Berlin’s conference and event market is growing – and the potential is far from exhausted. With 12.9 million participants in 2024, the capital recorded a 29 per cent increase, a clear testament to its appeal as an event destination. A new potential analysis, commissioned by visitBerlin and Messe Berlin, reveals that the city has reached its capacity limits and requires targeted investments in new event spaces. There is a particularly urgent need for medium-sized conferences with 1,000 to 5,000 participants. Messe Berlin already has concrete plans: on the exhibition grounds, at the current site of Hall 9, a new, multifunctional conference venue will be built – a direct response to growing demand.
Franziska Giffey, Mayor and Senator for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises: “The events and conference industry is a key economic driver for Berlin. In 2024 alone, it generated around €1.4 billion in revenue. For 2025, we expect an increase of three per cent. This clearly demonstrates stable, sustainable growth and ongoing potential. To ensure that our city remains competitive internationally, we need targeted investments, modern infrastructure, and reliable political framework conditions. The conference study presented today provides strategically important insights that will help us and the industry to further position Berlin as a leading international event and conference hub. The new Hall 9, planned by Messe Berlin and supported by the State of Berlin, will make an important contribution as a state-of-the-art multifunctional venue.”
The study confirms the need for new conference centres with economic impact
According to dwif Consulting GmbH, which conducted the potential analysis, just one or two additional new venues could host 76 extra conferences per year – corresponding to around 500 additional booking days and 215,000 more participant days. The estimated economic impact amounts to approximately €78 million annually for the capital.
“The analysis confirms that the market wants more Berlin. We are now responding to that,” says Burkhard Kieker, CEO of visitBerlin. “New congress centres are being built all over the world, so it’s important that we can keep up. Congress visitors spend a lot of money in the city — something Berlin can really use.”
Messe Berlin plans a new venue at the exhibition grounds under the Funkturm
A first concrete project is already in development to expand Berlin’s conference facilities: Messe Berlin plans to build a new multifunctional conference centre at the current site of Hall 9, with around 12,000 square meters of space, designed for conferences, meetings, and trade fair formats alike. This will strategically expand the venue’s mid-sized segment capacities.
“With the new conference centre, we are creating additional capacity exactly where Berlin is currently under-served. This strengthens our position in global competition,” says Dr. Mario Tobias, CEO of Messe Berlin GmbH. “Leading conference cities around the world are investing precisely in this segment. We want Berlin to remain among the leaders.”
Global demand: Berlin’s conference market attracts international guests
The strategic expansion is underscored by the numbers: in 2024, business-related events such as conferences, meetings, and seminars accounted for 70 per cent of Berlin’s event market. According to the conference statistics of the Berlin Convention Office at visitBerlin, 60,886 business meetings with a total of 9.1 million participants took place last year. The international market is growing at an above-average pace: 21 per cent of participants travelled from abroad – almost twice as many as the national average (11 per cent). The strongest source markets included the United Kingdom (14.5 per cent), North America (11.5 per cent), as well as Spain, Italy, and France. Large-scale business events are increasingly choosing Berlin: the share of events with over 1,000 participants stands at 6.2 per cent – well above the national average of 1.8 per cent.
“In addition to the major events, it’s above all the many smaller conferences and meetings that sustain Berlin economically. They are the campfires of the modern age,” says Burkhard Kieker, CEO of visitBerlin.
Background
The potential analysis was conducted by dwif Consulting GmbH and is based on market analyses, primary research, and expert interviews. Berlin’s events and conference statistics are compiled annually by the European Institute for the Conference Industry (EITW) on behalf of visitBerlin.
More information at convention.visitBerlin.de.
