Your delegates will feel at home in Edinburgh. Not just because it is a friendly city but because many will have connections there. Some will know of family links, whilst others will have studied or worked in the city and will welcome the opportunity to return. Even before the development of the EICC, Edinburgh had an international reputation for hosting leading events. Each summer the city throws open its doors to the world’s biggest arts festival, welcoming thousands of performers and tens of thousands of visitors from just about every nation on earth. And the Edinburgh International Festival and the Festival Fringe are only the biggest and best known events from a list that includes the International Science Festival, the Jazz Festival, the Film Festival and the Military Tattoo. Edinburgh is a city that does more than entertain, enlighten and intrigue: it seems to cast a spell. A unique combination of heritage, colour and culture, this is a city of quite breathtaking beauty. The quaint corners and alleyways of the Old Town, the Georgian splendour of Charlotte Square, the dominating presence of the Castle: all different, all unforgettable, all essentially Edinburgh. As the capital of Scotland, Edinburgh has been a seat of learning and culture since the Middle Ages, For those involved in medicine, science and law, it has many special associations and it is also Britains second financial centre.