A) Prague Congress Centre - Congress Venue

The Prague Congress Centre belongs to the largest and top-quality European congress centres. It offers space for the widest variety of events, such as congresses, conferences, business meetings, corporate presentations, trade fairs, balls, banquets and buffets. The Centre has at its disposal 20 halls and 50 meeting rooms with a capacity from 10 to 2700 persons.

The Congress Centre has a unique location on one of Prague's hills and is one of the dominant features of the capital of the Czech Republic. From here you can enjoy a wonderful view of the world-famous panorama of Prague where the silhouette of Prague Castle and many steeples and towers of churches, cathedrals, palaces and ancient buildings of the historical centre reflect over the river Vltava.

When reconstruction was completed in 2000, it became one of the best equipped European centres, which was confirmed by the problem-free course of the Annual Meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in September of that year and of the NATO Summit in November 2002.

The pride of the Prague Congress Centre is the Congress Hall, which reaches from the first to the fourth floor. A group of Czech and foreign specialists in the field of acoustics was in charge of its alterations. Thanks to its excellent acoustics, the Congress Hall is currently among the thirteen best concert halls in the world, with characteristics comparable to those of the London's Royal Albert Hall, Montreal's Wilfrid-Pelletier Hall or the Boston Symphony Hall. The dimensions of the orchestral shell make performances by large musical groups of 100 musicians possible, and they can be watched from the auditorium by up to 2764 persons. The IWC will be prepared in the second largest hall - the Social Hall.

 

B) Prague - Congress City

Prague is the most precious historical city reserve of the Czech Republic. The first documented reference to the city history dates after 870 when the Prague Castle was built. In the 11th century, the first Czech king, Vratislav I, chose Prague as his seat. The city has always played an important part in the history of the nation, the country and the whole Europe. Since medieval times, Prague has been known as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Down the centuries, eminent personalities have paid homage to Prague. W. A. Mozart, L. van Beethoven, G. Apollinaire, P. I. Čajkovskij, F. M. Dostojevskij, A. Rodin, O. Kokoschka, Elisabeth II. - the British Queen, John Paul II. and others have allowed the beauty and imposing architecture of the city to enchant them. The atmosphere of the home city Prague has been reflected in the works of Jan Neruda, Jaroslav Hašek, Jaroslav Seifert, Franz Kafka, Max Brod or Egon Erwin Kisch. Prague is not only the centre of cultural events dating back for centuries; it also represents a unique collection of historical monuments, dominated by the Prague Castle, Charles Bridge or the Old Town Square. All artistic styles and directions can be found here - especially the historical ones; however, recent years have, of course, seen rapid development of modern architecture.

Prague currently has nearly 1,2 million inhabitants. It is the seat of the President, the Government, the Parliament and all the important political, economical, cultural and educational institutions. In 1348 the Charles University was founded in Prague as one of the oldest universities in Europe. Prague is a gateway to the Czech Republic and an important and popular Central European centre.

In 1992, the historical core of the city with the area of 866 hectares was listed in the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage Register as a town with a unique and lively blend of Roman, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Art Nouveau and Cubist architecture. Prague was one of the nine European cities awarded the title European City of Culture 2000 by the EU Council of Ministers.

 

C) Czech Republic - Congress Country

The Czech Republic is located right in the heart of Europe, on the spot that since the earliest times was the setting for conflicts between Western and Eastern cultures. The fall of the Communist regime and the renewal of democracy in 1989 resulted in the establishment and strengthening of traditional international relationships. The Czech Republic went through major changes in a relatively short time. Living standards and GDP registered a huge growth. In 1999, the Czech Republic became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). In May 2004 it became a member of the European Union.

The Czech Republic is one of the most visited countries in Europe. Tourists are attracted especially by the ancient capital Prague, the Karlštejn Castle or the spa towns Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně. The country is world-famous for its original folk customs or the production of top-quality beer.