The International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) has chosen Houston to host its 2019 ICCA Congress, it announced yesterday at the 54th ICCA General Assembly in Buenos Aires. The last ICCA Congress to take place in the United States occurred in Albuquerque, NM, in 1987; by 2019, therefore, it will be 32 years since an ICCA Congress last came to the United States.
"Never has a bidding city received so much support from members in other countries within their region, and this, coupled with this bid's technical excellence and creativity, meant that the board had no hesitation in making this decision," said ICCA President Nina Freysen-Pretorius, founder and CEO of The Conference Company of South Africa.
According to ICCA, numerous ICCA members and destinations in Mexico and Canada wrote letters of support, as well as other U.S. destinations.
Said Daniel Palomo, director of global sales at the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau and North American representative on the ICCA board of directors, "This is the fourth time Houston has bid to host ICCA's global community, so I'm really delighted that our commitment has been recognized, and that we finally have the opportunity to turn our creative ideas into reality. We are determined to generate real business opportunities not just in our own city, but for our colleagues across the region, and to introduce delegates to the many reasons why Houston is such a successful meetings destination."
ICCA's 2015 Congress in Buenos Aires concludes tomorrow. Its 2016, 2017, and 2018 Congresses will take place in Malaysia, Prague, and Dubai, respectively.
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