The Edit | Gold Coast’s Best Hotels
Image: Mondrian Hotel, Gold Coast
Beyond the skyscrapers and gaudy glitter strip, the Gold Coast is full of style, substance, and surprises. From chef-hatted tables to luxe hinterland hideaways, restored retro sanctuaries, and off-the-radar neighbourhoods thrumming with local energy, these boutique and luxury stays let you experience the Coast like you know what you’re doing.
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The best boutique & unique hotels on the Gold Coast
Image: Lito Restaurant, Mondrian Hotel
The Mondrian, Burleigh Heads
Burleigh Heads has long been one of the Gold Coast’s most desirable seaside enclaves; what it lacked was a five-star heavyweight. The Mondrian arrives in full force, rising above the sand with two sculptural towers that echo the headland and undulating dunes. Interiors blend honey timber, chrome, and cool stone to create a coastal, contemporary sanctuary that feels distinctly Burleigh. This stay works for everyone: couples, families, girls’ weekends, or even business travellers looking for a stylish base to soak up the best of Burleigh.
On the ground floor, Italian restaurant Lito nails casual coastal atmosphere, and draws in the Burleigh cool crowd, while upstairs Haven brings a cabana-lined pool club, restaurant, and sunset bar that channels the world’s great beach clubs. True to Mondrian hotelier Ian Schrager (the visionary behind New York’s legendary Studio 54), there’s a current of glamour and hedonism here; poolside oysters and lobster frites have a way of turning into champagne bottles and dancing well into the night, soundtracked by a steady rotation of local DJs.
What we love: It’s not all play. Ciel Spa is home to infrared saunas, cryotherapy dry floats, and highly sought-after bio-wellness treatments, including doctor-led cosmetic services, make it one of the Coast’s most advanced wellness sanctuaries. With a neighbouring gym and magnesium plunge pools, it’s a full spectrum reset for locals and guests alike.
Images: The Cheshire Cat Motel, Images Courtesy of Expedia
The Cheshire Cat Motel, Palm Beach
Palm Beach often gets bypassed in favour of Burleigh or Broadbeach but ask any local and they’ll tell you it’s the best spot to soak in the true-blue, laid-back spirit of the Coast. One of the Gold Coast’s original hotels, built in the 1960s, The Cheshire Cat Motel keeps its retro energy alive while offering the mod-cons expected of a luxury boutique stay.
A beloved local icon, The Cheshire Cat nods to the bygone era of Palm Springs-style motel culture. The iconic green neon sign leads you into a desert-style oasis of cacti, sage-green accents, a candy-pink outdoor shower, a magnesium plunge pool, and seven individually styled rooms. In town for an event? Book in at Chesire’s Sannd Studio, a by appointment salon downstair.
What we love: Perfectly positioned for local living. Step 200 metres to the sand for a morning dip or surf, drift between eclectic cafes, passionately local-run eateries, and laid-back bars. Grab a flat white at Barefoot Barista, wander the esplanade, or join the cool crowd at The Collective, an elevated food-court concept with four restaurants under one roof - and one hell of a cocktail list to match.
Beechmont Estate, Beechmont
For the romantics and nature lovers, Beechmont Estate, high on the Scenic Rim bordering Lamington National Park, offers a breath of fresh backcountry air with plenty of 5-star indulgences. The barn-style design of the private pavilions offers elevated country-cottage ease and days drift between misty mornings on private verandas, long lunches, and evenings by the fire or soaking in deep freestanding tubs, watching the far-reaching hills fade to dusk.
At its heart is The Paddock, a two-hatted restaurant and one of Queensland’s most sought-after dining rooms. The four-course tasting menu is a true paddock-to-plate affair, dry-aged market fish with basil cavatelli and Bay lobster ratatouille, wood-fired lamb with estate herbs, or whatever the garden is flourishing with that week. Wines are sourced locally, and you can wander through the kitchen garden before dinner to see what’s on the menu.
What we love: A stay here leaves barely a footprint. Solar power, rainwater harvesting, and zero-waste dining are just a few examples of the many sustainable measures behind the estate’s eco-conscious operation.
Images: QTCabins & QT Gold Coast
QT Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise
True to its irreverent DNA, QT Gold Coast scoffs at minimalism. Bold technicolour interiors channel Palm Springs retro-chic with a dash of Surfers flashy, playful yet too cohesive to feel tacky. Everything here is calibrated for fun, there’s an electric poolside scene, and food and drink play just as big a role as design. Yamagen is a neon-drenched, Tokyo-inspired izakaya, while Cali-Mex inspired Stingray lures locals with over 50 tequilas behind the bar. Fridays heat up with Rumba Caliente, where an in-house salsa maestro gets guests up and dancing.
Days drift between cabana, pool, and bar, bottle service optional, it’s not Miami but it’s pretty close. While QT is a natural fit for couples and girls’ weekends, families and business travellers are covered too, with conference facilities, meeting rooms, and cots on request.
For a boutique stay inside the QT Gold Coast, the QT Cabins deliver. Outfitted with homegrown touches like I Love Linen bedding from Burleigh, Drift Candles from Currumbin, and Harvest Clay ceramics made just up the road. A stay-within-a-stay, equal parts cozy and cool.
What we love: QT balances high-octane antics with advanced wellness facilities. The 24/7 Therapy Fitness gym is kitted out with Life Fitness smart equipment to track every move, while Qspa delivers a full reset with an elite treatment menu. For the ultimate unwind, the Weekend Warrior sea-kelp scrub and facial hits the reset button.
Images: The Island Gold Coast Courtesy of Expedia
The Island, Surfers Paradise
Surfers Paradise is stacked with uniform skyscrapers and cookie-cutter hotel luxury, but The Island stands apart as a boutique stay with attention to detail in the heart of the glitter strip. Inspired by nostalgic Queensland seaside villages, it swaps steel for warm timber, sleek minimalism for boho wicker and rattan, and indoor conference spaces for breezy open façades alive with native greenery and salt-laced air.
The Island Rooftop, the largest rooftop bar on the Gold Coast, is a bona fide local institution. From long, lazy lunches to sunset cocktails and DJ sets, it’s where a steady trickle of Gold Coasters and hotel guests rub shoulders over champagne towers and wood-fired pizza.
Downstairs, Goldies offers a classic Aussie bistro, flipping out staples like hearty burgers, chicken parmigiana, and fresh seafood platters. For something a little more refined, take a stroll to Seascape, where squid-ink spaghetti with Pacific lobster and Black Angus T-bone are served with some of the best ocean views on the Coast.
What we love: The Island nails the nostalgia of an easy-going beach town, but you’re still right in the hum of the lively strip. Scale the Q1, the Southern Hemisphere’s tallest tower, or wander the open-air beachfront markets, with live music, artisan stalls, and party energy spilling well into the evening.
Images: The Langham Gold Coast, Courtesy of Expedia
The Langham, Surfers Paradise
Sitting absolute beachfront in a lively pocket between Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach, The Langham is luxury at full scale. Soaring floor-to-ceiling glass, sweeping Pacific views, and a silver-service level of polish. Dining spans six options, highlights including T’ang Court, a Michelin-starred Cantonese transplant from Kowloon, and the infamous high tea at Palm Court. The hotels’ Chuan Spa, serves up serene, minimalist interiors with treatments rooted in traditional Chinese medicine.
Twice awarded Queensland Hotel Awards’ Best Deluxe Accommodation and Best Suite/Apartment Hotel, the rooms and suites lean classic and sharp, with luxury touches like rain showers and mood lighting. The highlight, though, is the pool deck. Palms, a sand lagoon, a swim-up bar, and the best sunset vantage on the coast. Lychee margarita in hand, it’s hard to beat.
What we love: Families aren’t just welcome, they are celebrated. A kids club on level two, plus a school-holiday line-up of pizza-making, art classes, discos, and face painting, means little travellers are just as entertained as the adults.
Image: The Tamborine Boutique Hotel
The Tamborine Boutique Hotel, Tamborine Mountain
Once known mainly for day-trippers and fudge shops, Tamborine Mountain, and the wider Scenic Rim, is fast emerging as one of Queensland’s most desirable destinations. Leading the charge is The Tamborine, a 23-room boutique hotel offering rainforest calm with enough contemporary style to please even the most discerning traveller. Sage-green tones, whitewashed stone, a heated mineral pool and spa, and sensational hinterland views make it a destination worth the detour.
While there’s no full-service restaurant, the lobby Pantry offers local drinks, snacks, and wood-fired pizzas, and Peacock O’Clock, the nightly complimentary cocktail hour from 5–6pm, is a lively ritual you’ll look forward to each day.
What we love: Whether your looking for a retreat or an adventure, The Tamborine delivers on both fronts. Hike rainforest trails, chase waterfalls, or wander across the road to the local coffee plantation. Guests also score a complimentary spirit tasting at Tamborine Mountain Distillery, a fabulous little perk, while days spent poolside with a book and a cocktail are just as acceptable.
Tessa’s On The Beach, Bilinga
Set on the quieter sands of Bilinga, just up from world-famous Snapper Rocks, Tessa’s On The Beach is what the name promises, toes-in-the-sand proximity.
Mid-century lines and Palm Springs furnishings give this boutique stay a playful lift, though it feels more like crashing at your stylish aunt’s beach house than any motel. Perfect for couples chasing a slower pace, rooms are breezy and characterful, with beach-print wallpaper, rattan accents, and a hint of retro.
Tony’s Bar & Café keeps mornings easy with coffee and evenings lively with cocktails, while nearby local favourite Siblings at Kirra plates up yellowfin tuna tartare and Byron Bay burrata alongside a salacious drinks list - order the “Threesome Right After” (Olmeca Altos Plata tequila, lychee liqueur, mandarin, lime) and try to keep a straight face.
What we love: Easy access to uncrowded surf, plus board and bike hire to explore the coastline like a local.
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