New edition of MEETEX held with a focus on the H2H approach and the social impact of the events industry

From 17 to 19 March 2026, the eighth edition of MEETEX, the international B2B forum dedicated to the business events, congress and incentive travel industry, was successfully held in Zagreb at The Westin Zagreb.

The event brought together Croatian exhibitors and international event organisers (hosted buyers), who held a large number of pre-scheduled B2B meetings over two days, alongside numerous additional encounters through informal networking.

Minister of Tourism and Sport Tonči Glavina highlighted the importance of such events for Croatian tourism: „MEETEX once again confirms its important role in positioning Croatia as a competitive and increasingly recognised destination for business and congress tourism, while Zagreb is further strengthening its status as a hub for international business events. The continuous growth in interest, number of participants and business meetings clearly shows that events like this have a strong impact on connecting with global markets and opening new opportunities for Croatia’s tourism sector.

Business tourism, including congress tourism, is one of the key drivers of year-round and sustainable tourism development, with a major contribution to the quality of the offer and the creation of greater added value. I am confident that MEETEX 2026 will further strengthen Croatia’s international visibility as a premium destination for business events and contribute to the дальнейший development of the industry, the strengthening of the tourism offer and the creation of new opportunities for economic growth and local communities.“

An important contribution to the continued development of MEETEX also comes from the long-standing support of its partners – the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB), and especially the Zagreb Tourist Board, which has supported the organisers from the very beginning.

„I am extremely pleased that the MEETEX congress exchange has once again been successfully delivered in its eighth edition. The quality of and interest from international buyers confirm its strong position as a unique marketplace for promoting the congress and incentive offer of Zagreb and Croatia on the international market. It is particularly important to highlight that this year’s MEETEX was held during the Zagreb Festival of Lights, allowing participants to experience first-hand one of the destination’s most recognisable projects, exceptionally attractive also in the context of incentive programmes. 

Recognising the strategic importance of the MEETEX congress exchange, the Zagreb Tourist Board continuously supports its organisation and further development”, said Martina Bienenfeld, Director of the Zagreb Tourist Board.

Croatia surprises international event organisers

Among the hosted buyers at the eighth edition of MEETEX were organisers of corporate events, conferences, business meetings and incentive travel, as well as representatives of international associations such as the International Water Association (IWA Events) and the UK’s Silver Marketing Association. They came mainly from European countries and the UK, but also from North and South America, Asia and Australia, further confirming the event’s global relevance.

Some participants took part in study trips to central Dalmatia before the forum itself, where they explored the MICE offer of Šibenik, Zadar and Split, while others stayed after the event to discover Zagreb, Hrvatsko Zagorje, Međimurje and Dubrovnik.

„I responded to the invitation to MEETEX because I actually do not know Croatia, and this experience gave me a completely new perspective. It is especially valuable to see the diversity of destinations and experiences beyond the most famous places such as Dubrovnik. I am therefore looking forward to discovering Zagorje and Međimurje on the study trip – still unexplored locations for me – and also staying one day in Zagreb to experience its streets and atmosphere.“, said Steve Huxham, Director of the Silver Marketing Association, an organisation specialising in events and education in the field of marketing for older audiences.

Other hosted buyers we had the opportunity to speak with also pointed out that they were surprised by the diversity and quality of the offer, as well as by how educated and professional the people are, and that they see great potential for bringing their corporate events and incentive programmes to Croatia. Claudio Fernandez from Argentina, who works in incentive travel, emphasised that Croatia – and its people – are an ideal destination, but that the country still needs to present itself more broadly and effectively, as it is not yet sufficiently recognised as a MICE destination in markets such as Argentina.

Impressions from Croatian exhibitors

Croatian exhibitors also came away from MEETEX with very positive impressions from their meetings.

„We are extremely satisfied with this year’s meetings – around 90 percent of the participants we spoke to were in Croatia for the first time, which confirms the importance of MEETEX as a platform for introducing new markets to our offer“, said Mirjana Resner of the Croatian National Tourist Board, highlighting the very positive reactions to the diversity and quality of the destination offer.

“At MEETEX, we presented our congress and event hotels on the Makarska Riviera and the island of Brač. I was pleased to see a strong regional presence, but also that MEETEX successfully brought together international buyers to whom Croatia is still not that well known as a congress destination, which proved very positive during the meetings. The conversations focused on the breadth of the offer and the possibilities for organising corporate events in a different setting, and buyers were particularly interested in the possibility of holding conferences on the island of Brač. It was a great pleasure to take part, and I am leaving with very positive impressions and a number of high-quality conversations,” Tomislav Mlinar of Bluesun Hotels & Resorts told us.

Loris Kablinović of Brijuni National Park added: "Taking part in MEETEX was an extremely positive experience for us. We had the opportunity to hold a number of high-quality and concrete meetings with international buyers, most of whom were visiting Croatia for the first time, but are showing strong interest in cooperation and in our destination. This format of meetings proved to be an ideal tool for promoting Brijuni National Park on the global market, especially among guests looking for authentic and unique locations for business events and leisure. We believe the contacts made during MEETEX will result in concrete partnerships and bring new international groups to our destination."

Human to human: an events industry with a human face

This year’s edition was marked by a strong message about the importance of the human dimension in business meetings.

MEETEX Director Adem Braco Suljić emphasised in his welcome address to all participants that this year’s focus was on the human dimension of business encounters: „Although we are a B2B event, in reality we are first and foremost human to human – H2H. Business relationships always begin between people.“

This idea was further reinforced through cooperation with the Red Noses Clowndoctors association, whose representative Maja Rusan brought the importance of social responsibility closer to participants. The association’s work includes providing support to children in hospitals, people in difficult life situations and medical staff, and Rusan stressed that business decisions in the events industry can also have a broader positive impact on the community.

During their stay, participants also had the opportunity to get to know Zagreb through two organised guided tours, while a special experience was the Red Glow Night gala evening, held on the 17th floor of the Westin Hotel in the Panorama Hall, overlooking a city illuminated by the installations of the Zagreb Festival of Lights.

An industry icon: Rob Davidson on the participant experience

One of the key programme moments was a lecture by Dr Rob Davidson, an icon of the international congress industry and a long-time friend of MEETEX and the Croatian Association of Congress Tourism Professionals (HUPKT). Davidson is Director of MICE Knowledge, an agency specialising in research and education in the business events industry, and a visiting professor at several international universities. He is a popular speaker at leading global conferences and the author of eight books on business tourism, while in his last two books he included the certification carried out by HUPKT as an example of best practice.

In Zagreb, he spoke about the participant experience and how to improve it. He pointed out that it does not include only arrival and attendance at the event, but begins with the first visit to the event website and the first email with the organiser, and does not end with departure, but with the lasting impression that remains after the event.

A powerful tool for development and international visibility

MEETEX 2026 once again confirmed that the congress, events and incentive industry represents one of the most strategically important segments of tourism and the economy. It is an industry that brings not only high spending and season extension, but also long-term benefits – knowledge transfer, innovation development, international cooperation and stronger destination reputation.

That is why passing this knowledge on to new generations is equally important. To transfer this legacy to younger audiences, visits were organised for four student groups – two from the Faculty of Economics and Business in Zagreb, one from Libertas International University and one from the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality Management in Opatija – giving them the opportunity to gain first-hand insight into how the international meetings industry operates.

Through events such as MEETEX, new business opportunities are created, industries are connected and investments are encouraged, while destinations like Zagreb are given the opportunity to position themselves as centres of meetings, ideas and decisions that shape the future.

In this context, the growing emphasis on the H2H approach – placing people, experiences and authentic connections at the centre – clearly shows the direction in which an industry is developing that connects not only markets, but also people, knowledge and communities.