In Busan, Korea’s second city and maritime powerhouse, the city tourism organisation continues to market to its maritime strengths for the long term, although, despite Korea’s track and trace efforts, international travel remains, as elsewhere a major barrier to resuming major conferencing business.
The city’s flagship, venue, BEXCO, hosted one of the most successful medical events in the world, the International Diabetes Federation Congress 2019, (involving 12,000 delegates from 180 countries), but is now pivoting to offer hybrid events.
Busan held some big meetings, including ITU Telecom and the Korea-ASEAN Special Summit before the outbreak of the pandemic, and the city’s future bookings are promising. Busan is scheduled to host the 20th International Microscopy Congress (2022), the 37th International Geological Congress (2024), and the 23rd International Federation of Automatic Control (2026).
BEXCO resides in the heart of Busan’s convention district and has a 4,000-seat auditorium, 22 conference rooms and major exhibition space across its 90,000sqm site. There is a whole mini community of hotels, restaurants and services in the district.
Perched high on the coastline on Dongbaek Island, BEXCO’s iconic Nurimaru APEC House – venue for world leaders attending the 2006 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference – offers opulent meeting rooms and an 800-person capacity. Nurimaru combines both modern and traditional Korean architectural elements, with wooden floors and a roof that echoes the topography of Dongbaek Island itself. The building offers arresting views of Oryukdo Island and the Gwangan Bridge.
There is a further 14,000sqm of event space at the Busan Port International Convention Center to consider.
Busan has long been a global hub for the marine industry, and the North Port has a history that goes back nearly 150 years. Shipbuilding companies have been vital to the economy and the International Passenger Terminal gives event organisers another convenient, and centrally located venue.
Busan ranked fifth among Asian cities in the 2019 UIA rankings as an international conference host and is second only to Seoul in the country.
While the strategy now is to expand demand for Bleisure and unique venues and strengthen the marketing targeting China, a challenge remains the lack of direct international flights.
Planners should check out the new subsidy system designed to provide financial support for online and offline conferences (hybrid) and note there has been a doubling of the support fund for international conferences. Meetings must include more than 30 people a day for corporate meetings or involve a minimum one night stay for incentives, which must also involve at least 30 delegates.
