Getaways: The executive lounge at the Dorsett Gold Coast review
The only way to get access to one of the city’s most exclusive new venues - where you can sip champagne and oysters suspended amid the skyscrapers - is with a cheeky upgrade. Find out how.
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If you want to see the Glitter Strip sparkle, make sure you’re in the box seat at sunset.
Suspended amid the skyscrapers, champagne in hand, the Gold Coast puts on a show.
The sun sinks behind the mountains, over a suburban tapestry to the west, in a burst of gold that bounces back a hundred-fold from high-rise windows.
Our panoramic perch on level 19 – reserved solely for a handful of hotel guests – is the executive lounge at the Dorsett Gold Coast, one of the city’s newest and brightest hotel stars.
The sunset invitation of sips and snacks, extended to anyone who has dropped the relatively minor extra spend on an executive room, is more generous than it sounds.
Our intention had been to meander over to a Broadbeach restaurant, but both the scenery and unexpected smorgasbord steal the show.
There’s scallops on pink-fringed shells, swimming in butter; oysters replenished as magically as that mythical pack of Tim Tams; bite-size brie and chicken tarts; aesthetic antipasto and cheese plates; and so much more.
Beer and wine also flow in a very happy hour-and-a-half from 5pm.
The serving benches are reset again in the morning with a full buffet breakfast, capped with cinnamon-and-honey-spiked smoothies and chocolate croissants.
Outside of those service hours, there’s an endless supply of coffee and cookies and fast Wi-Fi if you need a quiet place to work or relax.
Executive rooms with all-important floor access are available in standard king, corner, accessible, panoramic and twin configurations.
But any room key grants entry to buzzy pool club Isoletto and a host of other perks, which I discover on a single-night staycay.
The Dorsett Gold Coast is the first property from the Hong Kong-based hotel group to open in Australia, but it feels well anchored in its surrounds.
The tower is a gold-tinted tribute to its home, its turquoise, azure and gilt fit-out a polished reflection of the beach that plays peekaboo between buildings.
I’ve trekked all of 15 minutes to land in its cool marble and gold accented lobby, where water bottles and Lindt chocolate are at the ready to replenish travellers as they check in.
We park the car in The Star’s warren-like bowels – there’s a flat overnight rate of $20 for guests – and don’t look for it again until we check out.
The Dorsett occupies a section of a 53-storey $400m tower, topped by The Star Residences and entwined with the casino’s entertainment playground – it’s such a self-contained destination, I’d leave the car at home if I stayed again.
There are no suites among the hotel’s 313 rooms, but they are more modern and well equipped than many of their four-star counterparts.
Cushy robes and slippers hang in the open wardrobe, next to a pod coffee machine, and the big flat screen is equipped with Google Chromecast.
Elemis pump packs get an eco tick in the chic bathroom, which is dominated by a roomy rain shower with indulgent water pressure.
Our balcony looks down on the pastel blue pool, fringed by orange umbrellas in a nod to Isoletto’s refreshing Aperol theming.
Even on a busy, balmy weekend in November, there’s cabana and sunlounger space to spare and a never-ending stack of striped towels to save your spot.
The writer was a guest of Dorsett Gold Coast.
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