Culture & Education Programme (CEP)

The history of the Congress Innsbruck dates back to the second half of the 16 ^th century, when Archduke Ferdinand II ordered the construction of a modern ‘Ballonehaus’, which played host to competitions in an Italian ball game as well as theatre performances and musical comedies. The building also served, among other things, as a riding school and was used as a model for the construction of the famous Spanish Riding School in the Vienna Hofburg.

At the beginning of the 19 ^th century, the building was used as a customs office for the Bavarian occupying forces during the Napoleonic Wars and was renamed the‘Dogana’. Subsequently, the Dogana was the venue for numerous international congresses, for example the World Meteorology Congressin 1897. The highlight was a conference in 1924 bringing together a range of Nobel Prize to discuss manned flights to the planets.

After the Dogana had been destroyed through intensive bombing during the Second World War, it was decided in 1966 to convert the Dogana into the Tyrol region’s first congress and conference centre, which open in 1973. Twenty years later, between 1993 and 1995, the area was massively expanded, and the total surface area grew by 45%.

The next highlight followed in 2001, with Congress Innsbruck winning the Apex Award in Melbourne as the best congress centre in the world, underlining just why the area will offer ideal conditions for the Culture & Education Programme of the 1 ^st Winter Youth Olympic Games.

For further information visit the official website www.congress-innsbruck.at