Hanover Fairground

Exhibition area in Hanover Open exhibition area at the Hanover Fairground featuring the famous Expo 2000 wooden roof Expo-Allee N and stairs to the Place of Nations The Hanover Fairground (German: Messegelände Hannover) is an exhibition area in the Mittelfeld district of Hanover, Germany. Featuring 392,453 m2 (4.2 million sq.ft.) of covered indoor space, 58,000 m2 (624,306 sq ft) of open-air space, 24 halls and pavilions, and a convention center with 35 function rooms, it is the largest exhibition ground in the world. History Aerial view of the trade fair ground The area of the fairground originally was an aircraft works. After World War II, the British military government in Allied-occupied Germany wanted to hold a trade fair and sought for a good place, since Leipzig, the traditional fairground of Germany, was unavailable, being in the Soviet occupation zone. The hangars in Laatzen, south of Hanover, were deemed suitable for this purpose, and so the Hanover Fair, then named Exportmesse 1947 was first held in 1947 to promote the economic recovery in the Bizone. The concept proved to be successful, and so a permanent fairground was established, growing over the years. Timeline 194