At Embrace Brisbane, we’re all about bringing you the best that our glittering river city has to offer. So we’ve put our holiday caps on to bring you a Staycation Guide series of the best places you can relax like a carefree traveller right here in Bris-Vegas.
If a rooftop pool, cocktails at sunset and a “we deserve this” kind of night is your brief, then a staycation at Pullman Brisbane King George Square absolutely delivers
The kind of staycation you book for the rooftop alone
You know a hotel has its priorities right when the rooftop is the main character—and here, it really is.
The heated rooftop pool is one of those spots you plan your entire stay around. Think skyline views, that perfect golden-hour glow, and just enough of a “we’re on holiday” feeling without ever leaving the city. It’s open year-round too, so there’s no bad time to go.
You head up thinking you’ll “check it out” and suddenly you’re three conversations deep, half in the pool, half out, deciding whether it’s too early for a drink (it isn’t). The water’s warm, the view stretches across the city, and there’s something about being up there that makes everything feel a bit lighter.
It’s very “we could go somewhere else”… but no one actually wants to.
Starting the staycay with a fancy high tea
We got there before check-in and skipped the usual hovering by booking the Mediterranean-Inspired High Tea Soiree at Goldfinch Restaurant.
And this isn’t a “quick tea and a slice” situation. This is a full, commit-to-it high tea, served in a gold filigree birdcage stand that leans right into the Goldfinch name in the best possible way. It lands on the table and you immediately feel like you’ve made an occasion of the afternoon.
The experience starts with warm, traditional scones — soft in the middle, just the right amount of structure on the outside — served with all the classics. From there, it moves into a Mediterranean-inspired savoury tier that feels a little more considered than your standard high tea. Think delights such as smoked salmon brioche, delicate heirloom tomato and stracciatella tart… they’re all flavours that feel fresh and layered.
The sweets lean into that same Mediterranean influence—lemon and olive oil cake that’s light and fragrant, baklava with that perfect balance of crunch and syrup, and a strawberry, pistachio and rose panna cotta.
The whole thing is set in this light-filled space with a hanging garden overhead and that slightly coastal, Hamptons-style feel. You don’t rush it. You sit, you talk, you go back for another bite you didn’t think you had room for.
By the time we picked up our room keys, the staycation had already well and truly started.
The location that gives you options (even if you ignore them)
If you want to leave the hotel (which we kind of didn’t) it’s in the ideal position for you to find SO MANY things to do.
Step outside and you’re on King George Square. From there, you can wander to Roma Street Parkland for a walk, dip into Queen Street Mall for shopping, or head over to South Bank Parklands for riverside drinks and dinner. If you feel like adding a cultural moment, Queensland Museum and Queensland Art Gallery & Gallery of Modern Art are right there too.
We talked through all of this. Properly. Maps open, options flying. And then… we stayed exactly where we were. Because once you’re in at Pullman Brisbane, you’re very in.
This is where the night really starts
At some point, you go upstairs to Sixteen Antlers Rooftop Bar and this is when the whole staycation clicks into place.
You walk out of the lift and the energy shifts. The city’s lit up, the enormous visage of the City Hall clock is right there… there’s music, people settling in for the night, and it feels like the kind of place where plans just form around you. Drinks arrive, you find a spot, you move around, then settle again.
One round turns into another, the conversation picks up, and suddenly it’s the kind of night you hoped it would be.
Cocktails → dinner → not having to go anywhere
At some point, we did the most satisfying thing you can do on a night out… we went downstairs for dinner.
We headed back to Goldfinch Restaurant and slipped straight into dinner mode without breaking the flow of the night. No taxis, no waiting, no “where are we going?” messages. Just a table, good food, and that feeling of being exactly where you need to be.
At night the menu shifts into Mediterranean Basin cuisine with Australian native influences, led by Executive Chef Krisztian Herczig. It’s generous, produce-led and designed for sharing, which suits the whole tone of the night.
We’re holding back on the details here because it deserves its own moment (its own review is in the works), but it fits seamlessly into the experience — no reset, no change of pace, just a continuation of the evening.
The comedown we all secretly love
Eventually, we call it and head back to our room — heels in hand, still mid-conversation.
Robes, maybe (definitely) a bath, something easy on TV, and the full debrief. Yes Pullman Brisbane has Chromecast so if you wanna catch up on your shows, it’s SUPER easy to link your device to the screen and away you go.
These moments are my favourite in all my staycations. We’ve had a luxurious rooftop swim, we’ve had picturesque drinks, we’ve indulged at dinner. Now we’re robed up and can snuggle into the cloud-soft beds and chat til we fall asleep (or in our case, stream and double screen in silence cause we had so much fun our social batteries have completely run down).
Bliss, if you ask me.
Why Pullman Brisbane is one of Brisbane’s best staycations
Pullman Brisbane King George Square makes a very strong case for itself. You’ve got the rooftop pool pulling you in early, Sixteen Antlers Rooftop Bar carrying the night, dinner at Goldfinch Restaurant keeping everything seamless, and a location that puts the entire city within reach — even if you end up ignoring it.
It’s easy, it’s fun, and it somehow feels like you’ve done more while barely leaving the building. Also, this is the kind of staycation that stays in the group chat for a while after.
Staycation spot: Pullman Brisbane King George Square
Ideal for: A rooftop oasis where you can have swim, then indulge in cocktails with a view.
Make sure you: Pop into Goldfinch Restaurant for a high tea or an indulgent dinner.
In her spare time, she likes long walks down the makeup aisle and performing in Brisbane theatre. You can follow her adventures on Instagram and TikTok @thebeautypalate.
