'I found the ultimate Sydney staycay with harbour views and hundreds of dollars in free perks.'

When I hear the words 'five-star couples retreat' I immediately think, that sounds expensive.

The cost of flights, food and a few cheeky beverages can all add up to a huge bill, which is not exactly romantic.

But what if I told you there is a place right on your doorstep, where the cost of the stay is cancelled out by the hundreds of dollars of free perks you get?

You may have heard of The Shangri-La Sydney, what you might not know is that if you pop in your dates of stay and scroll right down to the bottom of the booking page you will find 'Horizon Club' rooms starting from $433 per night with a long list of inclusions.

By booking one of these rooms, my partner and I are able to spend as little as $220 each for luxury five-star accommodation, Sydney Harbour views, breakfast, lunch and dinner washed down with free flowing booze. 

In fact, to show you just how much you can save by booking this special category, I calculated the value of all the free inclusions, during our latest romantic staycation. 

Spoiler alert: It's in the hundreds of dollars! 

Watch my video recap below, or keep scrolling for all the details.

Perk 1. VIP Check in from 12pm.

When you book a Horizon Club room you can bypass the main check-in counter on the ground floor and take the lift up to level 30, for a VIP check-in experience with a view of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. 

The first time I experienced this on my 21st birthday, I cried. I don't think I'd ever felt so special in my life!

Savings: Early check-in saved us waiting around the lobby until 3pm and feeling like a VIP is truly priceless! 

Perk 2. Unlimited barista made coffee (and other drinks!).

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Our first stop is always the Horizon Club Lounge, also located on the 30th floor.

This is a private lounge only for guests staying in Horizon club rooms, so it feels very exclusive. 

My partner and I ordered a coffee while soaking up the best view in Sydney. All coffee, tea, juice and soft drinks are complimentary throughout your stay when you come to this lounge. 

Savings: $28 — We had four coffees in total between us during our one-night stay (and a couple of cheeky pastries).

Perk 3. Welcome treats.

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The first treat you get when you enter your room is the epic view. Every Horizon Club room has a view of Darling Harbour or Sydney Harbour. 

As we also noted on our booking that it was a special occasion, we also got a fruit bowl, a delicious selection of Lammingtons and a bottle of wine completely complimentary, which we tucked into straight away. 

Savings: Approx $50.

Perk 4. Afternoon tea.

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Every day between 2-4pm, Devonshire tea is served in the Horizon Club. 

This includes as many freshly-made scones with cream and jam as you can eat. There is also a small section of chocolates, which you can wash down with unlimited tea and coffee. 

Instead of going out for lunch, we made the most of the free afternoon tea with a view of the Harbour Bridge.

Savings: $38 ($19 per person if paid for separately at the hotel).

Perk 5. Free pressing of one suit or dress.

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Yes, I could have just pressed my own dress with the iron in the room.

However, I wanted to try the laundry service which is another added perk. Also… why iron while you could be relaxing in the bath?

Fun fact: Every room at the Shangri-La Sydney has a bath and separate shower. Bathrooms are also kitted out with free hair ties, mouth wash, bath bombs the list goes on!

Savings: $30 for the pressing of one dress.

Perk 6. Evening canapes with views of Sydney Harbour.

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Every day between 6-8pm, there is a canapé buffet in the Horizon Club with everything you can ever dream of to make your own grazing platter.

This time they also had a selection of salads, pizza, dumplings and samosas. This is all completely free, just make sure you get in right at 6pm as it does get busy! 

Savings: $200+ on dinner for two in the city.

Perk 7. Free happy hour.

To accompany the canapés, there is also free-flowing alcohol between 6-8pm every night.

Given that people pay big bucks to drink at Blu Bar on the top floor of this hotel, this perk is reason enough to book a Horizon Club room.

Why go out for dinner and drinks that will cost you a small fortune, when you can eat and drink for free and enjoy the best view of the Sydney Harbour at sunset?

Savings: $87 - two glasses of prosecco is $19 at Blu Bar; we also had two glasses of red wine (would've been $32) and Steve had one gin and tonic (would've been $17).

Perk 8. Box of caramel fudge on each pillow.

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When we returned to our room, pleasantly full and a little buzzed, we noticed that we had been treated to turn down service and a box of the most delicious caramel fudge on each of our pillows. 

Savings: $14 — I don't know how much the fudge costs, but I stayed at a different five-star hotel the night before and was charged $14 for a chocolate the size of my pinky finger from the mini bar, so let's use this as the equivalent.

Perk 9. Buffet breakfast.

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Remember when breakfast used to be included in your room rate? Ahh those were the days.

Now most hotels charge an additional fee on top of the room rate for breakfast. Not when you book a Horizon Club room!

You can fill your plate as many times as you like with bacon and hash browns and it will not appear as an additional line item on your final invoice. 

Better yet, we had a choice between dining at the exclusive Horizon Club breakfast buffet on the 30th floor or the main breakfast buffet (Cafe Mix) on level one, which has over 156 food items to choose from. We chose exclusivity and views!

Savings: $118 — the full breakfast is $59 pp at Cafe Mix.

Perk 10: Late check out until 4pm.

The Shangri-La Sydney saves one of the best perks of the Horizon Club rooms to last.

While most hotels will boot you out at 11am, you can extend your couples retreat for another five hours for free. Think of all the things you can do in that time…

I took a nap and had another bubble bath, it was pure bliss!

Savings: $125 — Most hotels charge $25-$50 for every hour past check out.

If my girl math doesn't mistake me, that's a total saving of $690 per night… which makes the room practically free. 

Now, if that doesn't get you in the mood, I don't know what will!

Follow @retreatbymamamia on Instagram for more no BS travel reviews, or read more from Paige Carmichael below:

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