Luxury, top service and opulence at the Langham in Auckland
This was the luxury travel finale of the year. To spend a couple of days at a hotel in Auckland so my wife Chrissy could do some Christmas shopping at Newmarket. She said there was such a range she didn't need to go anywhere else. Her every whim was catered for.
We picked up our Jucy from the Auckland airport depot and the staff there are great. They are under such pressure in the busy season with tourists rushing to get on the road after long and short haul flights. Our car was waiting and we headed into sunny Auckland. Before long, we arrived at the Langham Hotel on Symonds St.
Picture it: Chrissy and I are sipping champagne listening to Mozart just before Christmas in the Governor's Suite at the Langham. The fabulous suite is all 83 square metres, seven plush rooms, the works!, This is where celebrities and the rich and famous hideaway. A blind man could tell why the Langham in Auckland was named New Zealand's best hotel in 2007.
It oozes quality and class. The suite has a giant spa, a shower with half a dozen jets coming at your from everywhere, vast lounge, a guest's toilet, a changing area, separate toilet, grand bedroom, foyer, and a large board room / dining room. The suite is four times the size of your average luxury hotel room. The fittings, character furniture, antique-style lamps, art work and ambience are sumptuous, opulent, ritzy and total class. Our king-size plus bed was so wide our fee wouldn't tip over the end when we romantically slept sideways. I noticed all the light bulbs in the suite and in all other rooms were eco-saving environment bulbs which helped win them the top NZ green globe sustainable award in 2007. They are at the forefront of energy consumption, water saving and waste recycling.
The check-in to the Langham was the best ever in New Zealand or anywhere I have been in the world. I drove up to the entrance and a concierge Kevin opened my car door and said "hello Mr Brook". I found that staggering enough then another pleasant hotel staff Peter steered me right straight past the hotel check-in foyer and up to the club floor right to my suite. No check-in! He just said "here's your suite, relax, I'll bring you your key"! Heaven. I often judge hotels by the quality of the concierge service and this 5-star hotel was THE best. Their front desk staff actually left the front desk to show me the restaurants and they spoke passionately and with sincerity about the quality of food.
The club lounge was a welcome oasis at the end of the day after I ran around the Domain (while Chrissy drop-shopped). I skirted the cricket boundaries and wove around the pohutukawas, flowering like Christmas trees right on queue. Around 5.30pm our Spanish bar staff Carlota served us a chilled Deutz and we chatted about her studying accountancy next year. The nibbles û salmon, cheese, guacamole, other dips, prawns and so on were impossible to resist. The grand furniture, rich traditional colours made the lounge a Mecca for club floor guests.
But the suite was something we had never imagined before û and this after staying at many of the finest hotels around the world and at the best luxury lodges from Matauri Bay to Glenorchy this year. The classical mahogany furniture (made by LaurieÆs in Christchurch), the spaciousness, two 42 inch plasma tv screens, the white and gold ring Menton fine bone china, the heavy marbled bathrooms and the utter silence (the hush glass ensuring no street noise at all) made this suite for any Governor.
We dined at Partington's where their staff went to so much trouble to provide whatever I wanted without imposing. I had the seared scallops on cauliflower pure as a mains, washed down by Veuve Clicquot and the taste lingered all night. No wonder Partington's was name best New Zealand restaurant in 2006 and 2007 and it's still right up there.
I bumped into the young Mauritian hotel manager Vincent Macquet who looked like he had just come out of university yet was all the charm and business-like professional five-star mannerisms which have seen him help run other top hotels around the world. He is so passionate and excited about the grand Chuan Spa opening for March 2009. Vincent is convinced their hotel occupancy will remain strong with extra special packaging, including the spa and other specials.
It was sad to leave the Governor Suite, it felt like home but as you would expect for $1800 for the night, though luckily I was travel writing and the charged was kindly waivered.
We beetled back out to Auckland airport after a relaxing weekend at the Langham. Our Jucy had cosily been tucked up and valet in their covered carpark each night. I hope everyone has a safe and fabulous Christmas and gets out and drives a Jucy during 2009.
