WOMEX – Worldwide Music Expo – is the most international and culturally diverse music meeting in the world and the biggest conference of the global music scene, featuring a trade fair, talks, films and showcase concerts. Celebrating its 30th anniversary this year in Manchester’s very own Manchester Central, nearly 3000 delegates are expected to descend to the city from 90 countries to showcase and explore all sides of the musical spectrum.

The convention has two sides, with panel sessions and talks throughout the day to help delegates network with likeminded professionals and to strengthen their ties to the wider global music community. In the evening, you’ll find local venues hosting over 50 acts from around the world in one-of-a-kind showcases, bringing together performers ranging from the most traditional to the new local underground, embracing folk, roots, jazz, local and diaspora cultures as much as urban and electronic sounds from all over the globe.

If you’re attending WOMEX and visiting Manchester for the first time, you might be wondering where to start when it comes to planning your week.

- If you’re a registered delegate, you can download the WOMEX app for live schedules, performance times and information around the city.

- If you’ve just secured festival tickets for the performances, you can find up-to-date information on line ups and set times on the Manchester Music City Instagram or at womex-festival.com

Here’s our tips and tricks for getting the most out of your visit to Manchester:

Where to stay

Manchester Music City, together with Greater Manchester’s tourist board Visit Manchester, have secured exclusive accommodation rates for WOMEX delegates to take advantage of. Manchester has a wide range of hotels and serviced apartments in the city centre to suit all budgets and preferences and all the selected providers are within walking distance from WOMEX venues.

Manchester Convention Bureau have a dedicated accommodation booking team to assist with any accommodation queries or help you may need with your reservation. Details of how to get in touch can be found here. It’s worth noting that the Convention Bureau can only offer these rates until the 26th September, so if you’re booking after this you may need to find your own accommodation.

Hotels closest to Manchester Central are The Edwardian, The Midland, Hilton Manchester Deansgate, Motel One, The Alan and Clayton Hotel Manchester City Centre.

Local restaurants

If you’re looking at places to reserve for dinner, we have a couple of great suggestions. If you’re looking for Mancunian classics, try one of the restaurants inside the Corn Exchange like Pho, Banyan, Mowgli or Tampopo. All cuisines and dietary requirements are covered with over 10 restaurants under one roof. If it’s just a drink and small plates you’re after, visit Manchester Gin or 10 Tib Lane, both offer a wide choice of signature cocktails and specialist drinks.

If you’re after something a little different, Manchester covers all sorts of cuisines and tastes. Grab some Indian street food from Manchester classic Bundobust or Dishoom. Just by Manchester Central, you’ll find Zouk, an authentic Pakistani cuisine grill, a must-visit for those post-performance cravings. Taking clients out post-conference and looking to impress? Try Fenix, a Greek-Mediterranean establishment that’s on the top of everyone’s list when they visit Manchester. For the carnivores, Hawksmoor is the perfect spot – a British steakhouse located in Deansgate, which is definitely a must try. Finally, in the heart of Manchester, Sexy Fish is an Asian restaurant and bar specializing in Japanese-inspired sushi, sashimi, seafood, fish, and Robata-grilled meats.

Wednesday - Opening Night

This year’s Opening welcomes the delegates of WOMEX 24 with performances from four artists that represent the breadth of Greater Manchester’s music scene. Featuring eclectic musical styles, united by the Mancunian spirit.

Enjoy performances from Agbeko, Dirty Freud, Heather Ferrier and Vulva Voce.

Conference

Thursday – If this is your first WOMEX, we recommend starting your week at the WOMEX Orienteering Session, it’s a special session created every year for all the new delegates attending WOMEX. This essential guide will help you navigate the event’s five days, making the most of every opportunity, ran by the director of WOMEX and 2024 jury members.

Here are some other great sessions we recommend attending on your first day:

Womex Orienteering Session – 11:00 – 11:30
A Lifetime in Roots music – 11:45 – 12:30
Ethics, Resistance and Decolonisation of Global Music – 11:30 – 12:30
Signal Flow: Local, Regional and Global Collaborations – 12:15 – 13:00
Beats for a Revolution – 15:00 – 15:45
Kuwaiti Pearl Diving Music – 16:15 – 17:00

Friday – For the second day of the conference, there are plenty of insightful and interesting panel sessions you could attend throughout the day, located all throughout Manchester Central. Plan ahead as some sessions can get busy quickly:

The UK Jazz Revival – 11:00 – 11:45
Securing the Future of Folk – 11:30 – 12:30
Why South Asia and its Diaspora is the Next Big Thing? – 12:00 – 12:45
Music and Video Games – 12:15 – 13:00
Women Artists in War – 15:00 – 15:45
Music and Activism in the Global South – 16:30 – 17:15

Saturday – You might think the conference would start to slow down by day four but it’s only getting started, throughout the convention centre, there are a number of great panels you don’t want to miss, lead by experts within their specialist fields:

Rhythms of Reconciliation – 11:00 – 11:45
Afrobeats Goes Global – 11:30 – 12:15
Indigenous Music Futurisms – 11:30 – 12:30
Revitalising the South Asian Independent Music Ecosystem – 12:00 – 12:45
Music in Times of War – 15:00 – 16:00

Performances

Throughout the five-day expo, there are 57 performances and showcases booked from artists around the globe. From ground-breaking emerging artist to well established legends of their field, the Showcases highlight everything from the rediscovery of musical traditions to the very latest in artistic innovation. Across five stages, you can discover artists such as Portuguese singer songwriter Cristina Clara, Palestian, Iranian and French trio Ensemble Chakâm, experimental folk artist Pelkkä Poutanen from Finland, will take to the stages within Manchester Central and beyond to showcase their talents to the delegation at WOMEX.

These five stages include the Club Summit, which historically has always drawn big crowds from both professionals and musicians seeking club sounds and electronic music from across the globe. If you want to see what the UK and Ireland have to offer, the Horizons Stage is dedicated to more local talent, helping artists from the UK and Ireland to expand their audiences on a more global scale.

Find the full programme of confirmed performers here.

We’ve put together a full guide to all the performances happening throughout WOMEX, so if you’re not sure where to go or who to see, check it out here