Hungexpo Brings the World to Budapest

The Hungexpo Budapest Congress and Exhibition Center – in line with international trends – continues to place increasing emphasis on the development of conference tourism. Within this sector, 2026 is set to be a particularly strong year for scientific and technological events. A key factor in this growth is the support of its French owner, GL events, whose global network and decades of professional experience contribute greatly to Hungexpo’s success in this segment.

As this fall comes to a close at Hungexpo with one of the most significant conferences in the international banking sector – the 34th EuroFinance International Treasury Management Conference –, followed by a major German corporate event, preparations are already well underway for the year 2026. And it is no exaggeration to say that it will be “the year of technology and science” at Hungexpo, Gábor Ganczer, the CEO of Hungexpo Plc. tells Diplomacy&Trade.

Tech & science
Back in 2022, together with Magyar Közút, Hungexpo secured the right to host the TRA – Transport Research Arena. This event is of special importance for the company, and as the long-standing organizer of ‘Industry Days’ and ‘Automotive Hungary’, Hungexpo is well-positioned to maximize the synergies between these platforms. The TRA is expected to welcome around 3,000 visitors each day.
“Another milestone will be the arrival of a major event in international cancer research: the EACR (European Association of Cancer Research) conference. With over 2,500 participants, the event has previously been hosted at Lingotto Fiere in Turin, a GL events venue where I have served as CEO since 2023,” he adds.
Gábor Ganczer stresses that personal and professional networks are equally vital in the exhibition and conference industry. Powder metallurgy, for example, is a modern production process that manufactures parts from metal powders through pressing and sintering, binding the particles together. “Back in 2019, a GL events colleague happened to travel with the CEO of EPMA (European Powder Metallurgy Association). During their conversation about this innovative technology, the idea was born to bring one of EPMA’s future events to Budapest. Seven years later, in 2026, this scientific conference with 1,500 participants will finally arrive to the Hungarian capital. One of the most exciting scientific fields for me personally is artificial intelligence applied to human language recognition and understanding. This is why I am particularly delighted that Budapest is bidding to host the EMNLP (Empirical Methods in Natural Language Processing) conference in 2026.”

A new exhibition
For years, Hungary and the wider region have lacked a comprehensive film industry exhibition – a gap that Hungexpo has long aimed to fill. The choice of Budapest as the location is no coincidence: as one of Europe’s leading film hubs, the city offers an ideal home for such an event, while creating a new professional platform for the industry.
“In May 2026, in partnership with the UK-based EuroCine, Hungexpo will launch EuroCine Budapest, which we expect to become a defining industry event for the region. The two-day program will feature seminars, masterclasses, lectures, and panel discussions for professionals,” the Hungexpo CEO highlights.
Since 2020, Hungexpo has operated a dedicated business unit for film productions under the name Hungexpo Studios. Several pavilions have been rented out exclusively for studio use, while in the summer months the entire exhibition grounds are available for international film crews.

Outlook for 2026
An exciting and eventful year also lies ahead for Hungexpo’s own portfolio of exhibitions. The first months are already sold out for AgroMashExpo and FeHoVa, the key annual gatherings of Hungary’s agriculture, hunting and fishing communities – once again among Central and Eastern Europe’s most important thematic events.
Travel+, the Budapest Boat Show, and the Caravan Salon continue to serve as a compass for those seeking new destinations and leisure opportunities. SIRHA Budapest, Central Europe’s largest food industry and HORECA trade fair, will bring together the region’s top hospitality and gastronomy professionals for the seventh time in 2026, showcasing innovations and sharing expertise.
Year after year, CONSTRUMA and its associated trade fairs highlight the state of Hungary’s construction industry and reveal opportunities for development. MACH-TECH, Industry Days and Automotive Hungary remain key international business meeting points, connecting players from multiple sectors.
“In the fall, we will once again host ENVIRONTEC – created in close cooperation with our partners’ needs and insights – reaffirming our belief that environmental protection is the key to the future,” Gábor Ganczer concludes.