A new-look conference centre and excellent lake-and-mountain incentive options are a tempting combination for Italy’s business capital, says Sara Turner
Milan is preparing itself for a European premiere. Not content with being home to Italy’s largest congress centre, MIC (Milano Convention Centre), the Lombardy capital is extending it to make it the biggest in Europe. In 2015, the city will host the World Expo.
Launching this spring, the new-look MIC Plus, its new name, will have an additional 1,500-seat auditorium and an extra 10,000 sqm of exhibition space, creating a total seating capacity for 18,000 people across 73 rooms.
Conference centre operator Fiera Milano Congressi founded the original MIC and will manage the renovated one. It also runs Stella Polare, the exhibition and conference centre, north of the city, which has space for 20,000 people.
Francesco Conci, executive director of Fiera Milano Congressi, says the new centre’s facilities will be “at the forefront of technology”, with wifi internet access throughout and state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment. It will also be green-friendly, with solar panels on the roof generating enough power to run the centre.
Fiera Milano Congressi bids for national and international events and co-ordinates hotels and transport for delegates. The inaugural event to be held at MIC Plus is the Joint Congress of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and the International Society of Chemotherapy, which will be attended by 9,000 delegates. A major Powergen Europe industry event will also be held here this year.
Conci hopes business people visiting the convention centre will take the time to explore the city’s cultural offerings and take part in incentive activities.
“Milan has always been seen as a bit distant [in terms of atmosphere] – it has always been regarded as a business destination,” he says. “The new centre has allowed us to tell the world about the great things the city has to offer.”
These include Milan’s stunning architecture – it is home to iconic buildings such as the Duomo and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, as well as breath-taking art including Leonardo da Vinci’s mural The Last Supper, housed in a church called Santa Maria delle Grazie, on Via Fratelli Ruffini. It also has some of the most sought-after retail space in the world on Via Montenapoleone, the centre of the fashion district.
In 2015 the city will come under the global spotlight when it hosts the world Expo. Planning is well under way, with new hotels to house visitors including a 104-room Mandarin Oriental on Via Monte di Pieta, due to launch in 2012, and a 137-room Intercontinental next to the Duomo, due to open in 2014.
Improvements are also being made to the city’s transport infrastructure. Milan already has an extensive metro network but this will be expanded ready for 2015, with two new lines – M4, connecting with Linate airport, and M5, extending west to San Siro.
Useful websites
Transport
Milan is served by three airports – Linate is closest to the centre, about 7km east and served by regular buses, while the larger Malpensa is about 40km north-west, with a good rail link. The third option is Orio al Serio, which is, in fact, closer to Bergamo, a charming city to the north-east of Milan, and is popular with low-cost carriers. A direct bus link operates from the airport to Milan’s central train station. The city’s high-speed rail network has recently been improved, with a reduced journey time to Rome of three hours. You can also travel by rail to almost any destination in Europe – you can reach Zurich in three hours 45 minutes, and Paris in just over seven hours.
Incentives
The mountains
For some post-conference fun or an incentive trip with a difference, hit the Alps north of Milan. About a two-and-a-half-hour drive from the city, or two hours from Milan Malpensa airport, the valleys of Alagna, Gressoney and Champoluc boast some of the most beautiful slopes in the world. The resorts are linked by a network of cable cars, which means visitors can explore all three during a trip. Mike Crompton, co-founder of Zuba Ski (zubaski.com), has been running ski trips to the area since 2003.
He says: “I learnt to ski in Switzerland and thought I’d found the perfect place,” he recalls. “Then my wife, who learnt to ski in Alagna, took me there and introduced me to a few of the locals – I fell in love with the place.”
Skiing has taken Crompton all over the world but the slopes in the area, dominated by Europe’s second-highest mountain, Monte Rosa, are hard to beat. They offer some of the most difficult skiing in the Alps, such as the Marinelli Couloir, a 2,500-metre-tall near-vertical drop.
For the less experienced, Gressoney has a ski school and gentle slopes, so private lessons can be arranged for groups. “It’s amazing because the pistes are so quiet,” Crompton says. “One of the scariest things when you’re learning to ski is when you get lunatics flying around you. You end up thinking more about what’s happening around you than what you’re doing with your feet.”
The potential for off-piste and heli-skiing is also a real draw, says Zuba Ski’s other co-founder, Ian Seccombe: “You can get access to high mountains with long descents and the higher you go, the better the snow conditions and the fewer the people.” If you opt for heli-skiing, usually for groups of between three and six, a helicopter will fly you up to about 4,000 metres – well above the ski lifts. Snow at higher altitudes is usually drier and you’re more likely to get powder – “the light fluffy stuff”, Seccombe says – which means a better ski experience. “You will be bouncing down,” he adds.
If skiing isn’t your thing, you could try snow-shoeing – donning tennis racket-like footwear to make walking on the snow easier, a great way to get off the beaten track – or simply relax at the ranch. Many of the hotels, built in distinctive wood and stone, are located near the slopes so guests can make the most of their time, with spas offering massages and treatments.
And, of course, don’t forget the aprés-ski – in these valleys a local favourite is a drink called coppa dell’ amicizia, which means “the cup of friendship.” Essentially coffee with added zing – spices, orange peel and grappa – it is traditionally served in a wooden cup with multiple spouts for people to drink from, and gets passed around between friends.
The lakes
For smaller scale events, an escape from bustling city life can be found at Como, less than an hour’s drive from the centre of Milan. A popular spot since Roman times, the tranquil Lago di Como offers plenty of opportunities for water sports, as well as venues for meetings and events.
One of the largest facilities in the area is Villa Erba (villaerba.it) in Cernobbio, 5km from the city of Como,
or a short boat ride across the lake. The late 19th-century villa is surrounded by extensive grounds, and houses a museum dedicated to Italian director Luchino Visconti, who spent childhood summers here as his mother owned the villa. Now owned by the municipality, some of the rooms can be used for events. There are 15 spaces, many with intricate frescoes, for between 12 and 90 people theatre-style.
Part of the Villa Erba estate and also enjoying a prime lakeside position, the contemporary Spazio Villa Erba conference centre is run by Fiera Milano Congressi. Designed by Mario Bellini, it is made of glass and steel, and affords uninterrupted views of the lake and gardens. Inaugurated in 1990, Spazio has 28 conference rooms for between 50 and 1,500 people.
Post-conference activities could include waterskiing, a concert at the Teatro Sociale (teatrosocialecomo.it) in Como, or a round of golf followed by a gala dinner at the opulent Villa d’Este (villadeste.com), a member of the Leading Hotels of the World. Located 11km from the hotel, Villa d’Este’s golf club features an 18-hole course designed by Peter Gannon in 1926. For dinner, try Veranda for Italian haute cuisine or opt for a more informal dining experience at Grill, which features regional specialities on its menu.
