Southampton
Southampton
The country’s largest cruise port, Southampton sits at the heart of the Solent, offering a maritime backdrop for meetings and events.
Global gateway and waterfront city
- Southampton, the largest city in Hampshire, is famous for being the departure point for both the Mayflower in 1620 and the Titanic in 1912.
- The city is Europe's cruise industry capital, with ships from P&O, Princess and Cunard setting off on their luxury world voyages from Southampton’s port.
- Jane Austen famously spent three periods of her life in Southampton and danced in the main conference room of what is now the Mercure Dolphin Hotel in the High Street, a venue dating back nearly 500 years.
- The first prototype Spitfire was manufactured here. It took off on its maiden flight from what is now, Southampton International Airport. The city’s aeronautical heritage can be seen at the Solent Sky Museum.
- Southampton is one of the greenest cities in Europe, with ten large parks and 326 acres of common.
Getting here
Travelling to Southampton couldn’t be easier. The city has excellent links from Europe and throughout the UK by air, land and sea.
BY PLANE
Southampton International Airport serves many UK and European destinations, with onward connections worldwide. The airports’ one terminal sees over a million passengers a year flying to 33 destinations.
BY TRAIN
Southampton Central rail station is served by direct trains to and from many UK cities including London, Birmingham, Oxford, Bristol, Leeds, Brighton and Manchester with London Waterloo just a one hour, 20 minutes journey.
BY CAR
Southampton is approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes drive from central London. The M3, M27 and A34 roads provide fast, direct links into the city centre. The A36 is the major route from the West Country, Bristol and Wales. From the East, follow the A27/M27 and depart at Junction 8.
BY FERRY
Fast and regular ferry crossings from France and the Channel Islands, served by Brittany Ferries and LD Lines, operate from the nearby port of Portsmouth. There are two Red Funnel ferry services to and from the Isle of Wight.
Expertise
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OceanographyThe complexities of our oceans, the earth system and the biosphere are all studied in Southampton at the National Oceanography Centre - one of the world’s top oceanographic institutions. The National Oceanography Centre undertakes world leading research in large-scale oceanography and ocean measurement technology innovation; working with government and businesses to turn great science and technology into advice and applications. It supports scientists in universities and research institutes with facilities, research infrastructure and irreplaceable data assets – enabling the UK to harness the full power and diversity of its ocean science talent. |
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Engineering innovationFounded in 1956, Roke is a British centre of excellence for world-class innovation and engineering based in Romsey, just outside Southampton. Roke innovations can be found all over the world. From computer vision that powered the world’s first autonomous landing of a drone at sea; to AI systems that drastically reduce aircraft turnaround times through autonomously inspecting jet turbines; right through to the data engineering behind ‘Hawk-eye’ tracking the trajectory of balls in sport. |
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Marine technology & industrial aerodynamicsThe Wolfson Unit was founded in 1967 to enable industry to benefit from the facilities, academic excellence and research activities at Southampton University, predominantly through model testing and consultancy. It’s comprised of full-time professional engineers and is best known for ship model testing, sailing yacht performance and ship design software. Other specialisms of the Wolfson Unit include computational fluid dynamics, wind tunnel and towing tank testing. |
Where to stay
With almost 5,000 hotel bedrooms in the city and surrounding area, Southampton has accommodation to suit any budget.
| 5* hotels | 117 bedrooms |
| 4* hotels | 1,460 bedrooms |
| 3* and under properties | 2,283 bedrooms |
| Other (student accommodation / home sharing) | 2,200 bedroom |
Venues
From academic centres of excellence to first-class hotels and a top-flight football stadium, Southampton offers an extensive range of conference and meetings facilities.
Incentives
Southampton and the solent region has a raft of museums, stately homes and water-based activities to thrill groups and inspire team motivational skills.
Destination Southampton
Each of the event hosts and hostesses at Destination Southampton CVB are highly trained in conference and event guest registration services and are very knowledgeable about Southampton and the Solent Region, offering that extra support to you and your delegates during your event. They also offer a straightforward and free venue finding service, helping you narrow down your shortlist based on your exact requirements.
