Bespoke Business Events is proud of its Business Tourism product knowledge, which is why we love sharing these ‘not so hidden’ gems with other #eventprofs. We’re proud to contribute to £32.6bn that Business Events brings to the UK.
We were delighted to be awarded the contract to deliver DMC services for VisitBritain and Tourism Northern Ireland European Association Conference Buyer Fam Trip to Belfast and beyond! Last week we delivered the specially curated 4-day action packed trip.
The ‘Welcome Evening’ began with presentations from our very own Business Tourism representatives from Tourism Northern Ireland, Visit Belfast and VisitBritain. Dinner was enjoyed in the famous Mourne Seafood Bar, with a warm welcome from the owner, Bob McCoubrey. The group bonded over traditional Northern Irish music, dancing and the opportunity to pull their own pint of the famous ‘Black Stuff’. This set the scene for an exciting programme, showcasing our award-winning destination and fantastic MICE offerings.
Titanic Hotel Belfast was the perfect host hotel, with the buyers appreciating the authenticity of the hotel and its unique links with Titanic. It really is a key part of Belfast’s history! We are spoilt for choice with our Belfast hotel offerings but keeping in mind the target market and their needs we showcased; Grand Central Hotel Belfast, Hilton Hotel, Europa Hotel and the Clayton Hotel. We wish we had more time to show them all our other wonderful hotels!
With Belfast recently winning the prestigious ‘Best Events Destination 2019’ at the C&IT Awards last month for the second year running – the group were eager to experience it for themselves. They had the opportunity to do this by visiting world class venues suitable for their large events including ICC Belfast, Titanic Belfast, Belfast City Hall and the Assembly Buildings.
Sharing our unique venue offerings, we included visits to Crumlin Road Gaol, Ulster Museum, Larchfield Estate and of course our very own Royal Palace – Hillsborough Castle! The buyers were blown away by the variety of unique venue offerings, value for money, friendliness of the trade and the #TeamNI approach.
Visiting a host of award-winning restaurants such as; Mourne Seafood Hadskis, Deanes Deli and James Street South the group got to taste for themselves why we recently won the ‘Best Food Destination’ at World Travel Market. Continuing with VIP experiences, we included a fantastic cookery school demo from top chef Niall McKenna! Needless to say, the group loved our restaurant choices and found it difficult to determine their favourite dish of the trip!
We also factored in some sightseeing to let them see and learn about the ‘Old’ and ‘New’ Belfast with the famous Black Taxi Tours. All round – the trip was a huge success with buyers already looking into the possibility of bringing their events to Belfast!
Don’t forget – Bespoke Business Events also services corporate business trips for our Northern Irish and Welsh based clients. Read more about what we can do for your company HERE
Check out below the amazing feedback we have received from some of the buyers for this trip:
Ioannis Pallas,
The European Society of Association Executives
“I want to thank you for the excellent program you put together with Tourism Northern Ireland and VisitBritain. Everyone was extremely accommodating; the scheduling was fantastic and the visits very informative. Belfast is a promising destination with good infrastructure for Associations’ events!”
Anuar Shafiei,
ASTP Proton
“Thank you so much for your hospitality during our fam trip last week. You and your team has put together a great itinerary and very well organised. The trip has given me some great ideas on what Belfast has to offer and definitely put the city on my radar for future events. Also a great opportunity to meet and learn from other European association colleagues.”
Bjorn Kvamme,
International Workshop on Methane Hydrate Research/Development
“Thank you very much – it was a great pleasure and thank you for all hospitality and very informative arrangements!”
