So much to do, so little time.
Guests are within striking
distance of the new Perth Stadium,
and some of the city’s best eating
and drinking venues.
Inspired by Roman bathhouse
design, the ground-floor Crown
Spa is an aqua-hued sanctuary. Limber
up next door in the huge 24-hour
fitness centre.
Feeding a thousand guests
each morning is no mean
feat, yet the Epicurean’s bufet
($42, $45 on Sundays) is as opulent
as it is cosmopolitan. Asian staples are
lined up with breakfast pizze, savoury
doughnuts and a made-for-Instagram
chocolate fountain that dominates an
almost irresistible sweet-tooth section.
TWR has an ambitious
cocktail list of tweaked
classics and bold inventions, and
an expansive list of whiskies. The
action unfolds in a beautiful Belle
Époque-inspired space of jewel
tones with big-sky views over the
river and city skyline.
WHERE5kmfrom
the CBD.COSTFrom
$308, without breakfast.
AT A GLANCE
500 rooms, suites
and villas, adjoining
rooms; bars, restaurant,
cafés, pools, day spa,
gym, sauna, paid and
free parking.IN ROOM
Free WiFi, tablet, bath,
bathroom TV, cofee
machine, pillow menu,
Antica Farmacista
toiletries.BEST ROOMS
All suites and villas have
access to the 15th-floor
Crystal Club lounge
serving complimentary
breakfast, afternoon
tea, evening drinks
and canapés.CROWN TOWERS PERTH
Crown’s 500-room Perth trophy follows the bigger-is-
better principles that define the Melbourne original, but
adapts the brief to create a distinctive west-coast urban
resort. A soaring lobby makes the most of the Western
Australian sunshine, as does the showpiece pool starring
lagoons and cabanas. Arrive and depart in style via
a porte-cochère with separate pick-up and drop-of
spots. Daybeds are standard, even in entry-level rooms,
while bathrooms sport twin vanities, baths and Spanish
marble. While the size of the machine occasionally causes
problems (concierges going AWOL, say, or inconveniently
timed room-service delivery), the prevailing fix-it-fast
service attitude restores confidence.Great Eastern Hwy,
Burswood, (08) 9362 8888, crowntowersperth.com.au
WHERECBD.COSTFrom $340, with breakfast.AT A GLANCE240 rooms, suites and
penthouse, adjoining rooms; bar, restaurants, café, health centre, paid valet and
self-parking.IN ROOMFree WiFi, smart TV, some baths, cofee machine, pillow
menu, Agraria San Francisco toiletries.BEST ROOMSThe 16th-floor penthouse
has 180-degree views of the city, a double king bed and club lounge access.INTERCONTINENTAL
PERTH CITY CENTRE
Perth’s newest five-star delivers
on many levels, from the locally
commissioned artworks in
guestrooms to the club lounge
with city views. The $70-million
transformation of an ugly-ducking
hotel into a rather dazzling
Intercontinental touched
everything except the modernist
façade. The 240 rooms feature
earthy tones with marble and brass
accents, rain showers and clean
lines. Comforts such as smart TVs
and baths (request when booking)
make nights in enticing, but the
tapas at Heno & Rey, dry-aged
steaks at Ascua and drinks-with-
views at mezzanine-level The Loft
Bar aren’t to be missed. On the
doorstep are hopping Northbridge
and a revived St Georges Terrace.
A compelling case for why west is
best.815 Hay St, Perth, (08) 9486
5700, perth.intercontinental.comFirst impressions count, a
truism evident in the lobby’s
atrium clad with limestone and
featuring a huge painting by Judith
White and carpets in hues drawn from
the Western Australian landscape.
Corporates will welcome the
floor of meeting rooms with
outdoor terraces, barbecue facilities
and self-serve snacks and juices.
Who said business had to be boring?
Spanish flavours dominate
at Ascua (Spanish for ember)
and streetside tapas bar Heno & Rey.
Breakfast, though served in Ascua,
spans the globe, from Penang chicken
curry to German breads, avo toast
to bacon hot from the grill.
Skip the unexceptional minibar
and explore instead Perth’s
burgeoning small-bar scene –
Mechanics Institute or the Shadow
Wine Bar, perhaps – or linger in the
hotel with a glass of the state’s finest
on The Loft’s terrace. In a hurry? Grab
a cofee from Graiti, the adjacent
hole-in-the-wall café on King Street.GOURMET TRAVELLER 185Crown lobby.Terrace beside
the Gallery
Meeting Suites.Perth