Sydney

Gracefully aging pop star Sting was just spotted having fun with bikini-clad babes aboard a superyacht belonging to a billionaire pal in Sydney, Australia. The yacht in question, Z Sydney, is a $50 million Overmarine Mangusta 165, the world's largest open yacht, owned by media mogul James Packer. In December, Packer entertained Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal on the yacht, while his old friend Tom Cruise regularly enjoys a trip on the vessel during his annual trips Down Under. The sleek craft can hit a top speed of 33 knots with its twin MTU 16V 4000 M93 engines producing 4,556 hp.

The interior of the yacht, first shown at the Salon Nautique in Cannes, features five staterooms and is finished in a luxurious, elegant combination of neutral fabrics and dark woodwork. The 165's interior includes an expansive main salon with cocktail tables, a long bar, and a surfeit of seating. Two pop-up, back-to-back flat-screen televisions face the main salon and the adjacent dining room. The craft's aft deck covers a garage that contains tenders and toys and opens hydraulically at the push of a button. The bikini-clad babes are extra.

Architect Frank Gehry has revealed his "crinkly, wrinkly" design for the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) business school in Sydney Australia. The new building is his first Australian design. Gehry expects the 11-story treehouse to "generate some questions" but he is hoping that the community will eventually embrace it. The 81-year-old architect is no stranger to controversy and to people hating his designs when they are first revealed.

Construction will begin on the university's campus in central Sydney in 2012 and the building is set to be completed in 2014. It has two separate facades, one of undulating brick and the other of angled sheets of glass. The building will be named the Dr Chau Chak Wing Building, after the Australian-Chinese business leader who has donated $25 million for the project.

Get ready Australia, David Chang is coming to Sydney. The chef who has thrilled New York City palates with his food at Momofuku, La Peche and Milk Bar (home of the legendary crack pie) will open his first restaurant outside the United States at the Star City Casino in Sydney, Australia. "I am delighted to be given the opportunity to share the Momofuku philosophy at this world-class dining destination," said Chang in a press release.

Chang is part of a line-up of chefs who will take part in the $860 million redevelopment of the casino complex. Also are involved are Melbourne's favorite chef Teage Ezard, Italian maestro Stefano Manfredi, MasterChef darling Adriano Zumbo and Sydney's best-loved Cantonese restaurant, Golden Century. Also coming from the U.S. is Chase Kojima, a rising star from the Nobu empire who will open a contemporary Japanese restaurant. More details will be available next year.

Maserati Quattroporte? Good. Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT S? Better. Maserati Quattroporte Sport GT S kitted out from the MC Sport Line? Better still.

Having already launched similar equipment for the GranTurismo coupe, Maserati has now unveiled the first of its MC Sport Line for the Quattroporte sedan. At the time it consists essentially of carbon fiber and aluminum trim for the interior, but if the GranTurismo's MC Sport program is any indication, we could be looking at something even better ahead.

MC stands for Maserati Corse, and has adorned such high-performance machinery as the MC12 and the new GranTurismo MC Stradale.

Among the hybrids on the market, the Lexus CT 200h stands out for two reasons: for one, it's more luxurious than most hybrids. For another, it's sportier. To heighten the latter, Lexus has announced a new F Sport package for the hybrid hatchbach, which it has just unveiled at the Australian International Motor Show in Sydney.

The F Sport package upgrades with a revised aero package (new front and rear bumpers, side skirts and honeycomb grille), bigger alloys and an interior with a fresh dashboard and door panel treatment, an even thicker steering wheel, new pedals and tinted windows. A retuned suspension promises sportier handling, and an optional Flame Blue color joins the catalog.

Getting your hands on any product of Mercedes' elite AMG performance division is an event unto itself. But what we have here is a pair of extra-special one-of-their-kind specials prepared specially for the Australian International Auto Show.

In one corner stands Concept 358, a special version of the C63 AMG performance sedan. It features the AMG Performance Plus package to boost the 6.3-liter V&'s output up to 480 horsepower, 19-inch alloys, a special Designo leather interior and a unique shade of Pearl Orange paint to set it apart from the crowd.

The special SLS AMG supercar, meanwhile, has been decked out in matte black with red accents, giving it a decidedly racier look. The two were unveiled specially for Australia, which stands as Mercedes' fifth largest market worldwide. And while they may be one-off creations, AMG will likely prepare yours the same way... for a price.

Adorned with the billowy outline of the Sydney Opera House and the dramatic lines of the Harbour Bridge, the waterfront in Sydney, Australia, is among the world's most picturesque. But at Quay, a Luxist nominee in the best international fine dining category, the food rivals the spectacular views.

The restaurant reflects the tastes and whims of executive chef Peter Gilmore, who joined Quay in 2001. The Sydney native trained in the U.K. before returning to Australia, and his style reflects the combination of Eastern and Western influences that embody the land down under. For instance, Gilmore took the pork belly-an Aussie favorite-and updated it by adding a braise of green lipped abalone, handmade tofu, cuttlefish, Japanese mushrooms and chive flowers.

A nearly 200-year-old bookstore in Sydney is uniting bibliophiles and oenophiles with a simple, yet brilliant idea: serving wine in their reading room.

Like languishing in the library of someone's country home, guests at Berkelouw Books in Leichhardt, Sydney, can lounge on plush couches and at comfortable tables with plates of cheese and Australian wines while perusing their selection of rare, out-of-print, secondhand and new books. It's a wonderful way to create community, allowing book-lovers to enjoy a book in their store the same way they would at home.

Berkelouw Books has a rich, six generation history of trading in rare and antiquarian books. "Now that people are getting to know about us, we've had great success with our boutique wines and lots of positive feedback," owner Colin Cappelleri told Reuters.

It makes the Starbucks in Barnes & Noble seem positively vulgar.

[via Reuters]

Sometimes it's better to start at the bottom and work your way up. But what if, at the same time, you could start at the bottom and be at the top? lebua Hotel offers just that at its Lake Okareka Lodge, set on a private estate in New Zealand. And when we say private, we mean private -- the extent of the accommodations is three luxury suites that can house, all together, nine people. Total. Maximum. When you book, even if there is just your lonesome, you get the whole thing to yourself -- "yourself" being you, your private chef, and the attendants waiting to fulfill your wishes.

Each of the suites gets lake views, private balconies, Bvlgari amenities, and the services of the estate's private chef. Should you commandeer the executive suite, you'll step up to your own lounge, spa bath, private office and walk-in wardrobe. As for things to do, the suites are set in the countryside, next to a lake, on the North Island of what is arguably one of the most beautiful countries on the planet. Should you tire of the fishing, sailing, kayaking, jet skiing, hiking, or simply being, the lodge maintains a piano room, a fantastically stocked wine cellar, and a 24-hour concierge for those urgent, 3 a.m. requests.

lebua Hotel Bangkok has quarters for more guests, but the numbers don't spoil the treatment. Each room in the all-suite hotel in the State Tower, Silom district has views of the Chao Phraya River. Naturally, all-suite does not mean all the suites have been created equal: ranging from 66 to 266 square meters, opt for the premium digs and you'll sup on multi-course meals prepared by your own chef for breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, and that liquid meal known as "cocktails."

If you must go out, the bar and five restaurants under The Dome will reward you for the slipper-shod trek: Sirocco, 63 stories up, is the world's highest open air restaurant; the tables at Breeze sit on jutting balconies, where you can dine on modern Asian fare while descrying views of modern Asia; the Mezzaluna specializes in Italian and amore -- every proposal made there has been accepted; Café Mozu mashes up a DJ, a pool, and Italian, Lebanese, and Indian courses; and Distil is where you go to wash it all down... in moderation, of course.

What could be better than 5-star suites and food? Why, a party to celebrate their opening. lebua will be hosting a gala launch of the New Zealand property and the Tower Club addition to its Bangkok location in, of all places, Sydney, Australia. The soiree goes down in November, on a private yacht that will be moored in front of the Opera House, where lebua chefs will be on hand to tempt you to make the trip to those other points distant.

If one were tempted to wonder about flying to Australia to have a party for resorts in lands at least five hours away by plane, we must remember that ours is not to question why. Ours is only to ask, "Why not?" And then make reservations...

Today's home comes front the land down under. This penthouse in the heart of Sydney, Australia has views over Sydney's Botanical Gardens. The three story unit is located in the northern half of the Macquarie Apartments building designed by Renzo Piano. The modern glass and terracotta building lends itself to contemporary interior design. This apartment has an open floor plan and big windows and a terrace to enjoy the view. There is also a private roof terrace with gardens and a whirlpool tub.

For more prime properties and lush locations, see Luxury Homes and Mansions.

Sting and his family have idyllic New Year's plans. The rock star his wife Trudie and their four children are in Sydney, Australia, where it is summertime, and have rented out one of the most expensive yachts on Sydney Harbor, the Phoenix 1. The yacht rents for a daily charter rate of $13,200 Australian (around $11,575). The yacht has two VIP stateroom plus a double and twin cabin with accommodations for eight guests. The fly bridge includes a spa, sun pads, bar and barbecue. It has a dining room, main saloon with an entertainment suite and a gym (pictures of the interior are at the yacht's charter listing. It is expected that Sting will be enjoying the New Year's Eve fireworks from Sydney harbor along with Nicole Kidman and husband Keith Urban, and Hugh Jackman and wife Deborra-lee Furness.

Although 2 week vacations are awesome the trouble is that it's often so hard to get away that they rarely (if ever) happen. But why delay that trip to Paris or Buenos Aires til who-knows-when? A long weekend, which is much easier to do for most people, can be more than enough to have a fabulous time in an exotic far-off location if you do things right. Vienna, Milan, and even Sydney are realistic possibilities. Why take the chance that a trip to your dream location might never happen when you can be there later this month? 1, 2, or 3 nights is better than none at all, right? I'd say so.

Speaking of exclusive and members' only bars in Sydney, De Nom is another one that Sydneysiders looking for luxury might by interested in checking out. It is located on the third floor of Ruby Rabbit in Darlinghurst and it "represents a new era of decadence for Sydney." The room is modeled after the Palace of Versailles and has a capacity of only 80 people, who will be attended by "bartenders in bow ties" and "waitresses in ball gowns" while they lounge on gilded furniture. Only 100 memberships were made available at $10,000AUD each. They're probably sold out by now, but the lucky members receive wait-free entrance to the club, a private car and driver to take them to and from the venue, access to a members' only wine list, and use of the room for one private function each year on top of other benefits, not to mention that the membership card is solid gold and encrusted with rubies.

[Thanks, Tom!]

More and more hotels are creating members only clubs. The Club Bar in the InterContinental Sydney in Sydney, Australia offers a striking view across the harbor for their members. Club Bar was just opened this week and enjoys and enviable location on the rooftop of the InterContinental Sydney. Members will have unlimited nightly access and be able to entertain their guests on the wraparound terrace. Services include top shelf alcohol, a members only reserve wine list, 24 hour personal concierge service and use of a private function room. There is also a stocked humidor and a late night supper menu. Club Bar memberships are by invitation only.