Inside The Ritz-Carlton Melbourne, Australia s tallest hotel offering unparalleled views of the city - CNA Luxury
Inside The Ritz-Carlton Melbourne, Australia's tallest hotel offering unparalleled views of the city
Check in for the most spectacular views from The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne, soaring 80 storeys above the city.
Jamie Nonis
It may strike as odd that The Ritz-Carlton’s long-awaited return to Australia after an 18-year hiatus would begin in Perth, not nearly as known for its vibrancy as, say, Melbourne or Sydney.
Now I had the good fortune of visiting and dining at The Ritz-Carlton, Perth, situated in Elizabeth Quay on the banks of the Swan River, soon after Western Australia opened up to international visitors last year. A nd while the beautiful waterfront property is certainly one of Perth’s finer jewels, I’ve returned home rather edified following a glorious four-night stay at The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne, which opened in March, a week before the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix.
The brand’s second Australian outpost, also designed by Australian architects Cottee Parker, will, quite literally, take your breath away.
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Soaring 80 storeys above the city, The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne is now Australia’s tallest hotel occupying the top 17 floors (plus three lower floors) of West Side Place, a A$2.4 billion (S$2.1 billion) mixed-use development comprised of four hexagonal glass towers located in the western end of Melbourne’s Central Business District.
The area is evidently not the most obvious choice for such a fine beacon of luxury, and pundits believe it’s a billion-dollar gambit by developer Far East Consortium and Ritz-Carlton owner Marriott on the future gentrification of the district that’s a ways away from the central city buzz.
The new-build hotel sits on the former site of Melbourne newspaper publisher The Age, but you will find nary a trace of the previous tenant once you step through its glittering facade.
It is also quickly apparent why The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne has been nine years in the making, opening its doors four years later than originally planned.
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MEANINGFUL SPACES
Turn after turn, the interior designed by Melbourne-based BAR Studio is imbued with meaningful spaces that thoughtfully combine heritage with high gloss.
As you move through the space, what strikes you is the keen emphasis on interpreting the interior through a lens of artistry, cradled by cultural relevance.
We learn of how the beautifully curated artworks by local artists that adorn the arrival lobby speak of Australia’s cultural identity and indigenous heritage, telling the city’s unique story from before and after its Victorian gold rush era.
As dusk approaches, this takes the form of an immersive cultural soundscape that unfolds in the arrival lobby every evening, replete with a visual light display telling a sensory story of emotion and authentic connection to place. Scenography, they call it.
But nothing prepares you for the scene that unravels up high above. A 45-second elevator ride (someone counted) whisks you up to the Sky Lobby on the 80th floor for the official check-in and for a moment, I wonder if I’m dizzy from the altitude.
Nay. It’s the spectacular views afforded by the floor-to-ceiling windows that have me giddy with delight.
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The sense of grandeur in the Sky Lobby is outshone only by the sweeping views stretching from Port Phillip Bay below to the Dandenong Ranges far in the distance. From the mountains to the sea, it is awe-inspiring to say the least.
The Sky Lobby also serves as the gateway to intimate cocktail bar Cameo as well as the hotel’s signature restaurant Atria, which both offer more of these sensational panoramas that will leave you a little weak in the knees. It’s altogether an assuredly glitzy 360-degree vantage point we assure you won’t find elsewhere in the city.
Reflecting the city’s obsession with all things epicurean, Atria is named after the brightest star in the southern constellation, Triangulum Australe, and it stars one of Australia’s top culinary stars Mark Best as culinary advisor. For Atria, t he award-winning chef-restaurateur-author worked closely with executive chef Michael Greenlaw to develop a “creative and progressive” menu focused on locally-sourced seasonal produce and dishes with a nod to honouring sustainable harvesters, growers, graziers and fishermen through a respectful connection to place and a considered understanding of the seasons.
Hyper seasonality, they call it.
It’s a concept that celebrates the ritual of place and respect for the ingredient, and what’s most remarkable is how guests have within view as you dine the regions from which they have been sourced. The local oysters were sublime, the wine divine.
Designed by local firm Layan, Atria features as a centrepiece a handmade chandelier by local artists Flaming Beacon, and my favourite spot during my stay was always at the 19-metre-long bar crafted from sustainably sourced Victorian ash – a prime position from which to survey the surrounds all the way to the Yarra Valley and beyond.
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