Istanbul delivers its best performance as a congress city in 8 years

The number of congresses held in the Turkish metropolis surges, ranking 21st worldwide with 72 congresses in 2023

Istanbul has emerged as one of the leading congress cities globally, achieving its strongest performance in the past eight years, with ambitions to rank among the top 10 cities worldwide for hosting congresses.

Sekib Avdagic, president of both the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO) and Istanbul Convention and Visitors Bureau (ICVB), highlighted Istanbul’s rapid growth in global tourism and the congress sector. He credited the investments made over the last five years for yielding significant results.

According to ICVB data, Istanbul, ranked 16th in Europe and 21st in the world, hosting 72 congresses in 2023, an increase of 14 compared to the previous year, with the number of participants ranging from 300 to 25,000. While Paris secured the top spot globally with 156 congresses in 2023, Istanbul climbed four positions in Europe and two worldwide in the ranking of world congress cities, according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).

Avdagic pointed out that Istanbul is set to host 19 international congresses in 2024, with participant numbers varying from 250 to 7,000, based on ICCA data. Additionally, ICVB has supported six international congresses with a total of 12,800 participants, while actively working on organizing 13 more international congresses scheduled for Istanbul in 2025 and beyond.

This year, Istanbul anticipates hosting numerous international congresses, attracting over 24,000 congress tourists, further solidifying its position as a key player in the global congress arena.

Source: AA