One of a kind

Newcastle is a city like no other. Halfway between the band of northern cities clustering the M62 and Scotland’s Central Belt, the jewel in the North East’s crown has a proud identity all its own.

A key city in the Industrial Revolution, Newcastle is now a major science and technology hub – and one of the best nights out in the country. The vibrant city centre is just minutes away from tranquil countryside and wide-open beaches – and this diversity and uniqueness of its offer is what makes it one of the most appealing cities in the UK for event organisers.

The city’s venues range from trendy gems like the Boiler Room to large-scale venues like The Glasshouse, offering a wide range of options for event professionals – and the new £350m, 12,500 capacity Sage Arena and International Conference Centre (ICC) in the works on the banks of the Tyne is set to bolster the offer even further.

Home to two leading universities, Newcastle University and Northumbria University, the region has a diverse ecosystem of international life sciences companies, where it’s a hotbed for driving medical advancement. This expertise has seen the city attract numerous health and life sciences conferences, including the likes of the International Society for Clinical Biostatistics in 2022 and the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD) in 2023. The city also boasts world-leading research and business strengths in tech, energy and corporate services.

Newcastle Quayside

Blackfriars' banqueting hall is one of the oldest dining rooms in the country

Newcastle map

Quality of life

Newcastle is also home to one of the most important innovation hubs in Europe, Newcastle Helix, which ‘exists to help us all live better lives’. It focuses on data science, urban science and life science with the aim of transforming the quality of life for families, communities and cities around the world.

Built on the site of the old Newcastle Brown Ale brewery, it’s a regeneration project combining commercial and residential space with first-class research and education facilities – and event spaces galore.

The Catalyst is a bustling, breathtaking building that is home to the National Innovation Centre for Ageing and the National Innovation Centre for Data. The cafe and workspaces give it a real community hub feel, while the different event spaces include a 170-seat theatre, exhibition space in the lobby and a top floor boardroom with stunning view of the city.

The Frederick Douglass Centre, whose stunning £34m facilities include an auditorium for 750 (one of the largest in Europe), a 200-seat lecture theatre and a range of seminar rooms and exhibition spaces over several floors.

The spaces are available for hire outside of term time and have hosted the regional Labour party conference and, naturally, a large number of science-based events as well.

Adapt and change

Grainger Market, in the heart of the city centre, is a perfect example of Newcastle’s ability to adapt and change. Home to the oldest surviving Marks & Spencers, dating from 1895 – the market has found a new lease of life in recent years as a street food hub.

You can experience all that the market has to offer with a tour from the wonderful and knowledgeable Triple A Food Tours, taking in such delights as the bang on trend King Baby Bagels, sausages from the Geordie Banger Co, and fresh Lindisfarne oysters from Lindsay Bros Fisheries. It’s a shortcut to the heart of the Geordie love of food, and a fantastic treat for delegates.

This year the Grainger Market received £8.2million from the Levelling Up Fund to create a space for cultural activities in the market and grow its audience, which will see the restoration of the glass roof and the creation of an exciting new event space.

An unexpected delight is the Victoria Tunnel, a 19th century mining tunnel that runs underneath the city down to the Tyne at Ouseburn, where coal was loaded onto ships. During World War II it was converted into an air-raid shelter, and now in the 21st century it’s a visitor attraction run by expert volunteers, who give fascinating heritage tours taking in the tunnels’ storied history. The guides are entertaining and full of knowledge, and the tunnel is also open for various events such as the “Tipple in the Tunnel” wine-tasting in co-operation with Hotel du Vin and “Sounds of the Underground” music concerts.

When it comes to entertaining, you’re not short of options. Hidden in a cosy corner close to Chinatown, Blackfriars is a restaurant like no other. Housed in a former 13th-century refectory, it lays claim to be the oldest dining room in the UK. It was doing a roaring lunchtime trade on my visit, and my fish of the day was an exemplary take on modern British cuisine.

The complex is home to myriad event options including meetings, away-days, and cookery and team building sessions.

The ornate medieval Banquet Hall was used by Edward III in 1334 and boasts authentically-themed chandeliers, wall coverings, stained-glass windows and large oak dining tables, all created by local crafters. The hall caters for up to 50 guests on communal tables and hosts a series of hugely popular medieval banquet events, as well as corporate events and networking groups.

The 65-capacity Dormitory Meeting Rooms may well be oldest place to meet in town, having once been the sleeping quarters for the Dominican friars, and now home to an intimate snug, a break-out lobby and a large light-filled meeting room with views onto the Cloister Garden.

The boardroom in The Catalyst at Newcastle Helix

Oysters at Lindsay Bros at Grainger Market

Triple A food tours are full of local flavour

The Victoria Tunnel tour takes you back in time underneath the city

Blackfriars restaurant

“We have been working to put greater emphasis on environmental and social responsibility in business events, providing event professionals with the tools they need to enjoy our region in a more sustainable way.”

**Caroline Reed, senior manager – business events, NewcastleGateshead Initiative**

**Caroline Reed, senior manager – business events, NewcastleGateshead Initiative**

Kayaking on Tyne

Style and luxury

I stayed at the Hotel Du Vin Newcastle, an impressive restored Edwardian building with a real sense of style and luxury. A stone’s throw from the Quayside, the hotel boasts 42 charming and characterful rooms and suites, while its Bistro du Vin serves a British twist on classic French cuisine.

The hotel’s inspiring and quirky event spaces can host anything from private events for 10 up to dinner for 75. For incentives, it’s worth knowing about the wine tasting events and masterclasses with the hotel’s expert sommeliers in the Laroche tasting room, a private wine sanctuary that provides an immersive experience for wine novices and buffs alike.

Located in Hoults Yard business park, Full Circle Brew Co and Taproom is a craft beer haven with a wide selection of cask and keg products on offer, from core beers to collaborations.

The Tap Room is available for private hire seven days a week and is extremely adaptable for events for up to 80 - it would be perfect for a networking evening or fun drinks reception. The Tank Room is a 35-capacity private space that overlooks the fermentation tanks and canning line, great for meetings or private parties.

I had a delicious meal at Kiln, a small restaurant in the heart of Ouseburn, where a Mediterranean and Middle Eastern-inspired evening menu meets a contemporary ceramic studio. The small sharing plates showcased a deft hand in the kitchen – and it’s not every restaurant that offers you the opportunity to buy the crockery you’re eating from.

Finally, the Free Trade Inn on the riverside in Ouseburn is a long-standing local favourite, boasting the best range of beers in the city, stunning views of the Quayside and a proper pub welcome.

M&IT editor Paul Harvey on the Quayside

At Kiln, a Mediterranean and Middle Eastern-inspired evening menu meets a contemporary ceramic studio

Grey's Monument

cityscape from monument

Tyne bridge fun

Geordie gem

The Monument is available for private tours

The Monument is available for private tours

One hidden Geordie gem that will really get your delegates talking is the chance to climb the 164 steps to the top of Grey’s Monument with Newcastle City Guides.

The Monument stands at the top of the world-famous descending subtle curve of Grey Street, and was erected in honour of the 2nd Earl Grey, doubly famous as a prime minister in the 1830s and for having Earl Grey tea named after him. From the viewing platform at the top you can enjoy incredible views over the magnificent Georgian architecture of Grainger Town and beyond. The Monument is available for group tours between March and October subject to guide availability.

Lumo's all-electric train fleet is headquartered in Newcastle

Lumo's all-electric train fleet is headquartered in Newcastle

Newcastle has just upped its sustainability credentials with the arrival of the all electric train operator Lumo on the East Coast Main Line. Lumo, headquartered in Newcastle, earlier this year became the first train company to eliminate plastic bottles on its services between Edinburgh and London, and has plans to increase the frequency of its Newcastle to London services later this year.

Newcastle is less than three hours by train from London, Manchester and Edinburgh and connected to over 80 destinations worldwide, including Dubai, Paris, Amsterdam and London, via air, while daily ferry crossings connect the city to mainland Europe.

Venue updates

The Sage International Conference Centre (The Sage ICC) on Gateshead Quayside will bring a world-class facility to the North East of England as the first phase of the new The Sage development. The complex will include more than 5,700 sqm of flexible exhibition and banqueting space, a 900-seat auditorium, plus 17 conference and meeting spaces.

A former fire station is set to be transformed into the city’s first five-star hotel when the Gotham Hotel arrives in town later this year. The initial 60-room hotel will open in autumn, while plans have been approved to add a further 30 rooms with an expansion into the neighbouring Grade II-listed police station and Magistrates’ Court. The latter will be home to a 120-capacity event space incorporating original fittings such as the witness stand and magistrates’ bench, opening spring 2025.

The luxury Dakota Hotel brand is expanding into Newcastle in 2025 with a 118-room hotel on the Quayside. As well as offering some of the largest rooms in the city, the hotel will also feature a bar, restaurant, Champagne Room, waterfront terrace and dedicated events space.

The Grade I-listed Grainger Market indoor market is set to get a significant upgrade, making it a flexible space for events with extended opening hours.

Leisure container venue STACK has expanded across the north since first launching on Newcastle’s Pilgrim Street in 2018, bringing independent food, bars and entertainment in repurposed shipping containers to millions of visitors. Set to open this summer, St. James’ Park STACK will house a brand-new immersive fan zone a stone’s throw away from Newcastle United’s St. James’ Park home, complete with big screen and main stage. Meanwhile, STACK Newcastle is relocating to Grade II-listed city centre Worswick Chambers, where it will boast eight bars, seven street food outlets, two cocktail bars and a roof terrace across three floors when it opens in 2025.

View from the bureau

“NewcastleGateshead has really developed as a cooler, alternative business events destination and those in the industry here are passionate about the region and providing exceptional experiences for organisers and delegates.

“We have been working together with the likes of GDS-Movement and local events management agency, BeaconHouse Events to put greater emphasis on environmental and social responsibility in business events, providing event professionals with the tools they need to enjoy our region in a more sustainable way.

“We are also in the process of refreshing our Ambassador Programme, working closely with Newcastle University, Northumbria University and Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals Foundation Trust as well as partners across the region in Durham to support academics and professionals with their bids to bring their associations here.”

Deeper dive: Newcastle Helix

“What Helix is working towards is this notion of a test bed, a place where we can begin to understand the challenges of society a bit better and then work on solutions for that,” says John Seager, estates director at Newcastle Helix. “You can do something big on the site here. We have the expertise of the university, we have a huge amount of research that goes into the realm of urban living.

“We've got a lot of smart technology that exists on the site in terms of data monitoring and forecasting, from drainage to renewable energy. We've got a borehole that goes down two kilometres under the site investigating ground source heat, we have research going into the long-term impact of weather changes on the city, issues with air quality, pedestrian flows. And on the life sciences side we have the National Institute for Health and Care Research, which has the world's largest data centre of health and care research. Basically the university acts as a sponge to bring all that together to look at long-term trends, and to point out things that need more impact.

Lynne Corner, co-founder and director of VOICE and COO of the UK National Innovation Centre for Ageing (NICA) says that while for many ageing has been associated with problems, actually it is an incredible opportunity.

“We've got this gift and economic dividend of longer lives, and we've got to ensure that people are equipped to be as healthy, happy and productive as possible to make the most of it,” she says. “That's in essence what NICA and VOICE do. And the conference facilities are very much built to bring people together to get that sense of collaboration and working together because no one organisation can do this.

“This is an agenda that demands cross-sector working, bringing together people who don't always have the chance to meet. They don't always speak the same language, but by bringing them together, we can facilitate that cross-sector, cross-generational conversation on both what's needed and possible for healthy longevity integration.

“Through doing that, we will hopefully improve the quality of life for millions of people across this region, across the UK, and across the world. We’re lucky to have both the fantastic building and fantastic people alongside us to do this, because it's about people working together and collaborating, that is making that difference.”

Lecture Theatre, The Frederick Douglass Centre, Newcastle Helix

Newcastle Helix