Garish is banned, gorgeous is in at new hotels in Surfers Paradise, writes Julietta Jameson.
The Gold Coast has been a city of hotels since the 1970s, when high rises began shooting up as quickly as you could say "shonky planning". Although their quality was as up and down as the lifts that serviced them, the Gold Coast now has some swanky new properties that rise above the rest, as well as a classic hotel or two freshened by facelifts to keep up with the top end. So if you're thinking of beach stays, here are several new reasons to look to Queensland.
Hilton Surfers Paradise
Going for gold ... the lobby of the QT hotel.
This two-tower $700-million stunner with spectacular water views is a game changer. Its dark-stone foyer walls and floors offer respite from the surrounding glitz, while the laneway layout is designed to echo a European streetscape.
On entry, the concierge is to the left in a discrete kiosk; to the right, running the length of the foyer, is the Food Store, a deli-cafe serving Toby's Estate coffee, artisan produce, pasta, tasting plates and wine.
The hotel's bar, Fix, on the floor above the lobby, has large windows, not unlike oversize portholes, through which you can watch the street scene below. The Fix vibe is big-city, with studded upholstery, booths, candlelight and waistcoat-wearing bar staff plying cocktails from a Gold Coast-appropriate menu (think elderflower, lime and ginger with white spirits). Next door to the bar is Luke Mangan's Salt, a study in all that is good in celebrity chef-dom, where the food lives up to the hype and the wine list is a triumph.
Further upstairs, the accommodation is casual, with tough-wearing fabrics on no-nonsense, but supremely comfortable, lounges and blond-wood chairs. It's elegant, pleasing and cleverly designed for beach holiday, honeymoon or business visitors.
Our suite has a large balcony with dining seating for four and breathtaking views, visible from the entire living area through floor-to-ceiling glass and windows that open to let in sea breezes.
What's lavish here are the amenities and space: a granite-bench, fully kitted-out kitchen (yes, the Food Store will prepare takeaway hampers for guests dining in-room), big TVs, fabulous Hilton beds, two bathrooms and a walk-in wardrobe.
The Hilton has wonderful pool areas and an Australian first: a beach concierge for hotel guests.
The concierges take umbrellas, deck chairs and Eskies of drinks and nibbles to the sand, set it up and serve. It's fun and novel, so expect other tourists to take photos.
Hilton Surfers Paradise Hotel and Apartments, Orchid Avenue, Surfers Paradise. Double rooms from $299 a night, includes breakfast. Phone (07) 5680 8000; see surfersparadise.hilton.com.
QT Gold Coast
The old Gold Coast International is no more. In its place is the QT, a hotel with a sunny optimism and interiors reminiscent of 1950s-style Palm Springs glamour: bold yellows on hallway carpets; photomontages of seaside scenes on ceilings; primary-colour wall features near beds, which themselves have black and white awning-style striped skirtings.
The QT lobby is open plan, its zones defined by statement furnishings and themes. Retro clocks, funky light fittings and an LED art wall make their own statements against a subtle backdrop of milk-coloured floorboards and glass walls.
There's a lobby cafe dominated by a Ferrari-red espresso machine, an indoor "lawn" area for cocktails (where Gold Coast fashionistas are holding their Christmas parties) and a lobby shop selling stylish knick-knacks. Stingray, the on-site bar, is the place for glamour. Friday nights see queues snaking down the driveway.
Upstairs is Bazaar restaurant, described as "an interactive marketplace" but really a buffet. It maintains the fun theme, though, with lively retro decor of vintage enamel kitchenware, cookbooks, canisters and utensils amid produce arranged artfully beside pot plants, flowers and candles. Bazaar has open cooking stations and a range of offerings that are a cut above the usual buffet fare, with a lot of locally sourced produce.
The service is sunny, too.
QT Gold Coast, Staghorn Avenue, Surfers Paradise. Double rooms from $165 a night. Phone (07) 5584 1200; see qtgoldcoast.com.au.
Sea Temple
The restaurant won't open until January but then, this new hotel already has much to show off. Built on the Esplanade in the 77-storey Soul building, with uninterrupted views, the Sea Temple announces itself with a grand sweeping staircase of marble and glass, elegant, oversize furniture in neutral tones and, like its sister resorts in north Queensland, unashamed luxury.
Accommodation is in two- and three-bedroom apartments. As the Soul building is also a residential tower, how many apartments come under Sea Temple management is still undecided. However, the hotel's Ocean View apartments have 180-degree views and huge balconies fitted with six-seat tables and day beds.
The decor is sumptuous and coastal cool. Amenities include a 35-metre outdoor pool, a lawn and barbecue area and a 25-metre indoor pool, sauna and steam room. For absolute beachfront and luxury, Sea Temple is up there.
Sea Temple Surfers Paradise, The Esplanade. Rooms from $270 a night. Phone (07) 5635 5700; see mirvachotels.com/sea-temple.
Marriott Resort and Spa
A $20 million refurbishment of this classic hotel has brought aspects of its design and interiors into the 21st century while maintaining the charm. The lobby bar still serves afternoon tea; the sweeping stairway still serves brides and debutantes having their photographs taken; and the lagoon pool still has tropical fish, a waterfall and a long, meandering stream.
Blessed with good architectural bones, the hotel is light and generously proportioned, with 329 rooms spread across 28 levels. The rooms are enormous, too - even those at entry-level prices - seemingly expanded by the white walls, woods and sandy tones. Updated furnishings and $500,000 in new chandeliers are cosmetic touches, while the new LA-style poolside cabanas for hire bring the resort into the now.
The restaurant's outdoor area has been brought indoors and a new grill menu has been added to the Marriott's famous buffet offering.
Surfers Paradise Marriott Resort and Spa, Ferny Avenue. Rooms from $215 a night (which can sleep up to four - two adults and two children aged 14 and under). Phone (07) 5592 9800; see marriott.com.au
Peppers Broadbeach
In the grown-up, urbane area of Broadbeach, with its sophisticated shopping, eating and drinking, this Peppers property has cute touches such as kerbside check-in and iPads, scooters and surfboards for hire.
The hotel has good-size one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments featuring European appliances, a pillow menu, laundry facilities, iPod docks and wireless broadband. The public spaces include Zen-style gardens, lawns, a private cinema, a teppanyaki barbecue area, steam rooms, a sauna and several pools. Resort check-in is conducted at Tower 2.
Peppers Broadbeach, corner of Surf Parade and Elizabeth Avenue, Broadbeach. One-bedroom apartments from $265 a night. Phone 1300 737 444; see peppers.com.au/broadbeach.
Julietta Jameson travelled courtesy of Tourism Queensland.
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