Lithuania’s capital city has been charming event planners in the know for many years. And with good reason. Boasting the largest medieval old town in central and eastern Europe, Vilnius has an impressive track record in delighting conference delegates.

From its naturally green location to international hotels, modern venues and creative spaces, this lesser-known hidden European gem is the perfect destination to inspire fresh ideas and connections.

With world-class universities and research institute’s attracting world and scientific breakthroughs, Vilnius is also fast developing as an attractive destination for association congresses in the fields of Fintech, ICT, high tech manufacturing, and biotechnology.

The city has recently been selected to host the European Physical Society’s (ESP) 14th European Conference on Atoms, Molecules and Photons (ECAMP’14) in 2022. ECAMP’14 will be the first major international conference on atoms, molecules and photons of this scale to be hosted in Lithuania and will bring together over 400 of the world’s top experts for a six-day conference to be held at Radisson Blu Hotel Lietuva on 24 -29 July 2022.

So if you’re looking for a fresh, innovative destination to host your event, here’s just five reasons to choose Vilnius…

1. Easily Accessible

Lying at the crossroads of East and West, being the geographical centre of Europe – Vilnius is never more than three hours away from any European destination by air, with an airport less than 15 minutes away from the city centre. Vilnius Airport is a hub of 14 airlines flying to over 72 routes.

2. Safe & Peaceful

Safety and security are increasingly important factors affecting destination choice for planners, and Vilnius is rated as one of the safest capitals in Eastern Europe. According to the Global Peace Index, it is safer than the USA, the UK and France. There is less than 3% risk of being harmed in a natural disaster in Lithuania.

3. Compact City

Vilnius charms with its labyrinthine, UNESCO renowned Old Town, sleek business district, an elegant city centre with many open squares and parks, as well as historic suburbs. It is a compact, pedestrian friendly city where major meeting facilities, hotels, cosy restaurants and important city sights are all within walking distance.

4. First-Class Meeting Facilities

With 5,614 hotel rooms on offer, the city has hotels to suit groups of all sizes. Add to that a range of modern and the most up-to-date conference halls as well as non-traditional venues, including centuries-old mansions, castle halls, rebuilt royal palaces, modern glass towers, big arenas and large open-air squares, and planners will find everything they need to accommodate any meeting or event.

5. Fast & Open

Being the world’s best-connected city, Vilnius offers free WiFi hotspots in hotels, venues and public spaces. Fast and readily available Internet is pretty much standard in Vilnius and 84.7% of Lithuania can connect to 4G, making it the third most 4G-ready country in the world and Number 1 in Europe.

If you want to experience and get to know Vilnius better, there is still time to join CONVENE as a hosted buyer and explore the destination and local suppliers first-hand.