Philip Mallis
Corporate Hospitality & Premium Suites
Ten different AO Reserve tiers, from named-chef dining rooms to private 18-person suites
The Australian Open runs its whole premium tier under the name AO Reserve, and it's a genuinely bigger menu than most fans realize — this isn't one hospitality product, it's roughly ten of them, spanning fine dining rooms, private suites, and inquiry-only club spaces, all bookable through the same official channel.
At the top end sit private suites at Rod Laver Arena, refurbished for recent tournaments with high-end furnishings and eco-friendly design using locally sourced timber. They come in two sizes, 12-person and 18-person, both with direct court views and a curated menu built around Victorian produce. Kia, the Open's longest-standing major sponsor at 25 years and counting as of 2026, runs its own Kia Pavilion along the AO River Terrace — a hospitality hub built partly from reused materials from previous years' builds, positioned as a base for partners and guests to move in and out of throughout the day rather than a fixed seated experience.
Below the private suites sit a genuine cluster of named dining rooms, each run by a different chef: Champions Rooftop by Peter Gilmore, AO Glasshouse by Dominique Crenn, The Bistro by SK Steak & Oyster, The Gallery by Daniela Maiorano, and Club 1905 by Simon Rogan, which functions as an inquiry-only takeover space rather than a standard bookable table. On-Court, presented by Piper-Heidsieck, and Bar Suites by Caretaker's Cottage round out the inquiry-based tier, both built for smaller, more intimate groups than the big open dining rooms.
What ties all of these together is that they're sold exclusively through Melbourne Park and AO Reserve's own channels — the official guidance is explicit about avoiding unauthorized resellers for anything in this tier, which matters more here than on standard tickets because suite and club access isn't something a printed ticket alone can verify at the gate.
2027 pricing for AO Reserve is confirmed and bookable directly through ausopentravel.com — the five named-chef dining rooms (Champions Rooftop, AO Glasshouse, The Bistro, The Gallery, Riverside Social) book online, and pricing steps up for several of them once availability shifts to Quarterfinal or Semifinal sessions. The private suites and inquiry-only spaces (Club 1905, On-Court, Bar Suites, Private Rooms) are priced on enquiry rather than a fixed rate card. See the Luxury guide for the full package-by-package breakdown.
Why it's special
Most tournaments have one hospitality tier: a box, maybe two levels of box. The Australian Open has built an actual restaurant scene inside its own grounds, with real chefs' names attached to real rooms, which tells you something about how seriously Melbourne's food culture has infiltrated even the premium sports-hospitality layer. I find the suite sizing detail more useful than the marketing copy around it: 12-person and 18-person are specific, real numbers that tell you whether this fits your group before you even enquire. The named-chef dining rooms are the more interesting story to me though — Peter Gilmore and Simon Rogan aren't tennis-hospitality caterers doing a corporate gig, they're serious independent chefs choosing to run a room at a tennis tournament for three weeks, and that's a genuinely different proposition from a standard stadium suite package anywhere else in the world.
Insider tips
- 1
Suites and the inquiry-only rooms (On-Court, Bar Suites, Club 1905) aren't purchased like standard tickets — they go through a direct enquiry form or phone line, and availability for finals-adjacent days narrows fast once the tournament calendar is set.
- 2
The named-chef dining rooms (Champions Rooftop, AO Glasshouse, The Bistro, The Gallery) are separately bookable online, unlike the suites and club spaces, so they're a genuinely more accessible entry point into AO Reserve if a full private suite isn't the goal.
- 3
Kia Pavilion sits specifically along the AO River Terrace rather than inside an arena — worth knowing if your priority is a river-facing hospitality base rather than a court-view suite.
Practical info
- Hours
- Available throughout day and night sessions during the tournament; specific dining room service times vary by venue and published closer to the 2027 schedule
- Cost
- From US$599pp up to US$36,490pp (Club 1905, full-tournament) across 10 AO Reserve packages — see the Luxury guide for the full package-by-package breakdown
- Access
- AO Reserve dining rooms (Champions Rooftop, AO Glasshouse, The Bistro, The Gallery) are bookable directly via ausopentravel.com/ao-reserve. Suites and inquiry-only spaces (Club 1905, On-Court, Bar Suites, Private Rooms) require a direct enquiry through the same site or Melbourne Park's premium experiences page — not a standard checkout.
- Getting there
- AO Reserve venues sit within Melbourne Park, mostly clustered around Rod Laver Arena and the AO River Terrace — a 5-10 minute walk from Flinders Street Station via Batman Avenue, or from Jolimont Station on the Hurstbridge/Mernda lines. Trams 70 and 75 stop nearby on Flinders Street and Wellington Parade.
- Address
- Melbourne Park, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia
What to avoid
Don't buy any AO Reserve suite, club, or hospitality access through a third-party reseller — Melbourne Park's own guidance is explicit that these products are sold exclusively through official channels, and an unauthorized listing carries real risk of non-entry at the gate. Avoid assuming every AO Reserve tier works the same way — the named dining rooms are bookable directly online like a restaurant reservation, while suites and inquiry-only spaces (Club 1905, On-Court, Bar Suites) require a direct enquiry and don't have a self-serve price you can check upfront.
