Association News

ICOMIA World Marinas Conference 2023 programme update

Published on: 22nd May, 2023

The programme is now finalised for the next edition of the ICOMIA World Marinas Conference (IWMC), taking place on the 9th – 11th of October in the Algarve, Portugal’s best tourism destination. Beautiful landscape, vibrant culture, unique location, and booming international nautical market make Portugal the ideal location for this must-attend event. The country where the ‘internet’ of the 15th century was born and from where the caravels set sail to discover the world.

The three-day event will feature key speakers who will highlight the industry’s challenges and opportunities, helping professionals and organisations to identify the ways forward to a more sustainable and prosperous industry future. The aim of the IWMC is to connect the recreational boating sector by bringing together leading marina and club operators, owners and vendors of marina infrastructure and related government agency representatives. It is the place to meet, network and learn from many experts from around the globe.

Under the theme of Big Challenges, Big Opportunities, Big Decisions some of the conference programme’s sessions include:

The state of the marina industry around the globe
Developing sustainable solutions for the future (De-carbonizing the leisure marine industry, How environmental programmes are influencing marinas and boaters, and Marine protected areas)
Operational challenges and mitigations (‘One-year post hurricane Ian’ presentation, A fire in a marina – lessons learned, Finding & keeping marina employees, Maintenance tools – avoiding fast degradation)
Best examples in research and development (Sustainable and ecological anchorage, SunConcept, EcoConcrete)
Smart marina initiatives round table
Big marina chains vs boutique marinas round table
among many other interesting subjects covering the best examples from the industry as well as outside of the marina industry.

The full agenda can be accessed here.

Isolete Correia, APPR President, said:

“We are very excited and with full focus on the preparations for the conference which is just 5 months away. The organizing committee is making sure that participants will have an unforgettable experience in Vilamoura and the opportunity to liaise with marina professionals from all over the world. The programme is very complete and the speakers are renowned names in the industry. Our goal is to make this experience one to treasure in years to come.”

Darren Vaux, ICOMIA President, said:

“ICOMIA World Marinas Conference presents an unmissable opportunity for the industry to come together and discuss pressing topics such as addressing climate change, the future of technology and consumer behaviour, and sustainable innovation projects just to name a few, as well as uniting the local boating community and the marine industry. We are very impressed with this year’s conference host APPR who has worked tirelessly to put together an amazing agenda with leading industry speakers, complemented by an impressive entertainment programme which will showcase Portugal’s rich and vibrant culture.”