PRAGUE - IDEAL PLACE FOR CONGRESS TOURISM

Prague attracts since 1990 enormous numbers of tourists from all over the world, in particular as an ideal holiday place connected with learning historic monuments or with active recreation in nature. With the end of the second millennium, the capital of the Czech Republic endeavours to become one of the foremost European towns of congress tourism. Its location in the very heart of the continent, rich architecture and cultural life have already earlier turned it into a sought-after tourism target. The current development of hotel and conference entities makes it a suitable congress destination for the third millennium.

Exactly 10 years ago, the gates were opened to organisers of congresses and other events. Despite the lack of quality infrastructure, the capital became in the nineties the venue of international events and the share in the congress market continuously increases. The climax of the striving to achieve success in this area was the Annual Meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund held in September 2000.

This meeting for over 15,000 experts attending this world event was held in the newly streamlined Congress Centre Prague, extended by new buildings in the neighbourhood of the original centre. By its capacity of 10 000 places, the Congress Centre became the largest centre of its kind in Prague. part of it will be converted into a hotel with 251 rooms.
Some of the WB/IMF events were held in the Industrial Palace in the Prague Exhibition Ground. This beautiful building in the Art Nouveau style accommodates in excess of 5,000 persons. With a view to the future industrial fairs, an extensive exhibition centre is being built in the northern-western part of the town. The construction of 15 pavilions fitted with the modern telecommunications technology is divided into several stages, the last of which should be implemented by 2006.
In the hotel industry also, there is a huge increase of activities. In June 1999 operations were started of a five-stars the Marriott Hotel in the vicinity of the Renaissance Hotel.

The location in the downtown area, the proximity of historic monuments of Old Town (Staré Mesto) furnishings of the highest category, the total capacity of more than 600 rooms and conference facilities having the area of 1,700 square m, makes both above-mentioned hotels one of the top in the commercial and congress areas of the market. Luxurious accommodation and meeting rooms are offered by the SAS Radisson hotel, which is located in the neighbourhood of Wenceslas square (Vaclavske namesti). The building is in the Art Nouveau Style of 1930 and it has been newly overhauled, streamlined and then opened in 1998. The opening of the Four Seasons hotel on a grand address on the embankment next to the historic Charles bridge is planned for 2001.
The Prague Ruzyne airport is, after an extensive overhaul a modern airport, with many domestic and international lines.
Apart from the modern buildings such as the Congress Centre or the Hilton Hotel, Prague can offer a multitude of historic premises and places that are suitable for convening different meetings, conferences, congresses and other events. The Municipal House (Obecni dum), built and beautifully refurbished in the Art Nouveau style has 5 concert, conference and exhibition halls for over 700 persons. Also the Prague Castle (Prazsky hrad), the historic seat of Czech rulers, offers premises for festive occasions . Many palaces all over Prague are used for banquets, concerts, conferences and the like.

A plethora of buildings in Prague and throughout the Czech Republic, which can be used in a similar manner, is a condition incomparably better than the situation obtaining in other European towns. All these sites are well accessible from the capital in terms of transport facilities. So one can say that in this respect Prague and the Czech Republic is ready to satisfy the expectations of the congress destination of choice in the third millennium.