The art of relaxing

Combining a stay at the W Brisbane with a visit to the restaurants at the Brisbane Quarter and GOMA makes for one elegant staycation

Opening the door to my room at Brisbane’s W Hotel, I felt a little bit how Alice may have felt when she went tumbling down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. Because this room is a wonder, and quite unlike any other hotel room I have stayed in before.

The designers of the W clearly threw the hotel rule book out the window when they created this Brisbane riverside hotel – my room does not have a muted grey or beige throw cushion in sight, nor any generic prints of bobbing boats or golden sunsets.

Instead the first thing I see is a tall, circular wooden cage of sorts, which turns out to be a rather clever wardrobe.

There’s a multi-coloured pastel mural on the wall behind the bed, a chaise longue boasting hot pink cushions, and a Tiffany Blue cabinet which turns out to be the refrigerator.

Perched atop this is a neon pink tray complete with martini glasses and a shaker – but alas no martini – and a bright yellow pineapple ice bucket.

All these bright colours and quirky touches could so easily slip into the garish – but they don’t.

Often when I stay in hotel rooms, all I want to do is sleep in them, but this one encourages both conversation and relaxation.

It helps that our view of the Brisbane River is just lovely – the W is perched on the North Quay end of Brisbane city’s river – with a bird’s eye view of South Brisbane’s cultural precinct. Later on it will take us just minutes to walk across the Kurilpa Bridge to the precinct to take in the sights at the Gallery of Modern Art.

Perhaps most surprising of all is its pool area and Wet Deck bar, which again shouldn’t work, but does, and very glamorously.

Think bold, black and white geometric patterns on the ceiling and huge columns surrounding the pool, and repeated on the pool floor’s mosaic tiles. With its chic poolside lounges and cocktail bar, I asked my friend how she would describe the vibe – and believe me it is a vibe – of this area and she immediately answered, “Austin Powers ’60s glamour meets Instagram chic”.

So there you have it, and judging by the bright young things sipping cocktails and taking selfies, it is indeed very ’gram friendly.

Downstairs at the Living Room Bar, the glamour continues with impossibly cool, low, mustard-coloured lounges, swinging egg chairs and gold cocktail tables.

This is where my friend and I head for a pre-dinner drink before the short walk to the Brisbane Quarter’s Phoenix restaurant.

The W Hotel is part of the Brisbane Quarter’s residential, commercial, retail and hospitality precinct, with its foyer just an internal stroll from The Quarter’s attractions.

Restaurant-wise, there’s the upmarket Italian Persone, sashimi and sushi specialty haven Tenya. We chose Phoenix, having heard good things about its seafood menu and its Peking duck pancakes, both proving delicious. This is upmarket Chinese in a sophisticated setting, not a cheap and cheerful cafe, but not outrageously expensive either.

We ate dumplings galore pancakes, and excellent fried lobster tail.

A short stroll back to the hotel and a nightcap at the Living Room later, we slept soundly and woke up to a sparkling Brisbane River below and brekky at the hotel’s Three Blue Ducks restaurant.

Our husbands joined us for the Ducks’ signature spanner crab scramble, and the stroll across the bridge to walk off our very indulgent stay and visit Brisbane’s excellent Gallery of Modern Art, or GOMA as it is known and loved.

There’s always something wonderful to explore there – currently it’s The Soul Trembles, an exhibition of works by Japanborn, Berlin-based Chiharu Shiota – as well as its neighbours, the Queensland Art Gallery, State Library of Queensland and, of course, the Queensland Performing Arts Centre.

The thing I enjoyed most about our overnight stay was the W’s proximity to the CBD, the cultural precinct and upmarket Brisbane Quarter. It’s the perfect spot for a special occasion stay, or a staycation in BrisVegas.

Just before we checked out we had the W’s Eat Your Art Out High Tea in the Living Room Bar, which was as surprising and eclectic as it sounds. Served on a funky, W-shaped, three-tiered stand, it looked more like a work of art than an afternoon tea.

There was the usual staples lsuch as scones and jam, but also a “paint your own panna cotta” with edible paint, candied walnuts and sugar pearls to decorate, as well as a bright green pomme verte mousse and a truly delicious warm confit duck pie.

It all looked almost too good to eat. Almost.