An oasis of calm in the city’s beating heart, Hotel Britomart combines serious eco-credentials, luxury, and quality. A soulful, serene stay just a stone’s throw from all the goings-on Auckland has to offer.
Eco-friendly Hotel Britomart – New Zealand’s first 5 Green Star Hotel – not only matches but surpasses the quality of more traditional, luxury retreats, with every detail of this 10-storey, 99-room building meticulously thought out. Door handles are created from driftwood and dipped in brass; handmade bricks and a feature wall are created from the country’s famous volcanic black sand west coast beaches; bed linen is organic; and slippers compostable.
Designer Emily Priest aimed to break down the large scale of the hotel with cosy nooks for couples and lush, larger areas for bigger groups. She enlisted local artisans to create nature-inspired elements such as cracked blackened earth walls, bluestone boulders forged by stonemasons, and rich woven fabrics. And while there’s no denying the penthouse rooms – the five Landing Suites – are the best money can buy, the smaller rooms remain remarkably impressive.
Tom Hishon and Josh Helm, founders of Orphans Kitchen, now run the hotel’s restaurant, Kingi (short for ‘kingfish’), whose ocean-inspired menu is, they say, “a true reflection of New Zealand’s food identity”. The hotel’s sustainability mission runs through the restaurant, with the menu even naming the fishermen who caught your dinner. But while the focus is on locally sourced ingredients, they also recognise the best wine comes from around the world meaning there’s a mix of New Zealand and international offerings.
The brick-clad tower of The Hotel Britomart is at the heart of a 15-year rejuvenation project of our inner-city space, a spearhead of both an environmental revolution, and a waterfront precinct evolution.
29 Galway Street, Auckland
09 300 9595
