With jewel-toned furnishings, the bar and lounge areas are the perfect spot to relax. Photo / Alexia Santamaria
Alexia Santamaria checks in to Eliza's Manor, Christchurch
Location: On Bealey Ave, just a 10-minute walk from Hagley Park and the Avon River.
Style: A manor with all the glamour of a bygone era (the building has been around since 1861) but enough quirky modern touches to make it feel fun and approachable.
Perfect for: People looking for luxury boutique accommodation that's a destination in itself. This is so much more than just a bed for the night.
Rooms: The rooms are deliciously spacious - all slightly different but sharing elements like heavy curtaining, antique side tables, floral Victorian wallpaper and furnishings such as Queen Anne-legged chaises longues. Also keep an eye out for more fun elements like brass hooks shaped like animal heads and quirky artwork. Of course, there are all the modern conveniences too - mini bar, fridge, flat-screen TV, heat pump, electric blanket, hairdryer, Nespresso machine.
Bathroom: Large and modern (no one really wants the impracticalities of an actual 1800s bathroom) Four rooms have beautiful deep baths you may never want to leave, and all showers are extremely spacious with large European porcelain tiles. Water pressure is excellent.
Food and drink: If you've ever been to incredibly popular Christchurch brunch spot Miro, you'll recognise the breakfast menu (it's the same clever owners), then there's the rather opulent dining room that serves a la carte and set tasting menus and high teas - these sell out every week. There are also great cocktails and a fab bar menu and grazing board if you'd rather hang out in the - truly gorgeous - bar area or courtyard. But if you just fancy some home baking and a coffee, Eliza's is all over that too.
Facilities: The idea here is to escape and relax somewhere very different to your place, a true oasis. And that if you didn't want to leave at any point in your stay you wouldn't have to. There are 14 parking spaces - with an EV charger if you need one - you'll get a welcome glass of bubbles on arrival, lovely turn-down service (there's a pillow menu too) and there's even a cedar sauna. A full a la carte breakfast is included - even the bacon is housemade - and everything is available as room service, including the tasting menus. And all of this a 10-minute walk from town, if you can tear yourself away that is.
Family-friendly: Although the rooms are designed for two, extra beds are available for a charge
Accessibility: Unfortunately, Heritage restrictions mean no lift could be installed so the rooms are not accessible. The restaurant is wheelchair accessible.
Sustainability: Eliza's take sustainability seriously, and this is evident in everything they do. Sugarcane straws, hives for their own honeycomb, offsetting suppliers' emissions, composting, worm farms, almost complete elimination of single-use plastics, reduced energy consumption, clever lighting, and rainwater for the garden are some of the many initiatives. It's no surprise they've earned a climate positive certification from carbon forestry firm Ekos.
See elizas.co.nz for details
For more travel inspiration, go to newzealand.com/nz.
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