European Luxury on the Tweed Coast
Your First look at this Italian inspired hotel opening this month at Cabarita Beach, writes luxury travel specialist Sally Scott.
By Guest Styler | 27th May 2015A taste of the Mediterranean arrived in Australia when Halcyon House opened in Cabarita Beach on the Tweed Coast in May. Inspired by the mesmerising coastal villas of Italy’s Positano, Lake Como and the Isle of Capri, Halcyon House is a hotel like no other.
Designed by Brisbane’s Anna Spiro, the 21 rooms and suites feature décor with a ‘white washed’ Mediterranean feel to it, but firmly planted on a quintessential Australian surf beach – European sensibilities with an Australian heartbeat has been the brief.
But, it’s not just the décor and architecture that oozes European-style luxury; Hotel Manager Mauro De Riso has been imported straight from Italy from his most recent post at the luxurious J.K. Place Capri to instil Italian service and style to the project.
What we love about Halcyon’s suites is that Interior Designer, Anna Spiro, has individually and lovingly curated each room. Anna has travelled with the hotel’s owners to the US to buy vintage pieces as well as furnishings from some of New York’s top designers and artists to furnish the new hotel. What a dream job! A team of bespoke craftsmen from Northern New South Wales were engaged to bring to life many of the vintage pieces.
These pieces sit alongside Australian treasures such as antique seascapes collected from around the country.
“I wanted to help the owners create something unique, not currently offered here in Australia. I want the interior to seem as if it has been collected over a long period of time, and always existed,” Anna says.
There are a range of room types from the petite Classic room with King size bed, sitting area and terrace and larger Deluxe rooms with balconies on the top floors and some featuring Ocean Views. King beds can be split into twins, making it an ideal choice for girls’ getaways. The Halcyon Suite at 130sqm will be the ultimate in beach side luxury with two bedrooms separate lounge and dining, beautiful oak floors and private staircase leading to the pool and beach beyond.
The focal point of the hotel is the outdoor pool and poolside restaurant, Paper Daisy. The 100-seat restaurant is lead by one of Australia’s most promising young chefs, Ben Devlin (Queensland Chef of the Year 2014, ex-Esquire) producing confident coastal cooking in a relaxed setting.
Conference organisers will be clambering to secure unique events at Halcyon House, with 150m2 of function space on the ground floor overlooking the pool and ocean. Other services and facilities you’d expect from a luxury boutique hotel of its calibre include 24 hour reception, concierge, guest lounge, business centre and day spa.
Having just opened in May, rooms at this Mediterranean inspired hotel start from $550 per night
Halcyon House 21 Cypress Crescent, Cabarita Beach NSW
