Matakauri Lodge
What's so special
For great food and glorious views, you'll struggle to beat Matakauri Lodge on the banks of Lake Wakatipu. It's undergone a 12-month renovation and now offers 11 suites with picture windows overlooking the lake and the Remarkables mountains.
How they rate it
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"There are so many reasons why this swish lodge commands such a superb reputation," says Kate Pettifer in The Sunday Times Travel Magazine. The rooms have "natural finishes, butterscotch walls, snow-white linens and unbeatable views of the Remarkables, Cecil and Walter Peak mountain ranges". Have staff arrange a massage for you in the hotel spa, or "a helicopter tour of Milford Sound nothing is too much trouble, with personal service that's thoughtful but not fawning".
The menu
Executive chef Dale Gartland creates a nightly "Michelin-level" five-course tasting menu, featuring "exquisite" dishes, such as Southland venison tenderloin with baby vegetables in a juniper berry sauce.
The cost
A double room costs from £400 per night, per person, half-board, including pre-dinner drinks. For more details, visit www.matakaurilodge.co.nz, or call 00 64 3 441 1008.
Azur Luxury Lodge
What's so special
Queenstown is the South Island's adventure capital, but you may find it hard to tear yourself away from the comfort of your villa at Azur Luxury Lodge. You have great views across Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkables, but Azur is cheaper than its neighbour, Matakauri Lodge, while offering many of the same luxuries.
How they rate it
"Fancy waking up in bed with a knock-out view of the New Zealand wilderness?" asks Harper's Bazaar. Then head to Azur, where "the freestanding stone and silver beechwood villas make the most of this alpine panorama with floor-to-ceiling windows and sliding glass doors that open onto a spacious sun-deck".
The villas have "been designed to maximise the drama outside by keeping the interior luxury subdued", says Rosemary Purcell on Mrandmrssmith.com. The furnishings, including the super king-size bed, are "comfortable but refined".
The menu
The hotel doesn't have a restaurant, but serves breakfast, home-made afternoon tea and pre-dinner canaps and drinks. In-room dining can be arranged.
The cost
A double room lodge costs from £770 per night, including breakfast, afternoon tea and canaps. Visit www.azur.co.nz, or call 00 64 3 409 0588.
The best Michelin-starred pubs with rooms
"Michelin-starred restaurant, roaring fires and four-poster beds pubs just don't get much better than this," says Tom Chesshyre in The Times. Here are the best of Britain's pubs that combine great restaurants with good bedrooms.
The Hand & Flowers in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, is ideal "if you want to do a posh pub meal in style" (pictured). It's the first British pub to win two Michelin stars for head chef Tom Kerridge. A typical lunch includes cauliflower soup with blue cheese gougres. The four bedrooms are "slick" with exposed beams and standalone baths. A double room costs from £140, on a bed and breakfast basis, with a two-course set lunch in the restaurant costing £12.50 (Thehandandflowers.co.uk).
The Pipe and Glass Inn in South Dalton, East Yorkshire, has one Michelin star and recently won the Michelin Guide's pub of the year award. It is "elegantly decorated" and offers tempting dishes, such as fillet of English beef with bone marrow fritter. Book early to get one of the two bedrooms. Prices start from £160, bed and breakfast, and £26.50 for two courses (Pipeandglass.co.uk).
The Black Swan in Oldstead, North Yorkshire, is a "no-nonsense place with oak floors, brass candlesticks and roaring fires". The Michelin-starred restaurant serves dishes that include game terrine with apple jelly or slow-cooked belly pork with black pudding. Some of the bedrooms have four-poster beds; all have Molton Brown toiletries. Doubles cost from £145, including a three-course meal (Blackswanoldstead.co.uk).
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