VW taking the stage at the Townhouse Hotel
The arrival of an unassuming Volkswagen Touareg V6 TDI at Townhouse Hotel’s Events Centre marked the end of a 17 000km journey for Rainer Zietlow and his team – from northernmost tip of Europe at Nordkapp in Norway, to our very own Cape Agulhas.
A celebrated transcontinental driver, the arrival of Zietlow and his team at Townhouse Hotel’s upgraded conference centre marked the culmination of a global automotive journey “Cape to Cape” – an almost non-stop, 21 day journey through 19 countries (which included a 13-day accident repair detour)– while still breaking a world record. The team was met by Cape Town’s VW dealers and press at the Townhouse Events Centre.
The modified Mostert Conference Room at the Townhouse Hotel, meant the team could simply drive straight onto the conference floor – with doors specifically allowing for extended height and weight clearance. Says Townhouse Hotel general manager, Jacqui Williams, “We were thrilled to host this international event, perhaps even more so because we were able to test our ability to stage events that require instant, no-fuss access, particularly critical for car launches, expos, trade launches and gala events.
“Our adapted conferencing facilities will now allow vehicles, large sets, extra stages, special lighting rigs and other heavy-duty equipment easy and instant access directly onto the conference floor. With this new ‘straight-from-street’ entrance onto the venue floor, it now gives organisers instant access to the venue – whether it is for setting up, or for a vehicle to be part of the event.”
“Though this event was planned weeks in advance, it posed an extra challenge on the day in the form of a very tight timeframe.” says Townhouse events manager, Tracy Stewart, “This vehicle – which was the very reason for the event – arrived only minutes before the function was due to begin, thankfully it could drive directly into the venue. The VW team also required specific staging, AV, display and other requirements – all of which we were able to set up for them with speed. It was a very helpful demonstration of how quickly and flexibly we can move in similar situations – like a travelling corporate “roadshow” or a “snap” news event. I think we’ve proved we can and do go the extra events mile.”
