Crowne Plaza, operated by the IHG group, broadly recognized as one of the leading hotels in Budapest and the region, underwent recently a major architectural facelift positioning it as a strong four-star competitor of five-star hotels.
The management decided to add a special flavour to the new style of interior by putting a large, 180mm tall clear plexiglass Gömböc on permanent exhibit. The Gömböc was unveiled earlier by general manager Maurice Janssen (top picture, right) with inventor Gábor Domokos. After the event, the specially illuminated showcase was moved to the main lobby, the hotels’s busiest location, to become the world’s first Gömböc exhibit which can be visited 24/7, round the clock.
Soon afterwards another Gömböc showcase emerged in the lobby, featuring smaller Gömböc models which are on sale at the hotel.
The hotel is selling Gömböc models on a non-profit basis, spending all financial gains to donate Gömböc Light models to Hungarian schools. In this effort Crowne Plaza joined forces with Medve Matek, organizer of the country’s largest and most popular math camps and math competitions. The latter, being conducted in the open and combined with several miles of intensive hiking, are regarded as worldwide unique events, often attracting 5000+ competitors in the age of 9-90 years. Medve Matek has excellent ties to Hungarian schools and prepares proposals to the hotel management for potential locations of the donations.
The Crowne Plaza / Medve Matek initiative may make a difference to many schools. While Gömböc Light models are in an affordable price range below EUR 100, their cost would still prove to be prohibitive for the majority of Hungarian schools. Nevertheless, having a physical Gömböc on the premises is a great advantage when teaching about geometry and equilibrium. Medve Matek donated earlier 35 Gömböc models to schools and the feedback was very positive. Crowne Plaza and Medve Matek hope that the new initiative may take off in the next months.