What is it, and where? Luxury and style have arrived in Queenstown, on New Zealand's South Island, with the opening of The Spire Hotel. Honoured with the NZ BeST Design Award for Interiors, The Spire is turning well-coiffed heads in the Antipodes.
Who goes there? Stylemeisters wanting serious time out against the backdrop of the Southern Alps and Lake Wakatipu. Queenstown is the adventure-sports capital of the world, but it's best to watch the paragliders from your suite balcony, which comes complete with Dedon furniture to impress your visitors. The red-hued rooms are spacious and warm, with king-sized beds, shag-pile rugs and loads of leather.
Each room also has a 42-inch plasma screen, a surround-sound speaker system and an interactive Windows media package. This means you can check your e-mails, make a call from your Bang & Olufsen phone or peruse the movie selection while soaking in the bathtub.
What's on the menu? Dining is exclusive, The Spire having no more than 14 guests for nightly degustation. Choose from seven or 10 courses, with matching wines, from a menu created by leading New Zealand chef Rex Morgan. A Gordon Ramsay protege and owner of Wellington's famed Citron restaurant, Morgan mixes local produce with international flavours. Breakfast is a lengthy, relaxed affair, with baked muffins, brioche, sourdough, vanilla rice pudding with peach, and prosciutto and buffalo mozzarella dishes. Meanwhile, copper is the new black in the bar, where metalwork provides the bling. Ask for the martini with a kiwi twist. The hotel sits in the heart of the Central Otago wine district, so its wine menu lists the finest local offerings. Try the complimentary vino placed next to your bed and you won't leave your suite.
Anything else we should know? Travelling in a group? The thoughtful folk at The Spire provide a printed sheet of your friends' telephone extensions so you can stay in touch. Chocolates are so passe that turn-down time means miniature tubes of New Zealand spring-water eye gel are left on your pillow. And if you still can't sleep, peruse the book selection on your bedside table.
What's the bottom line? The suite rate is NZ$885 ($4,750) a night, including breakfast and transfers, for the best accommodation in Queenstown. And with more than 270 places to stay, that's saying something.