Meet Birmingham will be showcasing the variety and distinctiveness of the city's conference and events offering at this year's Square Meal Venues & Events show, taking place on the 21st and 22nd  September at Old Billingsgate in London.

Visitors to Meet Birmingham's stand B26 can find out more about the city's event credentials, as well as taking advantage of the team's expert local knowledge and liaising with the convention bureau's two inimitable stand partners, venuebirmingham and Drayton Manor Hotel.

Ian Taylor, Commercial Director at Marketing Birmingham, which operates the city's business tourism programme Meet Birmingham, said:

"Birmingham has a reputation as the UK's meeting place. With more than 7,000 attendees, Square Meal Venues & Events provides an opportunity for Birmingham to underline this reputation and showcase its evolving offer to leading event organisers.

"The city has seen a host of new facilities and venues open in recent months - our stand partners venuebirmingham and Drayton Manor Hotel represent two examples of the vibrancy of our new additions and we look forward to introducing them to organisers at the event."

Birmingham had a record number of visitors in 2010 - profiting from world-class venues, unrivalled connectivity and over 28,600 available bed spaces in the city and wider region.

Venuebirmingham, the University of Birmingham's one stop shop for conferences and events, provides a wide range of meeting space and residential accommodation set in beautiful landscapes with a central location giving fast and easy access to national road, rail and air networks. Its varied mix of heritage and contemporary venues range from the thirteen meeting rooms in the classical setting of Winterbourne House through to the majestic splendour of The Great Hall, with capacity for up to 1,000 guests for conferences, award ceremonies and banquets. The University's redbrick semi-circle, which has been at the heart of the campus since 1909, will be completed in 2012 thanks to the opening of the ultra modern Bramall Music Building, housing a new 450-seat auditorium. 

The brand new Drayton Manor Hotel offers unique, luxury accommodation within 280 acres of lakes and parkland. The £20 million development, which opened in August, is located on the site of the popular Drayton Manor Theme Park, just half an hour from Birmingham city centre. Within the hotel's grounds, creative and flexible venues for conferences and events are on offer for up to 500 delegates, while there are banqueting facilities for up to 250 guests and a 152-seat 4D cinema for those thinking outside the box. The light and airy Park View suite offers floor to ceiling windows with superb views of the land, which was once home to Sir Robert Peel. The hotel also boasts three modern meeting rooms for up to 12 delegates, 150 well appointed contemporary guest rooms, two restaurants, two bars and free car parking.

For more details of Birmingham's conference and event offering, including the services provided by Birmingham Convention Bureau, visit www.meetbirmingham.com