Fira Barcelona

The trade organizer in Barcelona that has been around much longer than the palace of congresses is the Fira Barcelona. This convention and trade center is over one hundred years old and is one of the top five in Europe for events, with more than seventy of the most important events in Europe held here. This is good for the economy. Along with the palace of congress, the Fira Barcelona draws thousands of businessmen, trade show hosts, conventions, and even concert goers to the city every year. Since the two centers are fairly close together, the events are concentrated in one area, cutting down on the need to taxi spectators and organizers alike between the two. The Fira is also close enough to Montjuic to allow plenty of time for sightseeing during a business trip. Although the Fira has been reviewed as a little impersonal and strikingly large, it serves its purpose with all of the modern conveniences substituting for local history, unless you count the fact that the building has been renovated many times since its humble beginnings over one hundred years ago. It now has 258 rooms, complete with minibars and cable TV, a pool, a full service gym including salon, and a squash court.