WHERE TO MEET


WHERE TO MEET


it has been painted by Dutch Masters, but scrape beneath the centuries- old façade and you’ll find a vibrant, forward-thinking capital making an indelible groove on the international conference scene. A veritable hotbed of creativity,


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technology and entrepreneurship, Amsterdam was ranked Europe’s fourth most ‘Dynamic City’ 2018 by Savills Investment Management. “Amsterdam is the most accessible, attractive and compact metropolis in the world,” claims Maurits van der Sluis, chief operating officer of RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre. A big claim, but because of its world-class connectivity, raſt of hotels and vastly improved infrastructure, the Dutch capital is attracting an impressive list of international conferences. Tis year, the city hosted the 22nd


International AIDS Conference, which attracted 15,000 global leaders, policy


inc-topped churches, gabled canal houses and ornate Golden Age architecture – Amsterdam’s historic centre may look like


makers and advocates from all over the globe, while thousands of techies flocked here for Codemotion 2018, the world’s leading developer conference. Next year, Amsterdam will host Blockchain Expo Europe 2019. A large part of Amsterdam’s attraction is


its accessibility. Schiphol Airport continues to be a major global hub, operating routes to 326 destinations. With ambitions to become the most sustainable airport in the world, Schiphol recently launched a 100-strong fleet of electric buses, the largest in Europe, and plans to grow this by almost three-fold by 2021. Te city’s high-speed train network was expanded further when Eurostar’s direct route from London St Pancras finally opened in spring, slashing journey times between the capitals to under four hours. In the city, new infrastructure developments include the long-awaited opening of the new M52 metro line in the summer, which connects Noord and Zuid districts via Centraal Station, De Pijp and Europaplein (for RAI Amsterdam). Te Dutch capital has seen a clutch of new hotels open their doors in the


past year, bringing the room total up to 36,000, including the ultra-sustainable QO Amsterdam Hotel in Amstelkwartier. Built from recycled materials, the 288- room luxury hotel is powered by wind and solar energy and features a rooſtop greenhouse. Meanwhile, private members’ club group, Soho House and Co, launched Soho House Amsterdam this summer. But there’s no rest for the city’s


cranes. In the throes of development is Nhow Amsterdam RAI hotel, which promises another 650 rooms and will be the largest property in the Benelux region when it opens in 2019. Over in Amsterdam-Noord, the 34-storey Maritim Hotel Amsterdam is set to become the Netherlands’ biggest conference hotel with another 579 rooms, plus state-of-the-art conference facilities for up to 4,750 delegates when it launches in 2020. These will include 19 meeting rooms, a conference hall for up to 2,300, and a VIP Sky Bar and lounge on the top floor, with sweeping views of Centraal and the Ij.


 NOVEMBER 2018 | 11


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