‘Messe Basel’ is one of the most important exhibition venues in Switzerland. With five halls and 140,000 sqm of exhibition space, it is also one of the most frequented trade fair centers in Europe. Close by is the Congress Center Basel with 25 congress and conference rooms.
The central architectural urban feature of the exhibition hall and congress center complex, developed by the Architects Herzog & de Meuron, is the ‘City Lounge’. This covered, public space not only marks the entrance to the exhibitions, but also functions as a meeting place for locals and visitors. The architects named the prominent hole in the middle of the roof ‘Window to heaven’ or ‘The eye to the sky’.