Booking.com Conference

How We Helped Booking.com Celebrate 20 Years of Movement

Some events are more than gatherings, they’re milestones.

When Booking.com came to us, they weren’t just planning a party. They were celebrating 20 years of ground transport, 20 years of being rooted in Manchester, and all the people who helped build that journey. They wanted to bring their partners into the heart of the city that had been home for two decades—and leave them with something they’d never forget.

This is how we helped them do it.

Start with Place

We always begin with place. It sets the tone. Manchester Cathedral and 20 Stories couldn’t be more different, and that’s exactly why they worked.

Night One: Manchester Cathedral.

You walk in and you feel it—history, scale, grandeur. We lit the nave in Booking.com’s blue. The organ echoed as guests arrived. Gasps. Wows. A space that held centuries, now holding a new chapter. The perfect welcome.

Dinner followed: canapés and a three-course meal made with local ingredients, crafted to the client’s taste after several tastings. Service was seamless—credit to the caterers who knew the space inside out.

Night Two: 20 Stories.

Glass. Steel. Skyline. Modern Manchester in full view. Where Night One was reverent, Night Two was pure celebration. Sunset painted the sky pink as guests spilled out onto the terrace. You could see every corner of the city, every office they’d ever worked in. It all made sense.

We chose roaming catering so people could eat and talk and move. Nobody had to stop the conversation for dinner. It was global, varied, and vibrant—just like their guests.

Design That Moves With You

We wanted the entire event to feel like one story told over three days. That meant consistency, cohesion & flow.

So we kept the 20-year theme alive through the details: lighting in brand colours, soft furnishings, subtle vinyls. We weren’t shouting. We were saying, this is yours. Every room felt like it belonged to the client. 

Sound, Light, Feeling

At the Cathedral, we lit the inside and outside to wrap the building in brand colour. The sound design let every note carry—intimate, but immersive. The Stereo Twins gave us strings with a modern twist, perfect for a dinner where you could either pause to listen or keep connecting.

At 20 Stories, we shifted gear. Full AV setup. Lighting to bring the night to life. And then—Boney M. Yep, THE Boney M. That was the surprise. Everyone knew the songs & everyone danced. 

The Goosebump Moments

We live for these.

    • The first guest walking into the Cathedral. That moment of silence before the awe kicks in.

    • The way the Manchester sunset wrapped 20 Stories in gold.

    • And Boney M, belting out “Rasputin” as 250 people lost their minds on the dance floor.

Behind the Curtain

Of course, it’s not all smooth sailing. There was a place card misprint. A last-minute table reshuffle. Some guests sat wherever they liked (which made dietary logistics a fun little adventure!). But that’s what on-site management is for. You plan like hell, and then you dance with the chaos.

What the Client Said

They told us it didn’t feel like “client and agency”—just one team. That’s the highest praise we can get.

Because our job isn’t just to throw a great party. It’s to care as much as they do, to hold their story with the same hands they would.

And when it all comes together, when the lights go up and the music hits and people stop and smile and say, this was special—that’s why we do it.