The first Michelin Keys have been awarded to properties in Oceania, with Lizard Island taking out the coveted three keys, while nine other hotels received two keys.
While the Michelin Guide ‘stars’ recognise outstanding restaurants, Michelin Keys is a new international benchmark to identify the best hotels around the world.
The guide gives ‘keys’ to accommodation that stands out for its “unique hospitality concept, distinctive character, warm welcome and extremely high level of service”.
Three keys indicate an extraordinary stay worthy of a specific trip; two is an exceptional stay, and one key indicates somewhere that “shines with diversity and has an ability to offer experiences suited to all budgets and desires”.
Lizard Island was recognised as “an extraordinary stay” acknowledged for its “villas and suites tucked into the landscape with bleached timbers, soft linens, and open-plan layouts that pull the outside in”.
The guide says, “There are no locks, no schedules, and no need to keep track of time. Between morning dives and afternoons on empty beaches, the pace slows over seafood lunches. You’re off-grid here, but never far from a mojito or a perfect sunset”.
Michelin Guide International Director Gwendal Poullennec says, “With this new distinction, the Michelin Guide has opened up a brand-new chapter in the service it provides for travellers, which has been its lifeblood for the past 124 years”.
The full list includes:
- Lizard Island
- Thorngrove Manor, SA
- Longitude 131, NT
- Capella Lodge, NSW
- Silky Oaks Lodge, QLD
- Southern Ocean Lodge, SA
- Saffire Freycinet, TAS
- Jackalope Hotel, VIC
- Spicers Sangoma Retreat, NSW
- Spicers Peak Lodge, QLD
- 1 Hotel Melbourne, VIC
- Basq House, NSW
- The Eve Hotel, NSW
- Melbourne Place, VIC
- MACq 01 Hotel, TAS
- Four Seasons Hotel, NSW
- Osborn House, NSW
- The Interlude, VIC
- The Ritz-Carlton, VIC
- Empire Spa Retreat, WA
- The Tasman, a Luxury Collection Hotel, TAS
- The Islington Hotel, TAS
- The Calile Hotel, QLD
- The Henry Jones Art Hotel, TAS
- Crystalbrook Albion, NSW
- Park Hyatt Sydney, NSW
- The Langham, Sydney, NSW
- II Delfino Seaside Inn, NSW
- Capella Sydney, NSW
- Wildlife Retreat at Taronga, NSW
- Drift House, VIC
- Ace Hotel Sydney, NSW
- QT Sydney, NSW
- Qualia, QLD
- COMO The Treasury, WA
For more information, visit Michelin Keys.
