According to the calendar, Australian convention bureaux have locked in 806 domestic events, set to be delivered between mid-2026 and mid-2033.
Over 451,000 delegates are expected to attend these events, spending an estimated $1.041 billion, with the majority of the spend coming from Australian delegates – $952.7 million – while international delegates attending these gatherings are expected to spend $88.4 million.
These 806 events will be held over a collective total of 3,031 days.
The forward calendar also reveals several other interesting titbits that speak to the state-of-play in Australia’s domestic business events market.
Prime among them is that subvention funding was the most common deciding factor – where one was revealed – for association conference wins, with 29 per cent of bid wins coming down to the financial package offered to the event.
Aside from subvention, exhibitions continue to be a major part of the association conference landscape, with 66 per cent of the secured association conferences in the calendar including an exhibition. Meanwhile, health care and social assistance meetings represent the largest share of the domestic conference market, with 37 per cent of events in the forward calendar falling into this sector.
“It’s valuable and impressive to see the size and breadth of the domestic opportunity and to provide government with the insights needed to keep highlighting the value of business events for Australia,” said ABEA CEO, Melissa Brown.
“Business events generate significant economic value, but their impact extends well beyond delegate spend.
“They provide opportunities to transfer knowledge, support research collaboration, foster innovation and connect people and industries across the country.
“When a conference goes into a city, town or regional centre, it drives jobs, confidence and sharing.
“There is nothing as impactful as business events, and our contribution is significant,” said Brown.
ABEA also releases an International Forward Calendar, showcasing the international events choosing Australia as their host via the bureaus – the 2026 edition was released in April.
Given ABEA’s domestic calendar only covers convention bureau wins, there are significantly more domestic business events taking place around Australia over the coming years, with many event owners and organisers dealing directly with event agencies, venues and other suppliers to deliver their events.
