Set sail for an Auckland break
The Hilton offers cruise-like luxury for landlubbers in the City of Sails, and staff who are like family, writes Bess Manson.
For a behemoth international hotel brand, Auckland’s Hilton is surprisingly familial. In fact, the staff there are like one big family.
The place
Like a big white cake floating on the sea, the Hilton might have just about the best spot in Auckland.
Looking out to sea from my comfortable bed, I might have been on some cruise liner, except the cruising life is not for me.
The aptly named fifth-floor Bow Suite is supposed to emulate a ship, and had cruise ships moored next to the hotel before the global pandemic. In their absence, the view of the harbour is uninterrupted.
I may have missed the buzz of the America’s Cup by a week, but the harbour was like an aquatic Piccadilly Circus with sailing boats, commuter ferries and cargo ships puttering in and out.
The room
I’ve had flats smaller than this suite, which is comfortably curved with floor to ceiling windows giving way to a wrap around balcony. Not bad.
It has elegant lounging space, a massive bed, office space, and room to do the tango if you want.
That said, for such an impressive room, it’s odd that the bedside tables, wardrobe and drinks cabinet looked pretty tired.
The bathroom had a tub, a huge shower and double basins, but it was the toilet that had the impossibly generous views.
I’m one of those cheapskates who feels the need to bag a free shower cap, so you can imagine my glee at finding Crabtree & Evelyn bathroom goodies.
I took my book out to the balcony and pretended to read while I listened to the Jersey Boys cast rehearse for a media gig downstairs, and watched the TV crew doing take after take of a spontaneous presentation on the visiting show.
The service
A knock at the door on my first night heralded good things – a bloke delivering a plate of handmade chocolates and a bottle of sparkling water.
I talked to Lito who came to clean the room and has worked at the Hilton for 13 years. He pointed to a cargo ship moored in the distance and said he worked as a midshipman on it.
Gustavo Concha, the hotel’s chief concierge, also sailed into Auckland Harbour and decided to stick around.
He was onboard the Chilean Navy vessel, the Esmeralda, in 1989. He’s been the Hilton concierge for 20 years, and says ‘‘I could write a book’’, on the things he’d seen and heard.
He recalled a couple asking if he could arrange for them to be married within 24 hours. He got a celebrant, organised a wedding feast and rustled up as many staff as he could to throw a proper shindig.
The food
On the first night I ate in my room. Room service food is as good as its club sandwich. This one was great, with generous fillings, crisp french fries and extra condiments.
All feelings of imposter syndrome had vanished by the time I was eating my breakfast of granola muesli, coconut yoghurt and apple compote, at the table on the balcony. Yes, I had arrived.
By the next morning’s herb omelette I was considering what it must be like to be a hotel resident. Margaret Thatcher had it made at the Ritz in London.
That night, after an evening tipple at Bellini Bar – a knock-your-socks-off martini to whet the whistle – I headed upstairs to Fish, the in-house hotel restaurant.
Joined by a couple of old friends, we ordered up a storm.
Jacob was our plaid-suited waiter, a young man as cheery as they come.
He’s been at the Hilton for five years, working while he studied for a degree, which he got a few weeks earlier.
Wednesday night was low-key at Fish, but there were enough diners to give it a good vibe. The views from more floor to ceiling windows is all the decor you need – twinkly lights, pristine harbour.
‘‘I couldn’t find an office with a better view,’’ Jacob says, really selling it now.
The food was delicious. We had the trevally sashimi with pickled wasabi, rhubarb and braised turnip; snapper with the best risotto I’ve tasted (saffron and clam), fish and chips jazzed up with tomato madras relish; and housemade pasta caponata, goat’s curd and pistachio.
We washed it down with at least one bottle of The Landing Chardonnay 2019.
Stepping out
After filling our boots at Fish we found ourselves a few hundred metres down the road at the Viaduct. We ducked into Danny Doolans, a gin joint jumping with a band pumping out some good
The highlight The lowlight The verdict The essentials
The writer was a guest of the Hilton.
Centre: Snapper and risotto at the Hilton’s Fish restaurant.
Left: The view to the Auckland Harbour Bridge from the Hilton. covers. A heaving dance floor, a couple of beers. A good night all round.
The following evening, in the hotel issue white dressing gown and slippers, I headed to the famous glass-sided pool, only to find it was under repair. I checked out the well-equipped gym. It’s pretty comprehensive, but it was a beautiful night so I took a jog around the Viaduct instead. There’s plenty going on nearby.
The Shucker Brothers in the Ferry Building, (West Side, 99 Quay St) is an excellent spot to watch the ferries come and go while enjoying some oysters, though the winning dish is the trevally ceviche on squid ink tostada.
On my last day, on Concha ’s recommendation, I took a ferry to Devonport. There’s a decent walk around some golden sand beaches, good swimming in warm waters, and some pretty excellent squid and a Peroni at the Devon on the Wharf just outside the ferry terminal.
The views – a cruise without having to leave terra firma; the staff, who make the hotel experience sing.
The pool is closed until further notice, but Concha says it could be open before the end of the month.
Location is a winner. Whether you stay in the wallet-cringing Bow Suite or the reasonable roomwith-a-view, the Hilton is a brilliant place to base yourself for an Auckland jaunt.
Rooms at the Hilton range from $289 for a Guest Room, to $907 for the Bow Suite. The Relaxation Suite will set you back $1319. The hotel is offering a Celebrations Package (from $319), which includes a Deluxe Harbour View Room, sparkling wine and cheese platter at Bellini, breakfast for two, valet parking, and free wi-fi.