Destination Cardiff Showcase
Cardiff hit the right note with Sir Rocco Forte and conference organisers at a special showcase for the city at Brown’s Hotel, Mayfair in February.
Sir Rocco, chairman of Rocco Forte Hotels, which includes the St David’s Hotel and Spa in Cardiff Bay, was host to the Cardiff Conference Bureau and 60 guests from the conference and incentive industry.
Sir Rocco praised Cardiff as forward looking and well organised for conferences. He said: “I built the St David’s Hotel and Spa there because I was impressed by the dynamism of the area and by what was happening in the capital of Wales. The Bay area is a thriving place, so different from the picture many people have of Cardiff 15 or 16 years ago.”
And he urged guests: “Please have a good look at the city when you plan your next conference. Come to Cardiff, come to St David’s Hotel and Spa and to the other hotels there.”
To highlight the unique sense of place offered by the Welsh capital, guests were also treated to a taste of Welsh culture with singing from Cardiff Cantata, a group of singers who entertain visitors to Cardiff Castle. The wide range repertoire included opera, traditional and popular songs.
Guests found the evening valuable and fun.
Barbara Cavallaro, of VA International, said the showcase had opened her eyes to the value of Cardiff as a conference destination.
She said: “This was an entertaining and informative look at what Cardiff has to offer.”
Cardiff Conference Bureau were joined at Brown’s Hotel by representatives from the Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff Hoteliers, the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff’s City Hall, Capital Region Tourism, Visit Wales, St David’s Hotel and Push4 Productions.
Sally Edwards Hart, head of marketing and tourism for Cardiff Council, said: “This was a successful promotion, taking Cardiff out to national organisers. A number of people were impressed enough to open discussions straight way about bringing conferences to Cardiff.
“We will be following up this event with a series of familiarisation visits to the city. We know that when clients see the city first hand it sells itself.”
