UKinbound Convention comes to Emirates Old Trafford
Across the 25 and 26 February 2026, the UKinbound Convention came to Emirates Old Trafford for the first time ever! The major event welcomed 420 delegates per day for an insightful conference, offering the chance for delegates to engage in workshops, break-outs and b2b meetings.
The UKinbound Annual Convention is the association’s flagship event and brings together the businesses and destinations responsible for attracting international visitors to the UK – the industry is the UK’s fifth largest export. The convention is a key opportunity for the sector to explore the latest industry trends, insights, and issues, while showcasing the UK’s attractions, experiences, accommodation providers, and other tourism products and services to the country’s leading inbound tour operators.
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Event Brief
Marketing Manchester competed in a bidding process to host the 2026 UKinbound Convention which they successfully won, ultimately bringing the event to Emirates Old Trafford. The event brief from UKinbound was as follows:
- A two-day event with a set-up day
- A full AV set-up inc staging and PA system
- X1 main room for min. 350 delegates - cabaret
- X2 break-out spaces
- X1 showcase space for exhibition stalls
- X1 directors round-table space
- X1 office space for events team
- X1 catering space for delegates
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Food and Beverage
A variety of delicious dishes were served to delegates over the two days including:
- Danish pastries, tea, coffee & fruit juices
- Slow cooked Cheshire beef shin ragu
- Portobello & chestnut mushroom stroganoff
- Maple roasted Lancashire root vegetables
- Smoked paprika chicken, olives, tomatoes & salsa
- Tea cake selection & fruit platter
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Why did UKinbound choose Emirates Old Trafford as the host venue?
- Based in Manchester – UKinbound encourage events all around the UK to spread out the economic benefit
- Large Venue – a large suite available for 400+ guests each day and additional break-out spaces of sufficient size
- On-site Hotel – provided ease and simplicity for the UKinbound events team each day
- Flexibility – suitable event spaces to suit different elements such as plenary sessions, seminars and small meetings
- Internal Events Team – the team were keen to work with the client and showed enthusiasm in the enquiry process
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Post-Event Client Feedback
- Team – the team were excellent throughout, consistently helpful, responsive and solution-focused, ultimately helped everything run smoothly
- Venue – Emirates Old Trafford is very easily accessible via public transport, which worked well for delegates
- Event Spaces – The Point provided an impressive and highly-flexible main space with great natural light and strong AV capability, while the adjoining suites and breakout areas worked really well for our programme flow
- Food & Beverage – the catering was to a very high standard
Events Consultant at UKinbound, Saara Vuorela-Valladares said post-event:
“The event was a real success. The team were excellent throughout which made a big difference during a busy few days. The adjoining suites and break-out areas worked really well for our event flow.”
If you are interested in hosting your next event at Emirates Old Trafford, please contact us at 0161 282 4020 or at [email protected] – we’d love to hear from you!
Highlights from the UKinbound Convention:
