Write the programme before the shortlist
A venue search goes better when the brief describes what has to happen, not just how many people are coming. List the plenary, parallel sessions, catering, registration, exhibition and informal meeting space, and mark which of them run at the same time.
That matters because venues publish capacity in different ways. The EICC gives a total capacity of 5,760 across eight suites and 24 event rooms. ICC Wales publishes a 4,000 sq m Main Hall with a capacity of 4,100 and, separately, a 1,500-seat fixed auditorium. A whole-building total cannot tell you whether your largest session fits the room you intend to book.
Compare the same layout
Layout changes the number more than most briefs allow for. Harrogate Convention Centre’s published capacity table lists Studio One at 1,200 theatre-style, 840 cabaret and 750 for a banquet. The Business Design Centre gives its Mezzanine a range of 672 to 1,500. Neither figure is wrong; they answer different questions.
So ask every shortlisted venue for the same arrangement, with stage, production, camera positions, accessible seating and circulation included. Do not compare one venue’s theatre maximum with another’s cabaret figure. If sponsors need exhibition space, specify the footprint and opening hours, not just a number of stands.
Too much room creates extra staging and wayfinding work. Too little forces compromises in the programme. The right answer comes from a plan for your event, not a league table of the biggest buildings.
Check the joins between sessions
Walk the itinerary as a delegate would. Where does someone arrive, register, leave a coat, get a coffee and find the next room? For parallel sessions, picture the whole audience moving at once, not one visitor in an empty corridor.
Ask which areas are exclusively yours and which are shared with other events or the public. Confirm the route between rooms, the timing of refreshment service and access to quiet space. Floor plans are a useful start, but they do not show how your event will feel.
Price the complete requirement
Request an itemised proposal covering occupancy dates, set-up and breakdown, furniture, connectivity, audiovisual services, staffing and catering commitments. Identify exclusive suppliers, minimum spends and changes that trigger extra charges. A low room-hire line does not mean a low delivered cost.
If a service is described as available, ask whether it is included, chargeable or bookable separately. Keep the answers with the brief so the decision can be reviewed later without reconstructing a string of emails.
Use the shortlist to test fit
Our venue directory is a starting point, not a substitute for a proposal or a site visit. Choose a small number with plausible programme and location fit, then compare the same evidence from each. Our desk assessments of the ICC Wales Main Hall, the QEII Centre and Liverpool Experience Campus show the questions in practice.
Sources
- EICC venue overview (suites, rooms and total capacity)
- ICC Wales Main Hall specification
- Harrogate Convention Centre venue capacities
- Business Design Centre venue spaces
Sources checked on 19 October 2026. This is desk-based buying analysis, not a ranking of venues or a claim that we have visited them.
