The tourism and experience industry is growing rapidly at the moment. Individual consumers and businesspeople have considerably more opportunities to travel and more money to spend than before.
The important factor for Jyväskylä is the interest shown in us by the tourism industry, and particularly by the trade fair and congress travel sector. We aim to respond to this interest by being Finlands best trade fair and congress city outside Helsinki.
Construction of a new exhibition hall, indoor car park, and hotel in the Jyväskylä Paviljonki area will increase the Paviljonkis range of uses. These investments totalling tens of millions of euros are not just a step in the right direction but a giant leap forwards.
The proposed concert hall, which has long been on the drawing board, would be another welcome addition. The natural location for the hall would be adjacent to Jyväskylä Paviljonki. We need a quick decision to build the concert hall.
The Lutakko area, where Jyväskylä Paviljonki is located, reflects the structural change that has already taken place. Industrial jobs were lost when the plywood plant closed, but a new concentration of commercial activity was created in the same area and now employs more people than the plant did. Jyväskylä Paviljonki welcomes around 400 000 visitors each year.
There is a clear trend for trade fair and congress centres to be profiled as experience and recreation centres. They offer something for everyone, whether the visitors come for business or pleasure.
The trade fair and congress locations are also fully integrated into the city structure rather than spread out around town. In this respect Jyväskylä can hold its own against anywhere else in the world.
Trade fairs in particular bring a lot of visitors to the city, who then use our hotel facilities, too. In fact, in the trade fair and congress travel sector we are seeking to open the doors even wider. The intention is to attract visitors with concerts and other interesting, high quality peripheral events. High quality criteria are important nowadays in the competition between events for visitors. There is a readiness to pay for quality.
Jyväskylä region has expertise and a solid track record in organizing high profile events. The Finnish round of the World Rally Championship is naturally our top brand and the event which gives us most visibility. However we should not forget that there are many other events that bring thousands and thousands of visitors to Jyväskylä. The congresses organized by the University, for example, are very important.
It is worth remembering that trade fairs and congresses are organized all year round and therefore also attract visitors to the city outside the main tourist season.
Markku Andersson, Mayor, City of Jyväskylä