The “+” in IBD+ explained

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IBD+ – a unique opportunity for worldwide Mensa networking!

Four days of Mensa party – 150 different events in the making with nearly 10.000 slots – sleeping is optional :‐)

IBD vs. IBD+

The IBD meeting is the annual general assembly of Mensa International:

On Thursday the Executive Committee (ExComm), that you can see as board of Mensa International, meets; Friday, Saturday and half Sunday the International Board of Directors (IBD) consisting of delegates from all national Mensas meets.

A normal IBD meeting offers a few events for non-delegates as distraction since they might not want to watch the IBD delegates working all 2.5 days.

With the IBD+ we take this to a different level – and from some international Mensans we learned that we should detail that a bit more.

The "+" in IBD+ means that we offer lots and lots of events – a bit like for a German annual Gathering ("Jahrestreffen"): sightseeing tours, company tours, games (especially escape rooms), sportive and fun events, guided museum visits, art and culture, presentations and workshops and certainly cosy get-togethers and various dine arounds so you find a place to eat with others in the evening to accommodate the visitors.

You can see the events we have in the making on the IBD+ landing page.

For whom is IBD+

Every Mensa member from any country in the world as well as their beloved ones (even if not members) is very welcome to visit IBD+ and to enjoy four days of fun and networking.

Furthermore, anyone interested in Mensa is welcome to come to IBD+ even if not a member of any Mensa.

Events

By clicking on the small triangles at the left you can unfold the list of events by location, category, or date.
... or click on "Expand" in a title to expand all for that part; "Collapse" reverses that obviously.

Events by Category

Basics    Dine Around - Bob & Mary
   Dine Around - Brauhaus am Dreieck  
   Dine Around - Himmel & Ähd  
   Dine Around - Zum Schlüssel  
   Dine Around for Early Birds - Rheinische Stuv  
   Gala Dinner  
   Helsinki Party  
   Icebreaker  
   MY-Dinner  

City Tours    City by the River Rhine  
   City Tour by Former Homeless People (German Language only)  
   City Tour Düsseldorf in Private Bus   ()
   Guided Tour Cologne: The most impressive City on the River Rhine  
   Guided Tour of Cologne`s Underground
   Icons of Architecture in Düsseldorf  
   Media Harbor & Rhinetower: Architecture and Panoramic Views  
   Nightwatchman Tour   ()
   Old Town (Altstadt) Tour  
   The Japanese Quarter along Immermannstraße - Düsseldorf`s Little Tokyo
   Urban Art Walk  

Company Tours    Company Tour in Bakery “Bäckerei Hinkel“  
   Company Tour Kiepe Electric GmbH (transmission of personal data required)
   Company Tour Teekanne (German; transmission of personal data required)
   Factory Tour - Production Facility “Killepitsch“ Herbal Liquer from Düsseldorf
   Farina Duftmuseum - Fragrance Museum Farina
   Germanys Industrial Powerhouse CHEMPARK (transmission of personal data required)   ()
   Guided Tour at DLR (transmission of personal data required)
   Guided Tour Craft Brewery - Hausbrauerei “Uerige“ in the Old Town (Altstadt)
   Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials   ()
   Power Plant Tour Düsseldorf-Lausward (transmission of personal data required)
   Sewage Canal Tour
   Step Inside Connectivity: A Tour of the Vodafone Campus in Düsseldorf
   THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief)   ()
   Visit Editorial Office of Handelsblatt (transmission of personal data required)   ()
   Waste Incineration Plant Tour (transmission of personal data required)
   WDR Cologne Radio/TV Studios (transmission of personal data required)
   WDR Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)  

Delicious Things    Craftbeer & Streetfood
   Düsseldorf Food Tour
   MY-Breakfast   ()
   Single Malt Whisky Tasting (Material included)  

Games, Sports and Fun    Axe Throwing (really!)
   Bouldering with training session (Registration necessary)
   Bowling
   Bowling
   Discofox, just Dance!
   Escape Room: Fiction Escape   ()
   Escape Room: Mr. Tesla   ()
   Gellyball (small Paintballs)
   Glowzone Blacklight 4D Minigolf
   Lasertag
   Meet the Alpacas on the Pasture
   MY Lasertag Wuppertal
   Self Trip: Visit Games Convention “SPIEL Essen” (You need to Book your Ticket)  
   Virtual Reality - Fight Zombies in a Free Walk Experience

History, Art and Culture    Guided Tour in the Cologne Cathedral  
   Guided Tour on the roof of the Cologne Cathedral
   K20: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   K20: Exhibition “Queer Modernism“  
   K21: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   Suspension Railway Museum (Schwebodrom) Wuppertal  

Other    BoutIQue-Wertgutschein
   ExComm meeting lunch (Thursday)  
   IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets & Coffee Breaks  
   IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets (IBD delegates only!)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Friday)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Saturday)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Sunday)  
   International Volunteer Network Conference (IVN+)  

Presentations    Communicating Complex Content with AI: An Insight into New Possibilities  
   Crime Scene work throughout the times  
   Highly Sensitive Person - Introduction to a Psychological and Social Phenomenon  
   How to solve the Climate Crisis (if you think like an Engineer)  
   Introduction to Esperanto - The world`s easiest Language  
   Lead me, Follow me, or Get out of my Way (General Patton)  
   Retire Early  
   SIGHT, meeting mensans traveling  

Sightseeing and Excursions    Botanical Garden - Guided Tour “Climate Change“  
   Cologne Central Mosque (one of Europe`s largest mosques)  
   Guided Tour Bonsai Museum Düsseldorf (open air)
   Guided Tour Film Museum Düsseldorf   ()
   Guided Tour of the Düsseldorf City Museum   ()
   Guided Tour Puppet Theatre “Düsseldorfer Marionettentheater“
   Guided Tour Synagogue Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)
   Museum of Chocolate - Guided Tour with Tasting  
   Opera House Backstage Tour
   Panorama Cruise

Workshops    Become a better communicator – a Workshop to boost your Active Listening skills  
   Caught in a Vicious Circle: Why Knowledge alone won’t change it  
   Enjoy your voice – sing a round  
   Introduction into the Zentangle® Method (Material included)  
   Leadership Exercise: What makes a High Performing Team?  
   Lies, Legends and Wikipedia - Pseudofactual writing and espionage  
   Neurodiversity Community Talk  
   Otherness Across Cultures  
   Relaxed³  
   Speed-Connecting  

Events by Location

Maritim Hotel    Become a better communicator – a Workshop to boost your Active Listening skills  
   BoutIQue-Wertgutschein
   Caught in a Vicious Circle: Why Knowledge alone won’t change it  
   Communicating Complex Content with AI: An Insight into New Possibilities  
   Crime Scene work throughout the times  
   Dine Around for Early Birds - Rheinische Stuv  
   Discofox, just Dance!
   Enjoy your voice – sing a round  
   ExComm meeting lunch (Thursday)  
   Gala Dinner  
   Helsinki Party  
   Highly Sensitive Person - Introduction to a Psychological and Social Phenomenon  
   How to solve the Climate Crisis (if you think like an Engineer)  
   IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets & Coffee Breaks  
   IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets (IBD delegates only!)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Friday)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Saturday)  
   IBD meeting lunch (Sunday)  
   Icebreaker  
   International Volunteer Network Conference (IVN+)  
   Introduction into the Zentangle® Method (Material included)  
   Introduction to Esperanto - The world`s easiest Language  
   Lead me, Follow me, or Get out of my Way (General Patton)  
   Leadership Exercise: What makes a High Performing Team?  
   Lies, Legends and Wikipedia - Pseudofactual writing and espionage  
   Neurodiversity Community Talk  
   Otherness Across Cultures  
   Relaxed³  
   Retire Early  
   SIGHT, meeting mensans traveling  
   Single Malt Whisky Tasting (Material included)  
   Speed-Connecting  
   Step Inside Connectivity: A Tour of the Vodafone Campus in Düsseldorf

Trips    Self Trip: Visit Games Convention “SPIEL Essen” (You need to Book your Ticket)  

Düsseldorf    Axe Throwing (really!)
   Botanical Garden - Guided Tour “Climate Change“  
   Bouldering with training session (Registration necessary)
   Bowling
   Bowling
   City by the River Rhine  
   City Tour by Former Homeless People (German Language only)  
   City Tour Düsseldorf in Private Bus   ()
   Company Tour in Bakery “Bäckerei Hinkel“  
   Company Tour Kiepe Electric GmbH (transmission of personal data required)
   Company Tour Teekanne (German; transmission of personal data required)
   Craftbeer & Streetfood
   Dine Around - Bob & Mary
   Dine Around - Brauhaus am Dreieck  
   Dine Around - Himmel & Ähd  
   Dine Around - Zum Schlüssel  
   Düsseldorf Food Tour
   Escape Room: Fiction Escape   ()
   Escape Room: Mr. Tesla   ()
   Factory Tour - Production Facility “Killepitsch“ Herbal Liquer from Düsseldorf
   Gellyball (small Paintballs)
   Glowzone Blacklight 4D Minigolf
   Guided Tour Bonsai Museum Düsseldorf (open air)
   Guided Tour Craft Brewery - Hausbrauerei “Uerige“ in the Old Town (Altstadt)
   Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   Guided Tour Film Museum Düsseldorf   ()
   Guided Tour of the Düsseldorf City Museum   ()
   Guided Tour Puppet Theatre “Düsseldorfer Marionettentheater“
   Guided Tour Synagogue Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)
   Icons of Architecture in Düsseldorf  
   K20: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   K20: Exhibition “Queer Modernism“  
   K21: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   Lasertag
   Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials   ()
   Media Harbor & Rhinetower: Architecture and Panoramic Views  
   Meet the Alpacas on the Pasture
   MY-Breakfast   ()
   MY-Dinner  
   Nightwatchman Tour   ()
   Old Town (Altstadt) Tour  
   Opera House Backstage Tour
   Panorama Cruise
   Power Plant Tour Düsseldorf-Lausward (transmission of personal data required)
   Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   Sewage Canal Tour
   The Japanese Quarter along Immermannstraße - Düsseldorf`s Little Tokyo
   THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief)   ()
   Urban Art Walk  
   Virtual Reality - Fight Zombies in a Free Walk Experience
   Visit Editorial Office of Handelsblatt (transmission of personal data required)   ()
   Waste Incineration Plant Tour (transmission of personal data required)
   WDR Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)  

Cologne    Cologne Central Mosque (one of Europe`s largest mosques)  
   Farina Duftmuseum - Fragrance Museum Farina
   Guided Tour at DLR (transmission of personal data required)
   Guided Tour Cologne: The most impressive City on the River Rhine  
   Guided Tour in the Cologne Cathedral  
   Guided Tour of Cologne`s Underground
   Guided Tour on the roof of the Cologne Cathedral
   Museum of Chocolate - Guided Tour with Tasting  
   WDR Cologne Radio/TV Studios (transmission of personal data required)

Wuppertal    MY Lasertag Wuppertal
   Suspension Railway Museum (Schwebodrom) Wuppertal  

Leverkusen    Germanys Industrial Powerhouse CHEMPARK (transmission of personal data required)   ()

Events by Days

Events Wednesday, 22.10.    19:00  Dine Around for Early Birds - Rheinische Stuv  

Events Thursday, 23.10.    07:31  IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets (IBD delegates only!)  
   07:31  IBD Delegate Lunch Tickets & Coffee Breaks  
   07:34  BoutIQue-Wertgutschein
   09:30  MY-Breakfast   ()
   10:00  Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials   ()
   10:00  Step Inside Connectivity: A Tour of the Vodafone Campus in Düsseldorf
   10:30  Company Tour Teekanne (German; transmission of personal data required)
   11:00  Waste Incineration Plant Tour (transmission of personal data required)
   11:30  Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   12:00  The Japanese Quarter along Immermannstraße - Düsseldorf`s Little Tokyo
   12:30  ExComm meeting lunch (Thursday)  
   13:00  Germanys Industrial Powerhouse CHEMPARK (transmission of personal data required)   ()
   13:00  Guided Tour Craft Brewery - Hausbrauerei “Uerige“ in the Old Town (Altstadt)
   13:00  WDR Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)  
   14:00  Axe Throwing (really!)
   14:00  Düsseldorf Food Tour
   14:00  Sewage Canal Tour
   14:30  Icons of Architecture in Düsseldorf  
   14:45  Guided Tour Synagogue Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)
   15:00  City Tour by Former Homeless People (German Language only)  
   15:00  Panorama Cruise
   15:20  K20: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   15:30  Old Town (Altstadt) Tour  
   15:30  The Japanese Quarter along Immermannstraße - Düsseldorf`s Little Tokyo
   16:15  Escape Room: Fiction Escape   ()
   16:15  Escape Room: Mr. Tesla   ()
   16:30  Guided Tour of the Düsseldorf City Museum   ()
   16:30  Guided Tour Puppet Theatre “Düsseldorfer Marionettentheater“
   16:30  Meet the Alpacas on the Pasture
   18:00  Company Tour in Bakery “Bäckerei Hinkel“  
   18:30  Dine Around - Bob & Mary
   19:00  Icebreaker  
   19:30  Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   20:00  Nightwatchman Tour   ()

Events Friday, 24.10.    08:45  Visit Editorial Office of Handelsblatt (transmission of personal data required)   ()
   09:00  Company Tour Kiepe Electric GmbH (transmission of personal data required)
   09:00  International Volunteer Network Conference (IVN+)  
   09:00  Leadership Exercise: What makes a High Performing Team?  
   09:00  Speed-Connecting  
   09:50  Guided Tour in the Cologne Cathedral  
   10:00  Botanical Garden - Guided Tour “Climate Change“  
   10:00  City by the River Rhine  
   10:00  Guided Tour Cologne: The most impressive City on the River Rhine  
   10:00  Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   10:00  Self Trip: Visit Games Convention “SPIEL Essen” (You need to Book your Ticket)  
   10:00  The Japanese Quarter along Immermannstraße - Düsseldorf`s Little Tokyo
   10:30  Panorama Cruise
   10:45  Crime Scene work throughout the times  
   11:00  Power Plant Tour Düsseldorf-Lausward (transmission of personal data required)
   12:00  Bouldering with training session (Registration necessary)
   12:00  Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   12:00  Otherness Across Cultures  
   12:30  Enjoy your voice – sing a round  
   12:30  IBD meeting lunch (Friday)  
   12:45  Farina Duftmuseum - Fragrance Museum Farina
   13:00  WDR Düsseldorf (transmission of personal data required)  
   13:45  Guided Tour at DLR (transmission of personal data required)
   14:00  Lasertag
   14:00  Relaxed³  
   14:15  Cologne Central Mosque (one of Europe`s largest mosques)  
   15:00  Escape Room: Fiction Escape   ()
   15:00  WDR Cologne Radio/TV Studios (transmission of personal data required)
   15:30  Axe Throwing (really!)
   15:30  Guided Tour of Cologne`s Underground
   15:50  Guided Tour on the roof of the Cologne Cathedral
   16:00  Craftbeer & Streetfood
   16:00  Guided Tour Film Museum Düsseldorf   ()
   16:00  Introduction to Esperanto - The world`s easiest Language  
   16:00  Museum of Chocolate - Guided Tour with Tasting  
   16:00  Virtual Reality - Fight Zombies in a Free Walk Experience
   16:05  Suspension Railway Museum (Schwebodrom) Wuppertal  
   18:15  Neurodiversity Community Talk  
   18:30  Dine Around - Bob & Mary
   19:00  Dine Around - Brauhaus am Dreieck  
   19:00  MY-Dinner  
   19:30  Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   20:00  Nightwatchman Tour   ()

Events Saturday, 25.10.    09:00  Highly Sensitive Person - Introduction to a Psychological and Social Phenomenon  
   09:00  How to solve the Climate Crisis (if you think like an Engineer)  
   09:00  International Volunteer Network Conference (IVN+)  
   10:00  Guided Tour DB Regio AG Düsseldorf (workshop for local train maintenance)
   10:00  Virtual Reality - Fight Zombies in a Free Walk Experience
   10:30  Gellyball (small Paintballs)
   10:30  Virtual Reality - Fight Zombies in a Free Walk Experience
   10:45  Introduction into the Zentangle® Method (Material included)  
   10:45  SIGHT, meeting mensans traveling  
   10:50  Opera House Backstage Tour
   11:00  Axe Throwing (really!)
   11:00  Lead me, Follow me, or Get out of my Way (General Patton)  
   11:20  K21: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   12:00  Caught in a Vicious Circle: Why Knowledge alone won’t change it  
   12:00  Factory Tour - Production Facility “Killepitsch“ Herbal Liquer from Düsseldorf
   12:15  Discofox, just Dance!
   12:30  IBD meeting lunch (Saturday)  
   12:35  Opera House Backstage Tour
   12:50  K20: Exhibition “Queer Modernism“  
   13:45  Become a better communicator – a Workshop to boost your Active Listening skills  
   14:00  MY Lasertag Wuppertal
   14:00  Old Town (Altstadt) Tour  
   14:00  THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief)   ()
   14:15  Retire Early  
   14:20  K20: Collection of Art - Guided Tour  
   15:00  Icons of Architecture in Düsseldorf  
   15:00  Panorama Cruise
   15:30  Glowzone Blacklight 4D Minigolf
   16:00  Communicating Complex Content with AI: An Insight into New Possibilities  
   16:00  Single Malt Whisky Tasting (Material included)  
   16:00  Urban Art Walk  
   17:00  Bowling
   19:00  Dine Around - Himmel & Ähd  
   19:00  Gala Dinner  
   19:30  Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   20:00  Nightwatchman Tour   ()

Events Sunday, 26.10.    10:00  Bowling
   10:00  Icons of Architecture in Düsseldorf  
   10:30  Media Harbor & Rhinetower: Architecture and Panoramic Views  
   11:00  Lies, Legends and Wikipedia - Pseudofactual writing and espionage  
   11:00  Old Town (Altstadt) Tour  
   11:30  Axe Throwing (really!)
   12:00  Guided Tour Bonsai Museum Düsseldorf (open air)
   12:00  Panorama Cruise
   12:30  IBD meeting lunch (Sunday)  
   13:30  Roncalli`s Apollo Varieté   ()
   14:00  City Tour Düsseldorf in Private Bus   ()
   18:00  Dine Around - Zum Schlüssel  
   19:00  Helsinki Party  

Event Descriptions

The event descriptions tell you what to expect: When do we offer what and where – the price will be visible on the booking page.

In some event titles you see "(transmission of personal data required)" indicating that we need to supply information about the visitors to the company as detailed in the event's description. These events can only be booked for a single person, are non-transferrable and with booking them you allow the transfer of your data as indicated in the event.

In addition to the events, you will need to pay a base fee that covers e.g. the ticket for public transport, the rent for the room open 24/4 (not 24/7 since IBD+ ist just 4 days) where you can play board games, a room for families with children and some other global cost.

The price for the events and the base fee is just to cover the cost of the events – we plan the IBD+ such that at the end the financial result is a zero.

Directions and Guides

For all events you will find directions telling you how to get there from the main hotel, that is the Maritim Hotel. Since the hotel is not in the centre of Düsseldorf we added directions from Düsseldorf central station for events in Düsseldorf; for those in other cities like Cologne we outline how to get to that town's central station and then how to proceed from there. We hope that this makes it easier for you to go to the events and pick a convenient route.

The travel times are on the safe side – especially taking into account that a group of Mensans walks slower due to intense talking. See Directions and Times.

For most events we will have a guide: Someone waiting in Maritim Hotel for those who want to join her or him from there to the event location. Feel free to use that offer or simply go to the event on your own if that is more convenient for you.

Booking

From June 1st at 19:46 o'clock until July 7th at 23:59 o'clock you can reserve seats for any event you care to – in most cases even for you and others as a group – even overlapping and colliding ones at no risk since the seat allocation will sort that for you.

On July 8th and 9th, the seats will be allocated for you trying to fulfil your wishes as good as possible ensuring you need not be at two different places at the same time or get the same event more than once (no bookings possible during this phase).

IBD delegates will certainly have priority for the "default" evening events like the Icebreaker, Galadinner or Helsinki as well as the Sunday afternoon tour. If you are a delegate, please make sure to tick the appropriate checkbox in the "Options for the main event" and book the events before July 7th.

In the following weeks until August 18th at 23:59 o'clock you can amend your booking as you wish free of charge – that might be nice after seeing what you got and perhaps cancel the odd event if you are not sure you can make it from one to the next one in time. Feel free to book more events, put yourself on the waiting list of overbooked events, cancel bookings, ...
On August 19th the first invoices will be sent out and as of then cancellations are not possible anymore.

Until October 1st at 23:59 o'clock you can continue to book additional events; after that online booking is closed (we need some time to prepare the tickets etc.). We will have some tickets available for sale during IBD+ in the organisation office.

You do want to read the Booking System Guide – especially the part on priorities and group bookings.
Note for German users: For group booking membership numbers must be with country prefix (not as with normal "Jahrestreffen" where the 049 for German members is optional).

All times stated on this page, in the event descriptions and on the booking site are local German times, i.e. Berlin time zone.

The dates shown on this page are intended to be the same ones as on the booking page; if they differ the dates on the booking page are the correct ones. Thanks to tell us if that is the case.

Groups and Families

Our booking system supports group bookings – be it for couples or families. Most event allow you to book up to 4 seats implying that you either get all the seats you want, or none, that is we do not split you up.

For this you enter the number of people and in the text entry of the event you need to indicate the others you book for (be it with the membership number or the email address).

If you book an event that has options like the choice of food for two people, make sure to enter 2 as number of seats, indicate the second person in the "I book for..." field and pick two dishes (be it both the same or two different food).

Please note that everyone needs to book the IBD+ as such for herself or himself even if all event bookings are done for that person by group bookings.

You (really) want to take a moment to read the Booking System Guide and there the page on group bookings.

My events

Once you have booked events you can use the Web App to get an overview in addition to using the booking page.

We’re working on updating our smartphone app to support IBD+ too. The link will be added here as soon as it’s available.

Contact

If you have questions, suggestions, or whatever feel free to send us an email to ibd2025@mensa.de to get an overview in addition to using the booking page.


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