Mr & Mrs Smith

QT Gold Coast

Gold Coast, Australia

Hedonistic, high-rise QT Gold Coast hotel aims to please, with dreamy dining, a cool pool, stylish spa and sea-view rooms, all just a skip from the beach. A vintage Holden car in the driveway, longboard strapped to its roof, is a nod to the surf-Mecca setting; the cute baby-blue scooter (touting a 'rent me' sign) nearby also promises fun in the sun. Design (care of architect Nic Graham and Melbourne's Spacecraft) is as vibrant and friendly as the staff; food at globe-spanning Bazaar restaurant is equally creative.

Need to know

• Rooms 297, including 20 suites.
• Rates Double rooms from $145.93 (AU$150), excluding tax at 10 per cent.
  The price shown represents the lowest nightly rate for a double room available at this hotel over the next 21 days. Any price conversions from the hotel's local currency (AU$150) have been conducted using today's exchange rates from xe.com.
• More details Rates exclude Continental breakfast (AU$18) or buffet breakfast (AU$32; AU$15 for a child).
• Facilities Spa, tennis courts, boutique, concierge, DVD/film library for a fee, scooter and retro-style bikes for hire, WiFi throughout (for AU$9 an hour; AU$18 for 24 hours), valet parking. In rooms: flatscreen TV, radio, iPod dock, minibar, Nespresso coffee machine, WiFi and wired internet, Uspa toiletries, DIY lemonade kits.
• Poolside Surrounded by tropical foliage, bright yellow 'Acapulco' lounge chairs, comfy white sunloungers and handy side tables for your mojito, the QT pool is a tempting oasis. It's not huge, but it's a decent size, and should satisfy all your posing requirements.
• Check-out 11am; check-in, 2pm, both flexible subject to availability. Late check-outs cost AU$15 for each hour after midday until 4pm.
• Children Very welcome; baby cots can be supplied for free, and extra beds for older kids up to age 12 are AU$55 a child a night. More...
• Also SpaQ is your go-to spot for pampering treatments, and includes a wet zone with a unisex hammam and ice-fountain for steamy times (and cooling down afterwards!). Waxing, brow and lash grooming will ensure you look your best.

Food and drink at QT Gold Coast

• Hotel restaurant

  With three restaurants to flirt with, you'll be spoiled for choice. For breakfast and dinner make for Bazaar restaurant, helmed by chef Luke Stepsys and conceived as an 'interactive market place', a 21st-century twist on trad street stalls. Locals are already flocking to this buzzy contemporary buffet eaterie, where floor-to-ceiling glass walls allow you ogle a cool room of cheese, charcuterie and premium meats (now that's our kind of meat market!). Stir-fry wok stations, wood-fired pizza ovens, glistening seafood stands, pots of slow-cooked stews and stations of innovative organic salads encourage you to travel the culinary globe, using 'your plate as your passport'. Just serve yourself, with chefs on hand to cook dishes to order and waiters circling to deliver them. Mellow Fixx café in the lobby serves an organic menu of lighter bites, great coffee and cakes, backdropped by a gorgeous feature wall. Think paninis, wraps and house-made macaroons. Japanese Teppanyaki grill Yamagen, at the rear of the hotel, has been a local favourite for years, with more trad Asian decor predating the QT's arrival.

• Dress code Just follow the hotel's style mantra: 'nostalgic surfer chic meets Miami catwalk cool'. No bare feet at Bazaar, or singlet or sleeveless tops for guys. Dress to impress at Stingray, which bans ripped jeans or visible tattoos.
• Top table Windowside at Bazaar for couples; the large communal tables for groups.
• Last orders Bazaar serves breakfast from 6.30am to 10.30am, and dinner from 5.30pm to 10pm; Fixx dishes up café fare from 7.30am to 3.30pm; Yamagen is open from 5.30pm to 9.30pm (closed Sundays and Mondays). Stingray bar pours drinks from midday to midnight.
• Room service A full menu of room service treats can be ordered from 6.30am to midnight, with reduced offerings from midnight to 6.30am. Burgers, sandwiches, pizzas and salads are up for grabs, as well as child-friendly options, while minibars are tempting, too.
• Hotel bar

  Stingray bar is a glam gathering point for the cocktail crowd, with a snacking menu of Southern American-style street food from noon, running the gamut from soft-shell tacos to sliders (mini burgers). There's over 50 in-house tequilas for toasting those ocean views, and resident DJs keep the tunes coming from Thursday to Saturday nights. Interiors channel industrial chic with a splash of Pop art. Thirsty poolside? The seasonal Pool Bar is at your service, open seasonally from 11am until 3pm, and you can also quaff drinks at the Lawn, a sunken indoor lobby bar decked out in vibrant 'Acapulco' chairs and faux-grass flooring with pool views.

Also worth knowing

• Weddings This property is suitable for weddings. More...

QT Gold Coast 7 Staghorn Avenue, Gold Coast, Queensland 4217