All Black legend Ian Jones was on hand at BEIA Meetings in Auckland last week to promote a new rugby attraction, All Blacks Experience – SkyCity, as the ideal backdrop for memorable events.
Jones, who played 79 tests for the All Blacks and is the second most capped lock, formed one of the most famous lock pairings in international rugby, often partnered with Robin Brooke in the All Blacks from 1992 to 1998.
Jones was at the All Blacks Experience stand, alongside the Bledisloe Cup, a trophy competed for keenly by the Wallabies and All Blacks – and currently still firmly in All Black hands. Both Jones and the cup are larger than life. Jones is a lean 198cm tall (6ft 6ins in the old measure), while the cup reputedly owes its size to a silversmith who mistakenly used inches instead of centimetres when constructing it.
As the only rugby attraction of its kind in New Zealand and the world’s only All Blacks attraction, the All Blacks Experience makes an ideal backdrop for memorable events. Special touches can include a corporate dinner on the haka pitch while coming face-to-face with a four-metre-high haka – or a cocktail function where guests can practice hands-on rugby skills and drills.
Located within the SkyCity Precinct at 88 Federal Street, the All Blacks Experience is a joint venture between New Zealand Rugby and Ngāi Tahu Tourism.
Congress Rental. Using tech to help stop the spread!
From left: Ian Jones, Bledisloe Cup, Peter Needham of Global Travel Media
As part of the current focus on stopping the spread of Covid-19 or other illness at exhibitions and trade shows, many events across the Tasman are using Congress Rental New Zealand’s Thermal Temperature Screening Camera at the event entrance.
This device scans up to 30 people per second and alerts the event organisers to any attendee running a high temperature – before that person enters the venue. Some delegates noticed this as they walked into the venue at BEIA MEETINGS last week, but as the process is unobtrusive, some were unaware of it.
Another trend is an increase in overseas speakers or presenters needing to participate in New Zealand trade shows, without entering New Zealand. Congress Rental New Zealand helps resolve this by creating an integrated environment to bring all attendees together, both in-person or online, across different languages, using its Hybrid Streaming Remote Interpretation Platform.
Clinton Farley, General Manager of The Hotel Britomart
Another Congress rental product showcased at BEIA MEETINGS is the Silent Conferencing System, which allows distraction-free seminars to run side-by-side at events and trade shows. Delegates saw two live speaker zones run simultaneously within a large exhibition hall, without causing any disruption to those meeting and connecting around the expo spaces. The company provides disposable headsets, so users don’t have to re-use the same headphones, a best-practice hygienic safety measure.
The Hotel Britomart
In May 2021, Auckland’s The Hotel Britomart was named as one of the best new hotels in the world, landing a place on the prestigious Conde Nast Traveler’s 2021 Hot List. The 2021 line up consisted of only 69 properties globally and The Hotel Britomart is the only New Zealand hotel to make the cut, and one of only two from Australasia.
The Hotel Britomart is nestled between Auckland’s CBD and the mighty Waitematā Harbour. Offering only 99 guestrooms and five specialty ‘The Landing’ suites, the hotel prides itself on offering “Auckland’s most refined contemporary accommodation”, featuring crafted interiors, luxurious living spaces and lush garden terraces.
Clinton Farley, General Manager of The Hotel Britomart, was on hand at BEIA MEETINGS to describe The Libraries, a feature of the hotel providing a succession of elegant spaces crafted for intimate events, private meetings and food experiences hosted by the co-founder of the award-winning restaurant, kingi, located on the ground floor of the hotel.
Written by Peter Needham
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