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6 Reasons Why

Montréal Works For You

A TEAM THAT DOES IT ALL

Business made easy

Planners want to work with a destination that makes organizing events simple. Here at Tourisme Montréal, that’s what we do best: simplicity. We partner you with a dedicated Tourisme Montréal convention services manager. This person is your single point of contact who proactively stays in touch, your point person every step of the way. We must be doing something right: according to a recent Watkins Research report, our clients ranked us first — before San Diego, Minneapolis, Vancouver and Toronto — for ease of doing business.

Connections that matter

Montréal’s openness to new cultures, languages and ideas attracts the brightest minds from around the world. When you choose Montréal as your destination, we help enrich your event by connecting you to local professional and academic communities. Montréal is home to four world-class universities, an impressive body of international students and researchers, and a technology scene that continues to garner global attention. With an extensive network of local leaders and influencers across diverse industries, we pride ourselves in helping you connect with actual Montrealers — the type of people that add both brainpower and flair to a meeting.

Synergy with our partners

At Tourisme Montréal, we offer a unique approach to planning events. It’s called Team Montréal: a coalition of the city’s meeting and convention industry leaders (hotels, convention centres, service providers and more). When you’re backed by the right people, great things happen. Tourisme Montréal is dedicated to making meaningful meetings and conventions. Our clients comment on how refreshing our approach is, how simple the process becomes when key players are actively collaborating. This seamless, hassle-free strategy has a proven track record — according to a recent Watkin’s Report, Tourisme Montréal customer satisfaction rate is an impressive 94%!

A CITY THAT HAS IT ALL

Easy to love

Geographically, Montréal is rooted in North America, yet the city exudes an emphatically European sensibility. Delegates love to come here (and to return here) for our patented joie de vivre spirit (which literally translates as “joy of living”). From the thriving culinary scene to the charming side streets to the over 100 cutting-edge festivals, Montréal has undeniable curb appeal — big city attractions with a small town welcome. Take advantage of it.

Easy to get to from anywhere

The newly renovated, ultra-modern Montréal-Trudeau airport (YUL) makes an ideal international hub with direct flights to 130 global destinations. We’re a short hop (<2 hours) from many American cities, such as New York, Chicago, Washington and Boston. In the past year alone, Air Canada has unveiled six new direct routes to Montréal, including three American hubs: Houston, Denver and Philadelphia. We’re closer than you think.

Easy to get around

Ranked as one of the safest cities in the world, Montréal is also compact and convenient. In other destinations, the “local” convention centre is tucked away in the back forty. In Montréal, the Palais des congrès is in the heart of the city — walkable to 15,000 hotel rooms. (Bonus: 4000 of those rooms are directly connected to the convention centre.)

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5 Ways The Montréal Convention Centre Stands Out

Montréal’s convention centre — known formally as the Palais des congrès de Montréal — is the city’s leading venue for big events. With 551,520 square feet of adaptable event space, including room for nearly 2000 exhibitor booths, the centre welcomes an annual assortment of association meetings, trade shows, public shows, corporate events, galas and more. From a massive international dance competition to a cutting edge computer programing gathering (and everything in between), the “Palais” is accustomed to hosting diverse groups with diverse needs.
Here are five key ways that Montréal’s convention centre is leading the way.

Accessibility. Over the past few years, the Palais has made deliberate changes to enable access for people with reduced mobility. These modernizations include ramps, personal elevators, electric washroom doors, complimentary wheelchair borrowing and more. To prepare the city for the 2013 World Parkinson Congress, the Palais partnered with Tourisme Montréal to provide training sessions to everyone from hotel and airport staff to taxi drivers and restaurant employees on how to interact and care for people living with Parkinson’s. Past meetings at the Palais have also included the International Conference on Mobility and Transport for Elderly and Disabled People, as well as the IMC International Mobility Conference.

Environmental Sustainability. The Palais has achieved BOMA BESt® (Building Environmental Standards) certification, a national standard for energy and environmental performance for existing buildings based on independently verified information. Onsite eco-minded initiatives include a rooftop garden (to offset urban heat islands) complete with beehives and an e-waste recycling program, as well as personalized support to planners to help them achieve meeting-specific ecological goals.

Wi-Fi. The Palais operates a robust and dependable wireless infrastructure that matches the needs of a wide variety of groups. With more than 480 access points, delegates have “wall-to-wall” service — no matter where they might wander on the premises. What’s distinctive, however, is that the Palais is also a partner of the MtlWiFi network, a free high-speed wireless connection that covers a large multi-block zone including much of the popular tourist area of Old Montréal. Essentially, visitors can wander through the charming cobblestone streets of Old Montréal and still be connected to a Wi-Fi network — for free! Download the PDF here.

Art. Built in 1983 and then revamped from 1999-2001, the Palais des congrès de Montréal is now an art icon in Montréal and around the world. In fact, the building was even included in the architectural guide, 1001 Buildings You Must See Before You Die. Inside, don’t miss the massive kaleidoscope façade of 332 coloured glass panels and the 52 hot pink gleaming “trees” (entitled Lipstick Forest), while outside visitors can see a bronze sculpture and fountain (entitled La Joute) created by the world-renowned Québec artist Jean-Paul Riopelle.

Revenue Generation. The Palais des congrès de Montréal is one of the first convention centres in North America to place technology in the hands of event planners while offering the possibility of generating revenue for their events. The powerful Wi-Fi network throughout the Palais provides prominent visibility on the connection page for sponsors. Additionally, a 90-square foot video wall located right in the highest traffic area of the Palais is a prime visibility space, which is rented and resold for great ROI. Furthermore, opportunities for mobile applications and e-commerce platforms will boost sponsor value. Find out more about sponsorship opportunities.

Oh, and one more thing…
The Palais des Congrès de Montréal has achieved AIPC Gold Quality certification. What does that mean? The AIPC (or International Association of Convention Centres), in addition to representing convention and exhibition centre professional managers around the world, also recognizes convention centre excellence. So, when a convention centre gets the AIPC stamp of approval, it has been recognized for accomplishments like offering quality service and infrastructure, sound management and continuously improving programs to offer delegates a top-notch meeting experience!

Want to read more useful Blog posts?
Visit: http://www.tourisme-montreal.org/meetings/

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TEAM UP WITH TORONTO

Make your meetings and events fun, energetic and creative. There’s no shortage of unique team building activities around the city. Here are five of our favourites!

EDGEWALK

Nothing brings people together faster than a little fear. Experience the thrill of a lifetime at 1,168 feet above the ground at EdgeWalk. We dare you to walk around the outside perimeter of the Western Hemisphere’s tallest attraction and Toronto icon, The CN Tower.

BATL Axe Throwing

Got an axe to grind? BATL (or Backyard Axe Throwing League) has been aiming for the bulls eye since 2006. Now with 8 locations across Canada, BATL brings a little country to the city with exciting tournaments for groups and parties.

CASA LOMA ESCAPE SERIES

Escape rooms have popped up all over the city but none are set in as opulent a setting as The Casa Loma Escape Series.  Since August 2015, it combines Canada’s only castle with theatrical performances and a thrilling escape game.

TREETOP TREKKING 

Get both a sense of nature and a sense of excitement while zip lining over 1000 feet along Heart Lake in Brampton, northwest of Toronto.  In the heart of Heart Lake Conservation Area, TreeTop Trekking features 6 courses, 7 zip lines and 65 aerial games.

TOUR GUYS

Tour Guys offer some unique tours of some of Toronto’s most fascinating sites, including a graffiti tour of hip Queen West, a food tour of St. Lawrence Market, and a walk through eclectic Kensington Market & Chinatown. There’s even a bacon tour, which can help you find out how Toronto got its nickname, “Hogtown,” while getting a taste of some of the city’s best food!

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Q & A: CONVERSATIONS WITH A SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER

Meet Vivian Fleet, the Sustainability Officer at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC). She’s responsible for reducing the environmental footprint of the facility as well as helping clients to do the same for their events at the venue. We asked the self-proclaimed green thumb and environmental gal to share her thoughts on emerging trends and debunk a common myth about sustainable events.

Tell us how you incorporate sustainable practices into events at the MTCC.

Collecting in-kind donations from events has really taken off in the past year at the MTCC. If clients and/or exhibitors have extra items they no longer need but could be used by someone else (delegate bags, give aways, furniture, etc.), we can donate those items to local organizations we partner with on their behalf. Participating in this program has no cost to the client (it could even save money from disposal or shipping) and it reduces waste from an event while giving back to the community. It’s a win-win-win!

We also have well established energy management guidelines to reduce the carbon footprint and energy consumption of the facility. For example, during move-ins and move-outs the lighting levels are reduced on the exhibit hall floors and escalators are turned off if not in use. This reduces the electricity consumption of the events thereby making them more sustainable and with minimal effort.

For the past year and a half, the MTCC has attained a whopping 90% diversion rate for the facility. This means that each event we host also keeps the vast majority of its left over material out of landfills. This allows clients to focus on other parts of the event while knowing the sustainable elements are being taken care of for them.

So much effort goes into incorporating sustainable elements into these events. How can event planners let their attendees know about their green initiatives?

We are happy to work with clients to develop an effective outreach strategy for each event. Supplemental materials can be provided suggesting ways to implement and share the various initiatives.

What do you see as the biggest challenge for planning sustainable events?

Communication and education is always difficult. It is often wrongly assumed that adding sustainable elements to an event will cost a lot of time and money. We work hard to make it as easy and economical as possible to choose the more sustainable options for events!

And, what do you see as the biggest opportunity for sustainable events?

Community outreach and donations are a great way to reduce the environmental impact of an event, make a difference in people’s lives and tell a great story all at once!

What are your predictions for future trends in sustainability for events?

I think people will integrate sustainable elements into their events more and more, rather than having it as an add-on, especially if we continue to work on educating clients about their options and costs. Urban farming is also a hot trend right now so venues are beginning to build vegetable gardens and install bee hives on site. We just became urban beekeepers ourselves with our very own bee hives on top of the MTCC’s South building!

The Metro Toronto Convention Centre is a multi-award winning green facility and an industry leader on sustainable practices. Visit their website for more on how to go green with your next event at the MTCC.

View more interesting posts on the Business Events Toronto Blog Intouch >>

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Lofty Ideas

Our industry is always buzzing about newly-renovated meeting rooms, up-to-date colors, wall coverings and flooring – it’s all essential to attracting new business. Not enough attention, however, is paid to the functionality of a meeting space. Are we providing the optimum meeting environment?

There many types of meetings, so it only makes sense that there be completely different environments and tools required to host them. Finance meetings may call for a boardroom setting with a laptop LCD projecting reports on a screen. Serious business calls for a formal setting. A marketing department meeting, on the other hand, is all about brainstorming new ideas which requires a flexible environment that optimizes left brain and right brain thinking.

The new space at White Oaks embodies the spirit of creativity. The Idea Loft is comfortable – a place where you can walk around, grab a snack, toss a ball in the air or scribble a thought on the wall. The beauty of the space is that it’s made for breaking off into little groups, and it’s welcoming for those who need to tuck themselves into a corner to think an idea through. When thoughts are ready to be shared, the group can come together for presentations in the theatre/stage section. It’s a truly flexible, creativity-inspiring space.

See More about The Idea Loft