Patrick Bontinck

CEO, visit.brussel

Patrick Bontinck was born in 1971. He is Belgian and has two children. After four years studying at the world’s leading hospitality university EHL in Lausanne, Switzerland, it was only natural that his career would be drawn to this sector. From 1998 to 2009, Bontinck built and opened hotels, but also managed and took over hotels, in particular for the Martins Hotels group.His varied experience has led him from business management to hotel development, marketing and interpersonal relations. His talent as a team motivator and negotiator is widely recognised.He’s an all-round leader who attaches great importance to the respect and development of others. Capable of motivating his teams toward a common objective, he promotes consultation and dialogue between partners. He seamlessly assimilates himself into the environment in which he is operating and plays an active role within it. He has a gift for conducting negotiations and finalising agreements, due to a strong sense of empathy.Bontinck has been CEO of visit.brussels since 2010, where he established the new communications strategy for the Brussels-Capital Region and the City of Brussels.25 years of experience have allowed him to develop his skills outside the hotel and tourism industry in highly varied fields such as construction, events, marketing and human resources. His experience at visit.brussels and the hotels association has allowed him to familiarise himself with the finer points of politics and lobbying. He has been strongly involved in the development of new technologies in all the missions he has carried out during his career. Moreover, these developments have been recognised at the international level, as he was one of The 100 Most Influential People in the Event Industry by Eventex in 2021. He was also awarded the “Bruxellois de l’année” (Brussels Resident of the Year) prize in 2011 and visit.brussels won the Public Enterprise of the Year in 2015 under his stewardship.