Sofitel Hotel, Brisbane

Over Christmas 2011 I stayed in a Luxury Club Room at Brisbane's Sofitel Hotel.

Luxury Club Rooms (and suites) are located on floors 25 - 29 and grant you access to Club Sofitel, which occupies the entire 30th (top) floor. You can admire the spectacular, panoramic view while you enjoy the complimentary breakfast buffet, snacks and refreshments throughout the day, early evening canapes and/or late evening supper. Or you can sit and relax while surfing the net on the complimentary Wi-Fi (more on Club Sofitel later).

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The foyer

The Eiffel Tower in the foyer lighting up the mezzanine level at night.

THE ROOM

The Luxury Club Room ($370/night) on the 27th floor and overlooked the Brisbane CBD. It was a good sized room (32 sqm, 344 sqft) with an extremely comfortable Sofitel 'MyBed', sitting area with two very comfortable sitting chairs, small desk area next to the good-sized flatscreen TV, ample storage space and a big bathroom.

The Luxury Club Rooms have added extras such as a Nespresso coffee machine (sorry, George Clooney isn't included) and, as mentioned, access to the Club Sofitel.

There were also robes/slippers, a safe, a basket of goodies in the bathroom, an iPod dock by the bed and an umbrella in the wardrobe.

As mentioned, the bed is a Sofitel MyBed. I've stayed at Sofitel hotels before and the bed has always been spectacular. To borrow a quote from Sofitel, the bed is...a multi-layer design combining premier mattress, quilted feather over-mattress cover, down duvet and range of pillows...in short, it's king-size comfort in every way (you can even buy the Sofitel MyBed).

The room faced the rising sun and the blackout curtains worked an absolute treat.

I love TV, so for those like-minded among you, the TV channel selection was as follow:

Fox Sports 1, 2, 3

Fox 8

Discovery Channel

Nickelodeon

Channel 7, 7Two, 7Mate

Channel 10

One

Channel 9

GO

GEM

Channel 11

SBS 1, 2, 3

ABC 1, 2, 3, 24 (news channel)

SKY Racing (horse racing)

SKY News

BBC World

CNBC

Briz 31

CCTV 1, 4 (both Japanese channels)

Life is Magnifique (Sofitel promo channel)

KENO

Promotion (runs advert featurettes)

Hotel Information

Alternatively, if TV isn't your thing, then how about a good book? Perhaps one - or more - of my three books? Have a look and see which you might like.

View from the front door - bathroom at right.

The room with, among other things, the amazing Sofitel MyBed.

View from the room - the Brisbane CBD, with ANZAC Square and the Cenotaph at bottom left.

The mini-bar area, with Nespresso coffee machine (left).

The bathroom...one view...

The bathroom...the other view...

The basket of goodies in the bathroom.

The wardrobe/storage space (robes hanging and umbrella lurking at the back).

The TV and what it offers.

Part of the turn-down service each night...a chocolate on each pillow.

The magazines in the room.

A nice way to get your newspaper - in a bag hanging from

the door to your room.

The groovy lighting pattern in the hallway outside our room.

CLUB SOFITEL

...begins with priority check-in (and ends with priority check-out). You also get a reduced rate on parking at the hotel (normally $40/day). I was initially told it was $25/day but upon check out it was $20/day.

Club Sofitel is located on the 30th (top) floor and offers panoramic views of the Brisbane CBD and beyond. Luxury Club rooms/suites begin at $280 per room per night/single occupancy (normal room rates start at around $210 per room per night/ single occupancy).

I knew that the breakfast buffet/snacks/refreshments/canapes/supper was part of the deal but didn't exactly know what this entailed. I had an inkling it was going to be good and I was right. And, as well as the usual suspects, there were added extras such as a plated anti-pasto selection for breakfast one morning, or small drinking yoghurts in shot glasses, that made it a little bit better than your average bear.

Also, the bar was self-service during the evening canapes (5.30pm - 7.30pm). While some people might like/expect bar service, I liked the fact I could wander up and pour a 'large one', if I so desired (not a full bar - champagne, red/white wine and bottled beers).

Some of what was of offer...

Breakfast, 6.30am - 10am weekdays, 6.30am - 10.30am weekends (Champage breakfast on weekends):

Cereals

Yoghurt/milk

Cold meats

Cheeses

Pastries

Scrambled eggs

Sausages

Bacon

Savoury baked beans

Fresh fruit

Selection of breads/toast

Pancakes (make as you go)

Jam/honey etc

Nespresso coffee

Coffee station for e.g. cappuccino

Selection of teas

Juices

Soft drinks

Yoghurt drinks in shot glasses

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Canapes, 5.30pm - 7.30pm:

Cold meat selection

anti-pasto selection

dips

crackers

canapes

spring rolls/samosas etc

Champagne

Red/white wines

selection of bottled beers

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Supper, 8.30pm...

Tea/coffee/hot chocolate

selection of desserts

During the day there is a selection of soft drinks, tea and coffee with accompaniments and fresh fruit.

Club Sofitel is more than a place to eat food and relax. It also caters for business needs and offers:

Wi-Fi

Apple iMacs

Fax

Stationary

iPads (upon request)

Two areas with wide screen TVs and DVD players can also be closed off and Playstations, magazines, chess and other boardgames are also available.

Located on the 30th floor...

Enjoying the view...

At the buffet while others relax, overlooking...

...Spring Hill and inner-city suburbs.

 The other side of Club Sofitel, overlooking...

...the Brisbane CBD (same view as the room but three floors higher).

Champagne and canapes.

The breakfast buffet.

Fresh ginger, carrot and orange juice.

The breakfast buffet from another angle (the boy is making toast).

One of the media rooms that can be closed off from the rest of the Club Sofitel.

Two of the Apple iMac computers available as part of the Business Centre.

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If you like the photography in my blogs, it's because I am a professional photographer. My photos don't merely show something, they tell a story. And visual stories i.e. photos, are more interesting than pictures that merely show something. 

If you'd like to know how to turn your images into visual stories, I've published a book that takes a whole new slant on photography and 'translates' the art of taking photos into a language we all understand.

To read more about my book and see some of its 100+ visual examples, please click HERE.

***I use all the tips and hints from my book in every photo I take, including those in Travel With Giulio.

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DINING

The Sofitel offers several dining options. I was there Christmas Eve and Christmas night, so family matters took precedence and I was unable to make the most of what was on offer (also, the view from the Club Sofitel was too good to pass up!).

Also, one of the inhouse restaurants, Privé 249, was closed for refurbishment. The other restaurant, Thyme², was offering a seafood buffet starting at $129 per person. I'm not a huge seafood fan to start with and the thought of $129 per person lost some appeal.

Privé 249 Signature Menu

Privé 249 Spring Menu Group

Thyme² menu

The Moet & Chandon 'sculpture' outside Privé 249. 

You can try the Polka High Tea in the Club Sofitel each afternoon.

Room Service

The room service menu was extensive, running to 30 pages, with some of the stand-outs being:

Chef's Wagyu Burger (bacon, egg, tomato, cheese, beetroot and caramelised pumpkin relish, with beer-batter fries) - $32

Cedar Smoked Salmon (avocado salsa, creme fraiche and ciabatta toast) - $28

Eye Fillet (200g) and Half Crayfish (Pomme Mousseline, half crayfish thermador, French green beans, red wine jus) - $49

Duck Foie Gras (80g) and Toast - $59

The room service drinks menu, included in the 30 pages, was the same as the Cuvee Lounge Bar menu (in the 'Bars' section of this blog)

One of the 30 pages in the room service menu.

BARS

There are several bars but the one I most frequented was the Cuvee Lounge Bar, located on the foyer level of the hotel. The ambience was dark and moody and the bar menu offered a full list, from cocktails to the finest single malt whisky's.

There are also Harlequin Jacks Bar/Bistro/Gaming and the Whistelstop Bar, located on the railway concourse level (the Sofitel is located high above Brisbane's Central train station...don't worry, the noise of the station can't be heard anywhere in the hotel). It's open during lunch and after work and features TAB and Sportsbet facilities and a bottleshop.

A couple order drinks in the Cuvee Lounge Bar.

Mini Eiffel Towers lining one entrance to the Cuvee Lounge Bar.

Cuvee Lounge Bar.

EXERCISE

Walking - the Brisbane River winds its way around the CBD and a walking track/promenade follows the river. If you're really keen, you can walk along the Brisbane River to the University of Qld campus in one direction (around 6-7km, 4 miles...you can always get a bus back), or walk to the groovy inner-city suburb of New Farm in the other (2-3km, 2 miles). There are also many heritage walking trails around the city.

If it's raining and exercising within the confines of the hotel is your only option, there is the gym and swimming pool, both with spectacular views of the CBD.

The pool, lined with lounges, surrounded by the Brisbane CBD.

You can relax and top up your tan in one of the many lounges in the pool area.

Go for a jog in the gym while looking out over the CBD (the room isn't that big - that's a mirror)  

Or you can pump some iron...

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Many thanks for reading our blog on the Sofitel Hotel, Brisbane. If you have any comments/questions etc, please contact me - TravelWithGiulio@gmail.com

While I tried to get everywhere and do everything during my stay at the Sofitel, I didn't quite manage to, so click here - Sofitel Brisbane - to get more information.

Enjoy your stay!

Giulio

See and read about more of my accommodation experiences/reviews.

To see more posts about accommodation, dining, and/or things to do in Brisbane and SE Qld, visit HERE.

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Photos & text by Giulio Saggin (unless otherwise stated)
© Use of photos/text must be via written permission

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