Travel Diary: F1 Austin Race Weekend

Nearly two-dozen Exclusive Resorts members gathered in Austin, Texas last weekend to attend our Members Only Formula One (F1) Race Weekend Event. While F1 is among the world’s most popular spectator events, with events staged at nearly two dozen countries around the globe each year, it has a small presence in America. But it is certainly growing. This was evidenced in the record-setting attendance at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas this year, which topped 400,000 people.

Our team at Exclusive Resorts provided a spectacular weekend-long event for Members, with first class accommodations at the centrally located JW Marriott hotel, private shuttle service to and from the racetrack to avoid the exhaustion of driving in the fierce local traffic, and all-access passes to the Paddock Club—the private hospitality lounges reserved for VIP guests. Beyond that each Member had an access pass to the extremely exclusive Ferrari Team Suite. Here, they were treated to virtual visits from Ferrari F1 drivers, a bird’s-eye view of the track just above the Ferrari team garage, and a bundle of Ferrari swag.

During their two days here—a qualifying day on Saturday that also saw the hosting of junior and women’s events, and race day on Sunday—Members were able to feast their eyes and ears on the amazingly potent racecars as they whizzed by the main straight at speeds approaching 200 mph.

Members were even able to take a stroll through the Pit Lane, where teams of expert mechanics fuel and service the cars in remarkable split-second choreography. They were also able to watch the teams prep their vehicles—and their race teams —for the events. Most intriguing was observing the Ferrari team perform their warm-up synchronized stretches and kinesthetic exercises.

VIP F1 hospitality in the Ferrari Suite is an elevated experience. The buffet lunches included fresh pasta, lamb, roast beef, lobster, cheeses, and hand-made pastries. The champagne toasts that started off the trip continued throughout the events as well as well as the other drinks that also flowed from day until into the evening. But with temperatures in the Austin hovering unseasonably high, above 90 degrees, the amenity Members may have appreciated most was one they never thought about before—the air conditioning, which blew cold and strong throughout the event.

Of course, Exclusive Resorts provided a full-service experience outside of the track as well. This included a group dinner on Friday night at Comedor, a Conde Nast Traveler top-rated local restaurant, assistance with individual dinner reservations or room service orders on Sunday night, private transportation to and from the airport, and even the procurement of individuated on-site Covid-19 testing at the hotel so that Members could abide the track admission requirement of a negative test that was announced by F1 at the last moment—all details were handled in their VIP travel membership.

Knowing what Members want and need, and solving for these issues and desires proactively and professionally, is an Exclusive Resorts hallmark. Numerous Members expressed their appreciation for this seamless attention to detail. Whether this was their first F1 experience, or they were veteran attendees, they had an incredible race weekend that would be hard to top in the future.