December 17, 2008

PACIFIC | AUSTRALIA | MELBOURNE

Spin City

By Doug Black

How Melbourne turned Sydney for a loop.

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Melbourne isn’t Australia’s largest city (that will have to wait until 2028), but it’s fast becoming the country’s premier trendsetter. No sooner had Melbourne announced construction on the Southern Star — a 40-story-high observation wheel — than Sydney proposed an oversized wheel of its own. Even provincial Adelaide got caught up in Ferris fever, and for good reason: Melbourne’s answer to London’s most lucrative tourist trap expects 1.5 million visitors per year. Not to mention the hordes who will come to simply admire the LED-glowing eye-catcher.

While the $67-million wheel preps for its inaugural spin this weekend, InterContinental opens its first Melbourne property, the Rialto, this week. The turreted 10-story hotel dates back to 1891, when it was the largest building in the world’s richest city. Now looking a tad squat against Melbourne’s skyscrapers, the Rialto welcomes guests this week after a $40-million update. The renovation encompassed all 253 rooms and adds a new bar and restaurant below the ornate Italian-tile mosaic of the atrium (pictured).

Also nearing completion on Collins Street is the Grand Hyatt Melbourne (staircase pictured). A $30-million redevelopment promises a new upscale restaurant and bar (now open), as well as “the residence.” Though defiantly lowercase (which, of course, we love), the forthcoming private events venue, opening early 2009, targets an upper-crust clientele via its “mansion concept:” creating the intimate feel of a “good friend’s home.” That is, if your good friend has room for 450 guests, a clutch of professional kitchens where you can interact with private chefs, and a garden courtyard overlooking Collins, (Melbourne’s Champs Elysee). If the view doesn’t inspire you to shop, you can always buff up on every Australian’s favorite salty-goop comfort food at the world’s first Vegemite Museum, nearby. Now that’s what we call trendsetting.