“Some still see us as a leisure destination, yet our infrastructure is ideally suited to meetings and conventions of all size,” says Daniela Martinez, groups and conventions manager for the Cancun Convention and Visitors Bureau.

In September, the World Travel Awards North & Central America awarded a prize to the Cancun Center, Conventions & Exhibitions, naming it the best convention center in Mexico and Central America. The prestigious awards have been called “the Oscars of the Travel Industry” by The Wall Street Journal.

The 154,000-square-foot Cancun Center in the heart of the hotel zone can accommodate 8,000 simultaneous attendees; its 13 meeting rooms can be divided into 37 breakout rooms, yielding 75,350 sq. ft. of meeting space. In addition, the center offers 78,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space, spanning two levels.

To recognize the importance of meeting and convention travelers, who bring in more than 51-million U.S. dollars to the destination each year, the CVB has extended its popular discount card for another year. The average visitor to Cancun with a group or convention stays four days and three nights and spends $1,250 per person, or 30 percent more than the average individual visitor. The cards provide significant savings at more than 140 participating restaurants, jewelry stores and other retailers, golf courses and other travel-related companies within Cancun and nearby Puerto Morelos.

 As a result of a joined effort between the Cancun  CVB and the Mexico Tourism Board, the city of Cancun has been chosen between 12  other destinations to host Meeting Professionals International’s (MPI) 2010 edition of MeetDifferent, a premier industry event formerly known as MPI PEC.  MPI’s board of directors made the decision, arguing that Cancun offers all the conveniences of a meetings destination.

This will be the first time the event takes place outside the United States and Canada and will be attended by 2000 guests including 900 meeting planers. In this special ocassion, MPI brings to Cancun its diverse network of planners and suppliers to share innovative ideas and expertise to make effective connections with the industry community. An event of this importance enables Cancun to showcase its superb infrastructure, resources and business potential in the meetings and conventions industry.

This is another  historic achievement recently obtained by Cancun,  a destination that day after day becomes more competitive in the meetings  industry. Earlier this year, Cancun hosted the initial phase of the CASE certification provided by PCMA experts to Cancun sales executives, being the first time that this famed certification takes place outside the United States. Also in April, Cancun hosted the 7th Annual Mexico Showcase and Travel Expo and the PCMA Education Foundation Partnership Summit  in May.  It is worth mentioning that the Cancun Center was named The Best Convention Center in Mexico and Central America  by the World Travel Awards. These are some of the reasons why Cancun is the perfect Group Travel Destination.

The “II International Tourism Law Conference” will take place at Cancun, Mexico, next October, from 30 to 31.

This event is organized by the IIJ-UNAM – the Institute of Legal Researches of the National Authonomous University of Mexico, the University of Quintana Roo and the University of the Caribbean, being sponsored by IFTTA – the International Forum of Travel and Tourism Advocates and IBCDTur – the Brazil Institute of Tourism Sciences and Law. The Organization is Coordinated by Enrique Mota Flores.

With this event, the First IFTTA North-American Conference of Tourism and Travel Law will take place with the presence of 3 Members of the Board of IFTTA: Phil Cameron and Laurence Gore, from the United States, and Manuel David Masseno, from Portugal. The Program includes papers to be presented by other IFTTA Members as Rui Badaró, from Brazil, and Enrique Mota Flores, from Mexico.