In five days, 92,000 people came to the exhibition center to find out about the latest leisure, travel, construction and garden trends from more than 800 exhibitors. In eight exhibition halls everything turned around the topics journeys & vacation, bicycle & outdoor, Caravaning & camping, around' s car as well as building, real estates, garden and furnishing. The fair duo was enriched beyond that from Friday to Sunday by the Supreme domestic animal fair as well as the fair special photo + Adventure.

Carola Schwennsen, managing director with the fair organizer specialized exhibitions Heckmann: Both meetings established themselves as firm date in the fair calendar of the visitors. The abf and the B.I.G. offer the perfect setting for an active start to spring and are as much a part of Hannover as the Maschsee or Schützenfest."

"Fascination Asia" - this was the title of the special area of over 1000 square meters dedicated to this year's partner region at Reisen & Urlaub. Under the direction of Explorer Fernreisen, the focus here was on the many facets of the continent and visitors were able to find out about the most beautiful travel destinations. In addition, there were informative lectures about Asian countries and cultures, Balinese dances, shiatsu massages, henna painting and aikido presentations. Julia Döpp, project manager at Explorer Fernreisen: "We are very satisfied. The lecture program was well attended and the offers very well received. Our partners are also satisfied and we are happy that we could be part of it again."

One of the absolute highlights of the abf was once again the Caravanning & Camping theme world, which was housed in three halls. Here, a total of over 500 vehicles were presented by around 80 companies - cutting-edge trends, numerous vehicle innovations, modern ex- and interiors, as well as new safety and technical components. Last year alone, there was an increase in registrations of over 16 percent in the motorhome sector, and for caravans it was an increase of over 10 percent. Total industry sales in 2019: 14 billion euros. The crowds at Caravaning & Camping were correspondingly large. Michael Kraft, Sales Manager at Knaus Tabbert: "Our great expectations, especially for the weekend, were fully met. The public showed great interest in our products and this shows that we are still fully in line with the trend. We are already looking forward to the next abf."

The Sunday of the trade fair was Bike Day at abf - and gave free admission to everyone who came to the trade fair by bike. But on all other days, too, the Bicycle & Outdoor area was the perfect place to go to find out about the latest models - whether e-bikes, cargo bikes, mountain or Holland bikes. On a large test track, all bikes could be tried out extensively and visitors had the opportunity to compare the various models and prices of the total of 40 bicycle dealers in detail. Gregor Gall, sales representative Winora Staiger: "We had good conversations, many interested parties. Our offer, especially the trekking bikes with E-drive, was super received by visitors."

Visitors around 40 + were delighted with the special presentation "50 years of Bonanza bike". Almost 50 of the popular cult bikes in various colors and equipment provided many with fond memories and raptures. Over and over again, one heard from the astonished visitors: "I had one just like that back then..."

Three hours of sweating were on the agenda at the Bellicon Power Workout. Around 150 fitness enthusiasts met on the Friday of the trade fair and bounced on mini trampolines to driving beats into the evening. abf project manager Klaudia Kohl: "The Power Workout was sold out very quickly and that shows us that such events absolutely enrich our trade fairs. The participants all had a lot of fun and we will definitely continue this."

Ideas for the home

For all those who want to change something about their home, garden, terrace or balcony, the B.I.G. was the perfect trade fair. More than 250 exhibitors presented the latest trends in gardening, real estate, home construction, furnishing and renovation in Hall 26. The Tiny Houses, which were shown by two exhibitors, were very popular in the hall. Almost continuously the visitors queued up, in order to throw a view into one of the small houses and in order to inform with the experts about the application type. Horst Liese, Managing Director of C&L Objekte: "The crowds and the interest of the visitors were huge and we even received concrete building inquiries. The trend towards minimalist living is being noticed and people are very interested."

The Dortmund market research institute Gelszus confirms the good mood of organizers, exhibitors and visitors. According to a representative survey, 51 percent of visitors bought or ordered something (previous year: 54 percent) and spent an average of 1,120.90 euros (previous year: 1,051.70 euros).