Korea has been ranked the world’s top 2 destination for global congresses hosted in 2015, according to the latest International Meetings Statistics Report, released this week by the Union of International Associations (UIA). The findings show Korea achieving 2nd place behind the USA with 891 meetings – a 40% increase over the previous year. This also places it first in Asia.

Seoul also notably improved its long-standing top-5 UIA city ranking, moving from 5th to 3rd place with 494 meetings held in 2015; a 98.4% increase over the 249 meetings hosted in 2014. Meanwhile, Busan, Korea’s second-largest city, attained a global city ranking of 11 with 150 meetings, while UNESCO World Heritage resort island Jeju accounted for 112 of the year’s meetings, achieving a global city ranking of 19.

 “The UIA findings demonstrate Korea’s compelling attraction for business events and travel, which is underpinned by the nation’s cultural appeal and steadily-growing MICE capabilities,” said Kee Hun Kim, Korea MICE Bureau Executive Director. “We will of course continue to work actively to make Korea a highly-competitive congress host, and a country with a wealth of destinations all featuring their own unique attractions and venues,” he added.

The full UIA International Meetings Statistics Report is available online at uia.org