Digital technology has swept like a tsunami across the meetings and events industry. The old paradigms are history now as ever-new, exciting horizons emerge. But sometimes, it’s all just a little too much. We have to escape, revisit the first principles. Nature! The genuine charm of personal presence, of face-to-face conversation. A lush environment sheltered by the Alps, away but not too far removed from the urban centres, thus offers an outstanding opportunity for many kinds of business meetings and incentives in the spirited embrace of the mountains. If outdoor activities are your cup of tea, it’s high time you experienced “Europe’s adventure playground” (as described by the National Geographic).
Slovenia is a young country, and relatively new to MICE at that, so most attendees haven’t been here before. This makes Slovenia appeal to today’s delegates who crave something new, different, something off the beaten track.
The country’s natural environment is absolutely phenomenal, while rich diversity is one of its key competitive advantages. As a Slovene folk story goes, the creator forgot about this little piece of the world at first, and so in the very last moment, he crafted it from parts of all the others. A unique trait of Slovenia are its four cultures and landscapes – the Alps, the Pannonian plains, the Karst and the Mediterranean; shaped by the historical influences of four peoples, the Slavic, Romance, Germanic, and Finno-Ugric.
In Slovenia, everything is conveniently close yet impressively beautiful. The big advantage of being small is that you can focus on the little things, the details. The personal touches that make your meeting matter, that make it genuine. Isn’t authenticity precisely what every event planner wants these days?
Crisp Alpine air. Marvellous surroundings. Inspiration.
Knowledge exchange, education, networking and incentives are essential drivers behind business & expert conventions. The Slovenian Convention Bureau thus in April conducted an education-motivation conference for the domestic expert public on the subject of key guidelines for the successful positioning of Slovenia’s Alpine region as an attractive destination for business meetings.
The informative part of the conference ran under the guidance of Mr. Gorazd Čad, noted regional congress and tourism marketing authority, who presented the latest industry trends in the content and digital marketing spheres, on the case example of the Alpine and sub-Alpine parts of Slovenia. The second part was shaped as a creative incentive experience, involving the conference participants in fun tasks under the tutelage of Mr. Matjaž Jug from an agency specializing in teambuilding programs.
After the experts shed their light on the importance of content and creative copy in the digital world, participants engaged in brainstorming: revisiting the legend of the Carniolan honey bee, devising a zipline between the Bled Castle and the island, parlaying rowing on the magical Lake Bled into an exciting outdoor package, and finally unleashing their creative powers in the preparation of a 60-second video showcasing their proposals. The winning video presented, in a witty and original way, an educational incentive program themed around the Carniolan honey bee.
The Alpine pearls Bled and Bohinj lie at the outskirts of the Triglav National Park, one of Europe’s oldest, in the heart of the Julian Alps from where captivating vistas open up on all sides of the horizon. The Bled Island, an icon of Slovene tourism, holds a special place in our history, being cherished already by the verses of our great poet France Prešeren:
Yon islet cradled by the waves,
today St. Mary’s point of grace;
behind it snow-capped giants stand
and fields before it, o’er the land,
the Castle Bled proud to the left
and hillock after hillock nice,
the whole Carniola knows no place
in beauty greater, paradise!
Baptism, France Prešeren
(Translated by: Jeremi Slak)
So, how about some refreshing meeting concepts in the Alps? Or perhaps pleasant Bohinj, which not only boasts the biggest glacial lake in Slovenia but also our nation’s first certified ecological hotel, the Bohinj ECO Hotel, hosting a range of business meetings and conventions? A great destination for your business handshake is also the state protocol grounds at Brdo – Domain of Delights, with a standing tradition of protocol events and conferences. The sports pulse of the local Alpine region is naturally felt best in Kranjska Gora. Many cycling and hiking routes, splendid skiing slopes, the Planica Nordic Centre with its zipline over the biggest ski jumping hill in the world, all offer stimulating settings for incentives and meetings that will boost morale, strengthen companionship and energize your day. For all those preferring water-based adrenaline experiences, the emerald Soča River Valley is a place of teambuilding adventure in a verdant landscape straight from a fantasy tale.
Sounds appealing? Follow “Spotlights from Slovenia” at www.slovenia-convention.com.
Welcome, and let us impress you!
