Spanish and Portuguese MICE Tourists' Profile

Introduction

The MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) segment has been one of the fastest growing tourism trends in the last decade (Chiang et al., 2012). The term includes all kinds of business events, and in a broader sense, also cultural, sports, academic or corporate summits, symposia, conventions, congresses and workshops (Lau, 2009). Conferences and congresses are understood as events that gather people to discuss and interchange information about a certain subject, potentially aiming to generate knowledge and find a solution to a certain challenge. Other specific goals might include motivating and inspiring participants, releasing new products and communicating the latest research findings on a particular subject (Rogers, 2008).

Conferences have become one of the main boosters of tourism worldwide. Consequently, they have attracted significant amounts of investments, which ultimately create jobs and generate income to the host communities. Therefore, conferences are important business opportunities that greatly benefit the whole economy, not least because, as event participants also tend to engage in leisure activities while in the destination, their average daily expense is significantly higher than that of the average tourist. Moreover, they help reduce seasonality and regenerate destinations, spread knowledge and facilitate creativity and innovation (UNWTO, 2014). Big events also entail an effective use of resources and standardized services. Therefore, they boost many local businesses, which benefit from scale economies. Events also benefit the host place in the long run, as they tend to improve destination image (Lau, 2009). Moreover, conferences are usually a starting point for stablishing auspicious relationships among attendees, as many new ideas for joint projects are discussed. Consequently, some of positive impacts of conferences are projected in the future, and cannot be measured as its outcomes, although they really are.

Due to the mentioned positive outcomes, destinations worldwide have invested 1.14€ billion in the MICE segment in 2018, 28% of which coming from Europe (Global Business Travel Association - GBTA, 2019). In the last years, many places have invested in adequate facilities and services to cater for this segment. These destinations normally aim to integrate business tourism with elements of leisure travel, which is attained through MICE facilities’ partnerships with hospitality, entertainment and transportation providers (Wan, 2011).

The latest trends within the MICE segment are consequences of the increasingly significant role played by technology in providing attractive experiences. In this vein, the demand for unconventional venues and activities, such as tree houses, rooftops and museums, must increase, especially in Europe. Accordingly, new collaborative event formats, which directly involve participants in the creation of their own experience, must also be developed (CWT Meetings & Events, 2019). Destinations and businesses willing to thrive in this segment must be in tune with these trends. Namely, they should increase security, provide personalised experiences that reinforce human relations, and use new technologies to provide immersive experiences (Hosteltur, 2019).

Regarding the event tourists, Swarbrooke and Horner (2001) define them as people who attend any type of events, including entrepreneurs, professionals, scholars, members of a certain group and people associated with governance. According to ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association, 2019), these visitors spend 53% more than leisure travellers in the visited places. In absolute numbers, according to the MICE Travel Report, carried out by IBTM Americas, this translates into a daily expenditure of U$239.90 in the context of the United States.