INSTYLE March-April 2019

INFEATURE
CALILE
Community
Brisbane has welcomed a new highend
hotel with an appeal of cool
hunter proportions; it’s Palm Springs
meets an oasis of urban discovery,
writes Cameron Pine.
The Calile melds the sub-tropics with city streetscape
in a property that takes its cues from other hot and
hedonistic destinations – both in terms of weather
and the social scene (think South Beach, Miami).
Don’t expect to go to Calile to hide away, it’s all about
the pool and restaurant scene and bringing the outside in with
spacious, open-plan proportions and room design.
The $100 million TFE Hotels-run property is the work of
award-winning architects Richards and Spence for the James
Street brothers of cool Cal and Michael Malouf, who named their
hotel after their great-grandfather. The developing duo own other
properties in fashionable James Street and, in keeping with the
leafy shopping boulevard feel of the stretch, have infused retail
into The Calile property amid hanging gardens on the ground level
– you’d be forgiven for thinking you’re a long way from Brisbane’s
CBD, and that was the whole idea.
Plenty of pale pink marble adorn, and minimalist Scandinavian
lighting and finishes draw you in from the main lobby bar. Each
room offers brass fittings, travertine and wide-open spaces to
provide a sense of modernism rarely seen in luxury hotels. Cork
floors and sisal matting conjur up the feeling of a tropical holiday.
One of the Gold Coast’s most talked-about restaurants has
made itself right at home beside the elevated centrally located
pool (a fully tiled masterpiece complete with Calile brass emblem
embedded into the tiles). There’s outdoor cabana style dining
options and sun-lounges – all designed to embrace the sometimes
blistering yet balmy Brisbane climate.
Alongside the restaurant sits the Kailo Wellness medispa which
offers a range of medical and dermal aesthetics treatments as well
as a full gamut of beauty boosting options from traditional facial to
skin revision. With the developers already recognised for distinct
developments in the prescient, the Calile continues to expand
on the established white brick, breezy theme that has become
their signature style. Add in a few plants and you’d be forgiven for
thinking you’re in Palm Springs, Mexico City or Rio.
“In our opinion, there is no other city based Australian hotel
conceived as a resort. City based hotels in our country are pitched
to a corporate market and focused on the conference rather than
the pool and the hotel surrounds – the Calile changes that,” said
designers Richards and Spence.
Fashion boutiques Venroy, Bassike and Dion Lee, among more
than half a dozen others, add to the stellar guest experience.
Dining in the light-filled lobby bar gives with an impressive menu
of pared-back simplicity from oysters to slow-cooked meats and
the signature grilled octopus. Luxuriously, the perfect linen or
night time outfit to sit by the pool is right there for the taking.
A breezy juliet balcony, complete with marble table to sit up
and people watch almost gives the hotel the feeling that it’s been
here before, from an art deco era to a completely modern take.
The pool is loud and persuasive and equally the room’s sound bar
with free new release movies and wireless connectivity means
that staying in the groove or in touch is easier than ever. Not only
the sense of space but also the sense of base hits you as soon as you
reach the room – the hotel has definitely not been designed for the
non-adventurous guest. There’s a library, workout space (Forme
Fitness) for the coolest workout yet, complete with PT sessions,
and function rooms, down a meandering hallway to ensure that
Negroni can be enjoyed both in a corporate or group setting as
much as it can be savoured sitting solo in your room with the
feeling you’re right amongst the action.
A stay at Calile is a carefully curated culture of fun, festivities
and fashion in one of Australia’s most dynamic cities. Rooms
and suites are just the beginning of a stay you’ll no doubt repeat
the next time you get the itch for a fun weekend or slightly more
frivolous stay. It’s the hotel stay you don’t want to miss.
For more information visit www.thecalilehotel.com
INSTYLE 81