Mad for Manchester

This is particularly true for the corporate market where there has been major investment in creating high-quality and exciting centres for meetings and conferences. A myriad of striking new venues provide unusual and imaginative settings to stage events, and have helped make Manchester one of the top three most visited cities in Britain.

After the excitement of the 2002 Commonwealth Games, momentum in the city stepped up a gear or two and it succeeded in winning important international conferences and gatherings. Accommodation has also spiralled with upwards of 35,000 bedrooms now available in an impressive range of everything from five-star elegance to boutique and budget.

The first five-star Radisson Edwardian Hotel outside London opened in June last year in the city's conference district, directly opposite the fabulous G-Mex and the Manchester International Convention Centre, and in 2006 a new Hilton hotel will make its mark on the city.

The G-Mex is an impressive exhibition space with a single, column-free hall of over 10,350 sq metres or two halls of 7,500 square metres and 2,800 sq metres each with an entrance foyer, restaurant and bar. The adjoining Manchester International Convention Centre, which opened in 2001, completes the picture with an auditorium seating 800, various breakout rooms, and the Great Northern Hall with 1,900 sq metres of floor space.

A £900,000 refurbishment has put Lancashire County Cricket Club in the top league for conferences and banqueting and this is complemented by the 68 bedroom Old Trafford Lodge which is adjacent to the main facilities with many of the bedrooms overlooking the famous pitch – perfect for corporate entertaining.

If football appeals, there is an impressive complex of 10 function suites at Manchester United's super stadium. Alternatively, the City of Manchester Stadium, home of United's rivals Manchester City, has six themed suites seating up to 550 theatre- style and 69 hospitality boxes overlooking the playing pitch. There's also space for 1,000 diners and extensive undercover and outdoor team-building facilities.

For conferences with a more cultural theme, the prestigious Manchester Art Gallery offers one of the most elegant and impressive settings for corporate hospitality in the city. The architecturally stunning Bridgewater Hall also provides an ideal waterfront location for banquets, product launches and other corporate functions.

For something just that little bit different, the Imperial War Museum North is a dramatic building with an aluminium-clad structure. It's furnished with iconic items that include an AV8a Harrier jump-jet aircraft, and can accommodate 350 guests for dinner, 700 for a reception and 300 conference delegates theatre-style.

Just across the water at Pier 8 Salford Quays is The Lowry, a premier arts and entertainment venue offering a new dimension in conferencing. The Museum of Science and Industry will add a dramatic theatrical touch to any company gathering.

For something really ultra modern to dazzle meeting delegates and guests there's the wonder of Urbis, a sensational glass-skinned building soaring up to a 35-metre vantage point over Manchester's Exchange Square. A four-floor interactive museum by day it has five-star facilities that include a large, flexible function suite accommodating up to 150 theatre style, 170 for a banquet and a foyer seating 400 diners or 160 conference delegates.

Getting there
Manchester serves as a hub to much of the UK's motorway network via the M60. The city centre is served by Victoria, Deansgate and Oxford Road railway stations with 67 trains a day running to and from London. Manchester International Airport, a 15 minutes train ride from the city centre, handles 19 million passengers a year from over 200 destinations and this is forecast to more than double by 2015

Getting around
The local transport network is comprehensive. As well as taxis there is an excellent bus service, regional light rail connections and Metrolink trams which not only enhance the European feel of the city but whisk passengers to the open spaces of Heaton Park, Alringham and waterfront destination The Quays.

Where to stay
A variety of hotels in all price ranges cater for every type of visitor. Many provide excellent business, meeting and corporate facilities. Here is a short selection of the leading hotels with venues.

The Lowry Hotel - light and contemporary with 165 bedrooms, 12 conference and event suites roccofortehotels.com

Radisson Edwardian Manchester - an original Free Trade Hall site, with 263 luxury bedrooms, 18 meeting rooms and a conference room accommodating 400 radissonedwardian.com/manchester

Renaissance Manchester Hotel – spacious guest rooms and a large, flexible dedicated meeting floor with over 14,000 sq feet of space seating up to 400 renaisancehotels.com/manb

The Palace Hotel - extensive conference and event facilities with 252 bedrooms. The Ballroom is the largest hotel venue the North West seating 1,000 theatre - style and 800 for a banquet principal-hotels.com

The Midland - a historic, Edwardian hotel with 303 bedrooms, 10 luxurious conference suites holding up to 500 delegates, three restaurants and two bars themidland.co.uk