It’s been a while between drinks for me at the Sofitel Queenstown in New Zealand’s premiere alpine ski town. I first stayed at the hotel back in 2005 when it opened to much fanfare, the first true five star hotel in town and the first Sofitel in New Zealand.
The hotel was proud of so many firsts, especially the deep double spa bath created by UK design guru Sir Norman Foster. The Sofitel Queenstown was the first hotel in New Zealand to install the unique soak bath that takes up to 190 litres of water.
Many an après hour was spent soaking in bubbles watching the tv screen installed within the bathroom walls at the foot of the bath, when I descended upon Queenstown for snow play each season. It felt like pure luxury and indulgence, and it was. Especially when followed by a good night’s slumber in the Sofitel MyBed created exclusively for Sofitel.
Since then two more Sofitels have opened in New Zealand (Auckland and Wellington) while the Sofitel Queenstown has quietly continued to nestle in a downtown nook with Remarkables mountain or Whakatipu lake views up high, and skipping distance to Fergburger. I’ve dappled in the hotel So Spa for hours at a time, experiencing some of the best indigenous day spa treatments I’ve been fortunate to have in a spoilt travel writer world. But that was then.
I am a long time Francophile, so the idea that front of house will say bonjour upon arrival (and they do) is enough for me to swoon. It’s out of season this time, spring, and the weather is warm and sun filled and snow but a distant memory. I’ve just finished a seven day hiking retreat in Glenorchy at Aro Ha Wellness Retreat and am floating on a detoxed cloud as I enter my old haunt.
If I could do the obligatory four Parisienne cheek kisses to the concierge, I would. But I don’t, because that would be over the top. There’s something about hotels filled with good memories of personal times gone by that inspire a longing for them to continue.
The lobby now is all velvets and shiny things, a chandelier here, a grand piano there, some sparkly walls and gold iron. It’s fun and alive and makes you smile, a wonderful entrèe that Elton would love.
There’s 82 guest rooms and suites, a Left Bank Cafè that is a Kiwi Parisienne twist and Le Salon Rouge (or 1789 bistro) that is as the name suggests, très red in the lobby level – all soft candle lighting, deep rouge, cocktails and grazing plates. The Jervois Steak House still stands proud, a Queenstown institution for meat lovers who understand their cut from their cure.
I’m pleased to see the king size Sofitel MyBed remains and it is as cocooning as it ever was, like a giant hug. The double spa bath and television also retain pride of place. Yes, I again spend many an hour in the tub and arrange late checkout so I can soak until my flight departs.
The guest room dècor is inoffensive and neutral tone (some artwork on the walls would lift the design), most likely to showcase the view from the Juliet balcony out to the peaks and beyond. Queenstown has changed significantly over the years, for better or worse, as more skiers and snowboarders discover these hills and high commercial rents mean independent stores downtown have fled to Arrowtown which is having it’s own resurgence fifteen minutes down the road.
The Sofitel Queenstown may not have the hip and influencer fare of newer hotels that have opened more recently or the selfie obsession that roof top lodge bars supply. But what it does have is a self assuredness that comes with age.
There’s a security in knowing Fergburger will always be there serving up burgers to a street long queue, that Patagonia will never make enough chocolate to tire of, that the TSS Earnslaw will continue to chug away up and down the lake each day and that you can still, fifteen years later wake up with a half eaten burger left next to a bucket of French champagne (empty) on the Juliet Balcony.
It’s good to be back.
Rachael Oakes-Ash was a guest of Sofitel Queenstown and Accor Hotels.
