Colombia continues to improve its global ranking of the most popular countries in which to hold international events, moving up to 37th place in 2009, reports Dinero.com on Tuesday.
According to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), Colombia held 71 international events in 2009, and moved up one spot from its 38th place ranking in 2008, and 50th place ranking in 2006.
Colombia’s 2009 ranking places it 5th within Latin America, trailing behind Brazil (293 events), Argentina (145), Mexico (104), and Chile (74).
Colombia’s most popular cities to host international events were Cartagena (28 events), Bogota (17), and Medellin (13).
Overall, Colombia saw a 10.4% increase in foreign visitors in 2009, a significant figure considering that tourism fell roughly 4% globally that year according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
Topping the 2009 list for the most popular international event destinations were the United States (595 events), Germany (458), Spain (360), Italy (350), the United Kingdom (345), France (341) Brazil (293), Japon (257), China (245) and Austria (236).
The ICCA rankings, according to their website, “cover meetings organised by international associations which take place on a regular basis and which rotate between a minimum of three countries.”