Hosting conventions is a sure-fire way to put your city on the map, and some of China’s second-tier cities, along with established names like Shanghai, have up-and-coming convention and exhibition centres to set themselves in good stead.
Zhengzhou International Convention & Exhibition Centre (ZZICEC)
ZZICEC opened in late 2005, a reaction to the lost opportunities for hosting major exhibitions and conventions that the city was experiencing. In the five years since its opening, it has held 157 exhibitions and 381 conferences, as well as several cultural and entertainment events. Zhengzhou is a transportation hub for northern China, a fast-developing market in the heart of China’s Central Plains region and the capital city of Henan Province.
ZZICEC is located in Zhengzhou’s central business district, 20 minutes by car from Zhengzhou Xinzheng International Airport and 20 minutes from a major railway station. It is ideally located to receive both international and domestic guests.
The convention centre includes the Grand Hall that seats up to 3,160 for meetings and 1,660 for banquets, the International Theatre that can accommodate more than 1,000 delegates, and two smaller theatres seating 400 people each. There are 17 meeting rooms of varied sizes, along with VIP reception rooms, a Chinese restaurant, a western restaurant and a café.
The Exhibition Centre consists of two major exhibition halls totalling 166,800 sqm, with six floors of support facilities that include meeting rooms, food concessions, offices and shops. Up to 3,390 exhibition booths at 9 sqm each can be accommodated in the two exhibition halls, which has a direct entrance for vehicles to facilitate loading and unloading.
ZZICEC also has an outdoor exhibition area that offers 38,000 sqm of open-air exhibition space. In 2012, the complex will open an on-site hotel, Zhengzhou Conference and Exhibition Hotel, to be managed by the Marriott Group.
Shanghai Expo Centre (SEC)
In the wake of World Expo 2010, several of the site’s major structures have been converted into first-class business event facilities, Shanghai Expo Centre among them. Located on the banks of Huangpu River, the building is one of the most important properties of the former Expo site.
Totalling 140,000 sqm, SEC features a sizeable exhibition hall, along with a theatre, banquet hall, conference rooms, VIP meeting rooms and 70 small and mid-sized meeting rooms – ranging from 60 to 290 sqm each. The multifunction hall occupies an area of 7,200 sqm and can be partitioned into four smaller halls. This vast space has a 15m clearance, reportedly the highest indoor partitioning facility in the world.
The Expo site is served by two major subway lines, two highway routes of the city, along with numerous bus lines, making it easily accessible from all parts of Shanghai. The 431-room InterContinental Shanghai Expo is five minutes away by car and offers 1,600 sqm of high-end meeting space.
The centre was put to good use from the opening. During the Expo, it was used for opening and closing ceremonies, cultural exchanges, VIP receptions and press conferences, along with functioning as the command and operations centre. In its current guise, it has become the venue for large-scale, high-end international conferences, and is the designated site for the city’s most important government events – such as The Party Congress and The People’s Congress.
Hainan International Convention & Exhibition Centre (HICEC)
The island province of Hainan has rapidly become a popular location for corporate meetings, product launches and incentive groups, concentrated mainly in the major developments along its southern coastline – namely Sanya, Yalong and Haitang Bays. Now the northern hub of Haikou is offering a large-scale venue for conferences and exhibitions.
HICEC opened in June, on a 136,000 sqm oceanfront plot just outside the city. The site is 40 minutes’ drive from Haikou Meilan International Airport and 10 minutes’ drive from the high-speed railway station, which connects it to Sanya (and Sanya Phoenix International Airport) in just under two hours.
HICEC is a multi-service venue incorporating convention and exhibition space, three hotels offering 1,200 guestrooms and commercial and leisure elements. The developers of the project, the Hainan provincial and Haikou municipal governments, see the venue transforming the area into an international business and exhibition destination.
There is 35,000 sqm of meeting and function space as well as 70,000 sqm of exhibition halls. The convention centre has a multipurpose hall measuring 1,600 sqm, a second hall seating 1,800 people theatre style and a meeting hall for 600 people. The Exhibition Centre has a main reception hall measuring 5,000 sqm as well as three exhibition halls ranging from 5,830 to 13,950 sqm each, with space for 2,320 booths. The site also offers 25,000 sqm of outdoor exhibition space.
Shenzhen Convention & Exhibition Centre (SZCEC)
Shenzhen has seen 20 years of astonishing growth and now, as it begins to settle, its municipal government is looking for ways to expand beyond the manufacturing hub that the city was designated around.
Designed and co-built with German firm GMP, the convention centre is a major feature of the new downtown area, Futian. Designed as “an exquisitely carved crystal palace” – the building is a landmark for the city. Aside from exhibitions and conventions, the venue regularly hosts business and entertainment events as well.
The centre covers 220,000 sqm in total and has 25 meeting rooms of different sizes, as well as a function hall accommodating approximately 3,000 people. There are eight floors, six of which are above ground. The first floor offers nine exhibition halls totalling 105,000 sqm, adequate for a large exhibition of 5,000 international-standard booths. The largest hall is around 30,000 sqm.
Shenzhen benefits from an advantageous location – across the border in Hong Kong is one of the world’s most efficient airports, with direct links to the city. SZCEC’s central location allows groups to get there easily, and there are numerous international hotels near the site. Ritz-Carlton Shenzhen (282 guestrooms) is opposite.
The city shows no sign of waning and in time will become a regional and international destination for conventions and exhibitions. New venues that meet the demands of internationally minded exhibitors are crucial to maintaining this momentum, and more cities across China are working to leverage the benefits of this important industry.