Vienna Convention Bureau wins 2026 ICCA Best Marketing Award with ‘Waltz into Space’ Campaign

Recognised at the 65th ICCA Congress in Panama City, the Vienna Convention Bureau received the award for a campaign connecting the Austrian capital’s musical heritage with science, innovation and space exploration, demonstrating how destination marketing and business events can work towards a shared narrative.

The Vienna Convention Bureau has won the 2026 ICCA Best Marketing Award (BMA) for its ‘Waltz into Space’ campaign, announced during the 65th ICCA Congress in Panama City, Panama. The initiative was recognised for its creative approach to destination marketing, using Vienna’s cultural identity as a starting point to communicate a broader narrative around science, innovation and the future.

This year’s award, sponsored by Northstar Meetings Group, was organised around the theme ‘Imagination and Impact: Where Creativity Meets Strategy’, highlighting campaigns that use storytelling and unconventional thinking to challenge established perceptions and create new opportunities for the international business events industry.

Three finalists presented their campaigns to the global ICCA community during the Congress: Ottawa Tourism with ‘Magic on Set’, The Hague & Partners with ‘It’s My Bleisure’, and the Vienna Convention Bureau with ‘Waltz into Space’. Following the presentations and a final vote involving the judging panel and Congress delegates, Vienna emerged as the 2026 winner.

Bringing cultural identity into a new narrative

At the heart of ‘Waltz into Space’ is an attempt to connect two dimensions that might initially appear distant: Vienna’s internationally recognised musical heritage and the world of scientific research and technological innovation.

The campaign used music and tradition as the foundations of a story about science and the future, supported by an international collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and partners from different disciplines and countries.

For the Vienna Convention Bureau, the recognition also reflects the potential of closer cooperation between destination marketing and the business events sector, allowing a city's established identity to become a platform for communicating less familiar aspects of its expertise and ambitions.

Marina Knittel, Team Manager, Associations, and Isabella Graf, Campaign Manager, B2C, at the Vienna Convention Bureau, said:

“For us, this recognition means more than winning with a creative campaign. ‘Waltz into Space’ shows what can happen when destination marketing and business events work together towards the same goal: using Vienna's strong identity in a new way and opening up fresh perspectives on the city. Music and tradition became the starting point for a story about science, innovation and the future — supported by an extraordinary collaboration with ESA and many partners across different disciplines and countries. We are incredibly proud of everyone who helped make this mission possible.”

The campaign illustrates how destination narratives can extend beyond familiar cultural and tourism associations. By bringing together music, science and international collaboration, Vienna sought to present a more multifaceted image of the city while demonstrating the role that business events and their associated partnerships can play in communicating local knowledge and expertise.
 

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Creativity as a strategic tool for destinations

The 2026 award theme placed particular emphasis on marketing that goes beyond visibility and conventional destination promotion. The three finalist campaigns offered different approaches to storytelling, each seeking to introduce a distinctive perspective on how destinations and the meetings industry can engage their audiences.

For ICCA CEO Dr Senthil Gopinath, the award provides an opportunity to recognise the role of creativity in shaping the industry's future and encouraging organisations to reconsider how they communicate their work. “The Best Marketing Award is a special moment in the ICCA calendar because it brings our community’s creativity to the forefront. It is where bold ideas meet brilliant execution, where storytelling becomes a powerful tool for change, and where we celebrate the people who dare to do things differently.

This year’s theme, ‘Imagination and Impact,’ captures exactly what our industry needs: the courage to challenge convention and the imagination to show what is possible. Congratulations to the Vienna Convention Bureau on this outstanding achievement. I hope their success inspires others across our global community to think bigger, tell their stories with confidence and create marketing that truly makes a difference.”

Established in 1997, the ICCA Best Marketing Award has become a recurring feature of the association's international Congress, providing a platform for destinations and industry organisations to present their campaigns, exchange approaches and gain recognition among their peers. Beyond the winning entry, the initiative also seeks to make creative marketing practices more visible across the international meetings community.

The 2026 edition was sponsored by Northstar Meetings Group, whose continued involvement reflects the importance of recognising marketing as a strategic discipline within the business events sector.

Ross Barker, Vice President EMEA, Meetings & Sports Division, Northstar Travel Group, said: “Northstar Meetings Group is delighted to continue supporting the ICCA Best Marketing Award. Having been involved in judging the award for a number of years, I'm continually impressed by the creativity, ambition and quality of work taking place across our industry.

Each year brings fresh ideas and approaches, but what stands out in the strongest campaigns is their ability to go beyond simply promoting a destination or event. They change perceptions, bring people together and create opportunities that deliver lasting value. It's fantastic to see that recognised through these awards.”

For destinations competing internationally for association congresses and business events, the ability to articulate a distinctive identity remains an important part of their positioning. The Vienna campaign offers an example of how cultural heritage can be connected with other areas of expertise to broaden a destination's narrative, while collaboration across sectors can help translate that narrative into a more engaging marketing proposition.

The Vienna Convention Bureau's recognition in Panama places ‘Waltz into Space’ among the campaigns highlighted by ICCA for their contribution to the evolution of destination and business events marketing. Ottawa Tourism and The Hague & Partners, the other two finalists, also brought their respective approaches to the Congress, contributing to a discussion about the role of imagination, storytelling and strategic creativity in the industry.
 

Published by Meeting Media Company, the publisher of Headquarters Magazine (HQ) – a leading international publication based in Brussels, serving the global MICE industry and association community.