Similarly to 2020, the conference sector in Tallinn was strongly impacted by restrictions designed to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus in 2021. The number of conference events decreased by another 37% compared to the previous year.
In comparison with 2019, the number of conference events decreased by 70%, with international events among them by 88%. The number of foreign delegates who reached Tallinn decreased by 90%.
In 2019, 77% of all conference events took place in Tallinn, but by 2021 this number had dropped to 67%. The drop was even greater when it comes to international events—in 2019, 87% of international events took place in Tallinn. In 2021, only 69% did. The conference events in 2021 were longer than in previous years—domestic events lasted 1.6 days on average (vs. 1.2 days in 2020) and international events 3.4 days on average (vs. 1.9 days in 2020).
The number of international events with 100 or more participants was essentially the same (27 vs. 29) but the events in 2021 were longer and lasted four days on average). As a result of that, the total revenue to Tallinn from international events with more than 100 participants was €4.4 million, more than twice the amount in 2020.
To summarise, 2021 had the smallest number of events out of the entire 21 years data has been gathered on Tallinn conference events. But the events that did take place were remarkably longer, which is positive, especially in the context of international events.
