Noblesse in the noble Grand Hotel des Bains Kempinski in St. Moritz, rural flair while hiking with goats, beer cooled by the glacier on the Diavolezza and party party in a boathouse on Lake Zurich: The 17th edition of the Meeting Trophy Switzerland created enthusiasm among the 80 participants from North America, France, the Benelux countries as well as Scandinavia and Germany, among others.
“An absolutely well-rounded program, perfectly organized and with lots of info. Hats off, that was great”, was the conclusion of “Team Germany”.
Indeed: It could hardly have been done better. Not only the perfect organization, but also the mix of event locations and means of transportation was second to none. The participants traveled to St. Moritz from Zurich by train, and in the Upper Engadin region they took mountain railroads, walked and rode e-bikes.
For the trip back to Zurich, 30 brand-new four-wheel drive rental cars from Europcar were parked in front of the Grand Hotel des Bains Kempinski; a visit to the new and ultra-modern Lindt Chocolate Museum in Kilchberg near Zurich was followed by a boat tour on Lake Zurich. And for the trip to the final evening in the event location “8008 See Lounge Zurich” the Orga team had chartered a streetcar.
In between, the teams had to answer questions and solve tasks – and thus learned a lot about the MICE country Switzerland. Incentive trips with the Rhaetian Railway, meetings in the time-honored Kulm Hotel in St. Moritz or in the Congress Kursaal Interlaken, events in the water tower in Lucerne or in CERN, the European Center for Nuclear Research in Geneva: There were plenty of ideas for large and small MICE events at the 17th Meeting Trophy.
And yet: “If you imagine Switzerland as a pizza, we have just presented you with a small bite of it,” emphasized Urs Eberhard, who, as a long-standing expert from Switzerland Tourism, had taken over the moderation of the event.
It was particularly important for him and the Orga team to present to the participants the many environmentally friendly means of transport that Switzerland has to offer: Traveling by train, especially the Rhaetian Railway, is “not a transfer, but an experience,” says Urs Eberhard. “And it is an integral part of Swisstainable, our path of sustainability.”
At the end of the four-day trips, there`s only one conclusion, in keeping with the hashtag: “#inlovewithswitzerland.” Matthias Le Clerque, who won the Trophy with his team from Belgium, summed it up as follows: “With this event, the Switzerland Convention & Incentive Bureau once again proved what the Swiss are capable of in the MICE sector. Everything fell into place right on the dot.”
General info on MICE offerings in Switzerland is available at Myswitzerland.com/meetings.
