Dublin. How does it feel?
One hundred and fourteen delegates came to Dublin from 4th to 6th March 2009 to attend the ECM Spring Meeting. The participants had another great opportunity to share knowledge and expertise with their colleagues and other European experts in tourism and conventions, this time in the extraordinary setting of one of Dublin’s villages – Malahide.
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Frank Magee, ECM president and host of this year’s Spring Meeting tells us how it feels…
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How does it feel ? To be the ECM president and to host an ECM meeting …
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As President I am conscious of all of the effort that previous host cities have made in the past. This was ECM’s third visit to Dublin. I wanted to show another side to the city than that which was previously experienced. Malahide seems to have been very well received and the comments were very positive. As Malahide Castle is one of our own properties and we generally don’t cater for such large numbers there it was another pressure point. The staff did a great job and I think as a venue for the welcome reception it worked very well.
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Biggest threat?
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The economic crisis facing the world was the biggest threat. Would people travel and would the numbers hold up? Thankfully they did and in spite of being on an island we have great air connections so it worked out ok.
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Biggest relief?
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My biggest relief was when Michael O’Leary took the stage. As head of Europe’s largest airline I am conscious of the demands on his time. I was also conscious that Michael was liable to say something outlandish but he was very supportive and the fact that he credits his marketing and determination to the training I gave him was an added bonus, particularly in front of my peers!!! We worked hard to make sure everyone had a good time. We took pride in presenting our city and were rewarded with the satisfaction that it went well. I encourage more cities to host our events – it is worth the effort.
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