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More than 200 tourism professionals arrive in Bologna for CityDNA

April 26th 2024

More than 200 tourism professionals arrive in Bologna for CityDNA

More than 200 tourism professionals from all over Europe are roaming the streets of Bologna for City Destinations Alliance's International Conference & General Assembly, taking over the stunning Palazzo Re Enzo until tomorrow.

This is the first time Bologna is hosting a CityDNA international conference - Europe's leading knowledge-sharing and future-oriented thinking association for tourism destinations. With as many as 120 members from 39 countries, the association is a reference point for DMOs from all over Europe that share a strong interest in concrete and sustainable development of their destinations. Each year, through its two international conferences, CityDNA offers its members an important moment of discussion and growth.

This year's conference, titled #RealityCheck, focused on facts and fiction of urban tourism and touches on hot topics for the industry such as inclusivity, artificial intelligence, sustainability, and technological innovations. In addition to its many scheduled sessions, the conference featured numerous networking moments, including coffee breaks and convivial lunches: Cinema Modernissimo and DumBo were the settings for the event's most glamorous social moments - aperitif on Wednesday and a gala dinner last night. There were also many social programme activities which allowed event participants to discover the best of the city, including tours and visits to the historic center, motor and food-themed experiences, and the traditional morning CityDNA Run.

Among the many professionals we had the pleasure of meeting, we heard from Sarah Frosh, Project Manager at GROUP NAO, Tordis á Rógvi Biskopstø, Director of Visit Tórshavn, and Rikke Holm Petersen, Director of Communication at Wonderful Copenhagen, whom we thank for their excellent feedback, both on the event and on Bologna. Warm thanks are also due to Immagini e Suoni, La Casona and Immaginazione for facilitating the organization and success of the event with professionalism and dedication, providing audio-visual support, catering and staging services.

The seminar Waiting for the International Conference & General Assembly of CityDNA, themed Destination Management in Italy: experiences and perspectives, opened the event. During the pre-event, Palazzo Isolani hosted a number of well-known Italian destination professionals to discuss the current state of DMOs in Italy and the opportunities related, facing an audience of colleagues from all over Italy. It was an important opportunity for discussion, which, along with the conference itself, turned Bologna into the place to be for all European destinations this week.

A few shots from the event
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