The Congress Citadel
Firenze Fiera is the company that manages the three main convention and exhibition venues in the town of Florence:
Fortezza da Basso,
Palazzo dei Congressi and
Palazzo degli Affari, that are all located very near each other and set in large lawns. Each venue has its own distinct, high profile characteristics as an exhibition or convention space, right next to the central Santa Maria Novella railway station.
FORTEZZA DA BASSO
Short technical sheet Full technical sheet Fortezza da Basso was proposed by the Duke Alessandro de' Medici. It was built between 1533 and 1535 by Architect Antonio da Sangallo il Giovane and is a masterpiece of military architecture from the Renaissance period. The rooms are all different styles and sizes but their versatility makes them suitable for any event, from a small convention to a large international congress of up to 15,000 delegates. The large spaces are modular and make it possible to make rooms of any size (up to a maximum of 3,500 places in a theatre arrangement) which can suit all requirements.
The building is situated along the nineteenth century ring road boulevards, right next to the old town and the Santa Maria Novella railway station that is five minutes’ walk away. It takes less than 15 minutes to reach the A. Vespucci airport that is connected to the major European capitals.
Just a little farther west of the airport is the most important motorway junction in Florence.
No other conference centre in Europe has such a privileged position.
PALAZZO DEI CONGRESSI
Short technical sheet Full technical sheet The Palazzo dei Congressi is housed in the nineteenth century Villa Vittoria which the Strozzi family from Mantova had built between 1880 and 1914 and which was completed in 1931 when it was passed over to the Contini-Bonacossi family.
In 1964 the Villa was purchased by the Azienda Autonoma di Turismo (the tourism board) whose intention was that it should become Florence’s convention centre.
The renovation project was commissioned to Architect Pierluigi Spadolini.
There were various difficulties to overcome in order to maintain the villa and garden in compliance with the Fine Arts protection laws.
The work finished in 1969 (already in 1966 the ground floor rooms began to host conferences) and was celebrated with the grand opening of the entire conference centre.
Despite the renovation work, the first floor of the villa remained as it was with monumental panelled ceilings, hand carved walnut doors decorated with patterns from drawings by Cosimo Feltrini and del Vasari and their frames sculpted and inlaid with coloured marbles.
The Palazzo dei Congressi, which is one of the most important and well-equipped facilities for conferences and events in central Italy, also enjoys a privileged position in the heart of the city in the shopping, hotel and monumental area, in the immediate vicinity of the railway station and the airport terminal and just a few kilometres away from the motorway junctions.
PALAZZO DEGLI AFFARI
Short technical sheet Full technical sheet The Palazzo degli Affari, opened in 1974, is a modern building designed by Architect Pierluigi Spadolini which perfectly combines contemporary art with sophisticated technology. The building is over 4,000 sq.m. and is highly versatile. It has an overall capacity of 1.800 people and is suitable for conferences and exhibitions, poster sessions, press offices and fashion parades as well as work dinners and gala dinners. From the attic of the Palazzo you can see the whole of Florence and the enormous age-old park that connects the building to the Palazzo dei Congressi where the congress-goers can relax during breaks.
Since May 2007 we have been using the ground floor of the building (on the side of Piazza Adua) for a new reception area for the Palazzo dei Congressi and Palazzo degli Affari to welcome all delegates and those taking part in the conferences and exhibitions we hold. The new reception is equipped with four plasma screens connected to the "Information display network", and there is wireless technology in both buildings.
