Clean, safe and conveniently small, Iceland and Reykjavik has succeeded in exploiting its strategic location at the gateway to the markets of Europe and North America to good advantage.

As the vibrant capital of Europe’s youngest country, Reykjavík is about to embark on one of its most ambitious projects to date, with the construction of a new concert hall and conference complex designed to secure it a place among the world’s leading musical venues and conference sites.

Scheduled for completion by the autumn of 2009, the complex, which will be financed by a mix of state, city and private-sector funding, will include a state-of-the-art 1,800-seat concert hall, a 450-seat rehearsal and recital hall, and a cluster of conference and meeting halls, the largest of which will accommodate up to 750 delegates. The plans also allow for the construction of a 250-room first-class hotel.

Iceland has hosted a series of international meetings and conferences, including the International Conference on Women and Democracy 1999, NATO Council of Foreign Ministers 2002, several meetings of the Nordic Council of Ministers, and possibly the most historic of all, the Reagan-Gorbachev summit of 1986.

Having established itself as a leading conference destination ranked as high as 14th on the European circuit, Reykjavík, Iceland is now set to reinforce its position in this growing market, with the opening of the new custom-built centre.
 
When the curtain goes up in the The Iceland National Concert and Conference Centre in 2009, the complex will join the city’s theatres in helping Iceland and Reykjavík to take its place on centre stage among the world’s leading concert venues and conference destinations.

Sept. 2005