germany
4. Amsterdam, Netherlands
5. Paris, France
6. Madrid, Spain
7. Frankfurt, Germany
8. Rome, Italy
9. Munich, Germany
10. Prague, Czech Republic

APAC

1. Singapore
2. Sydney, Australia
3. Bangkok, Thailand
4. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
5. Hong Kong
6. Shanghai, China
7. Melbourne, Australia
8. Tokyo, Japan
9. Mumbai, India
10. Seoul, South Korea

To see the full list of the top cities for each region, please visit here.

"Corporate events remain important economic drivers for cities globally, and we're seeing a direct correlation between economic strength and event activity in our ranking," said Kevin Fliess, vice president of marketing for Cvent's Hospitality Cloud. "In the U.S., for example, the most recent statistics from the Department of Commerce show that several of the cities in our top 10 list–including Orlando and Nashville–are enjoying GDP growth that outpaces the national rate. Cities that continue to invest in attracting more and larger meetings and events each year are directly investing in their local economy."

Regional highlights include:

U.S.

• List Movement: Orlando held the number one spot on the 2017 list, a position the city last held in five of the six years the ranking has been published. Chicago and Las Vegas switched spots from last year. These three cities have jockeyed for the number one position in all but 2012, when Washington, D.C. came in second. Phoenix moved up three spots to round out the top 10.
• Average Daily Rate (ADR) Trends: Nationwide, ADR was $204 in 2016, with New York City coming in most expensive at $328, and Jacksonville, Florida coming in least expensive at $144. Among the Top 10 Destinations this year, Nashville has seen the highest growth in ADR (5.93 percent) between 2015 and 2016, while Orlando has seen an ADR increase of 5.06 percent.

EMEA

• List Movement: London remained in the first place, followed by Barcelona, just as in the 2016 rankings. Amsterdam, Paris and Rome dropped, while top 10 newcomer Munich jumped to ninth place.
• ADR Trends: Across all of the 25 destinations on the EMEA list, ADR remained relatively consistent between 2015 and 2016, dropping slightly from $216 to $215. Unsurprisingly, London had the highest 2016 ADR at $286, while Hannover had the lowest, $167. Dublin saw the most significant increase in ADR (15.04 percent), and Milan saw the largest decrease (-15.61 percent).

APAC

• List Movement: Singapore and Sydney both maintained their positions from last year, while Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok switched spots. Mumbai soared up 11 ranks to ninth.
• ADR Trends: Across all of the Top 25 destinations in the APAC region, ADR decreased to $197 in 2016 from $204 in 2015. Tokyo features the highest 2016 ADR at $313, and Kuala Lumpur the lowest at $137. Auckland, New Zealand experienced the largest year-over-year ADR increase, 15.1 percent, while New Delhi saw the most significant decrease, -13.9 percent.

"Orlando continues to invest in our industry every year, with even more new additions to our expansive convention center district, innovative new venues and attractions, and more quality dining options for every type of group," said Visit Orlando President and CEO George Aguel. "To receive the honor of once again being recognized by Cvent as the No. 1 meetings destination in the country, only reinforces our ongoing commitment to this important industry."

Destinations around the world compete on a variety of factors including the accessibility of the destination and facilities for events, price and price flexibility, quality of facilities, quality of services, personal safety for attendees, and having a point of differentiation.

Cvent evaluated more than 5,000 U.S. cities featured on the Cvent Supplier Network to compile the sixth annual list. Activity was tracked from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016 and the ranking was then determined by a set of qualifying criteria consisting of:

• Unique Request For Proposals Received
• Total Room Nights
• Awarded Request For Proposals
• Awarded Room Nights
• Percentage of Qualified Meeting Venues
• Number of Profile Views
• Additionally, for the Average Daily Rate (ADR), Cvent looked at the change in average daily hotel rate between 2015 and 2016 for each city on the U.S., EMEA and APAC Top Destinations List.