Catalonia, with its capital city Barcelona, is a meetings, incentive, congress and exhibition (MICE) destination that does more than cater to the automotive and mobility industry. It boasts Catalunya Meetings & Mobility, an all-encompassing service center for meeting planners developed by the Catalunya Convention Bureau (CCB), in collaboration with Catalonia Trade & Investment and the support of the Public Office for the Transformation of the Mobility and Automotive Industry. With its range of venues, circuits and routes, Catalonia provides the ideal sight for all things mobility, from car launches or test drives to film shoots, network trainings, team-building activities, GT driving, off-road experiences and motorsport hospitality events.
An Automotive History
With more than 100 years of history in the automotive industry, Catalonia is one of the world’s leading destinations for professional automotive events and groups are able to host their own events and activities related to them. These can include the Formula 1 Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya racetrack and the World Motorcycling Championship—including MotoGP. In addition, Catalonia is one of the largest vehicle manufacturers in southern Europe, including Seat, Cupra, Ebro or Hispano Suiza.
The Future of Mobility
Catalonia is home to companies, research centers, and universities focused on innovation, sustainability and the future of mobility. It is committed to becoming a global hub for new mobility focusing on electric and connected cars, smart cities, shared vehicles and micromobility. Barcelona is the headquarters of EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology) Urban Mobility, a major initiative for transforming mobility in cities throughout Europe. Catalonia also offers a test environment for the development and validation needs of autonomous and connected driving tests at such premier facilities as Applus+ IDIADA, considered one of the best proving grounds in Europe. It is a top destination for associative and corporate events related to the mobility industry including Tomorrow Mobility World Congress, Automobile Barcelona and FISITA World Mobility Conference.
Strong MICE Infrastructure
As an important overall MICE destination, Catalonia, with key cities like Girona, Tarragona, Sitges or Lloret de Mar, offers the facilities and infrastructure needed to ensure successful conferences, conventions, trade fairs, summits and meetings. Attendees will find top service within state-of-the-art venues that include more than 10 congress centers, several large-capacity hotels, approximately 4.3 million square feet of exhibition space at the Fira de Barcelona, and such unique venues as museums, wineries, gardens, farmhouses and castles. Team-building motorsports experiences can include driving a luxury sports car on an official racetrack, simulating driving an F1 car, racing on one of Europe’s top karting circuits, riding through vineyards on a quad, building a F1 car or visiting iconic sights in a vintage car.
Destination to Discover
Beyond the first-class facilities and services, Catalonia provides meeting attendees with far-flung experiences at memorable locations. Catalonia is a destination of natural beauty, rich cultural heritage and attractions, and high-level gastronomy including Michelin-star chefs. The Mediterranean climate features more than 300 days of annual sunshine perfect for outdoor events. Catalonia has areas with varied landscapes and roads that are ideal for automotive events. These include the lovely Pyrenees mountains, Costa Brava, Costa Daurada and the Penedès wine region.
For more information, visit catalunya.com/en/mice/meetings-mobility.