At 18 storeys high, with eclectic interiors and a 70s-inspired lobby you probably recognise from Instagram, Ace Hotel Sydney is not your average hotel.
The unique accomodation only opened last year following the success of Ace group’s boutique hotels in some of the coolest cities around the world, including Kyoto, New York, and Palm Springs. But the new Surry Hills location is the group’s very first offering in the Southern Hemisphere!
It was also the first hotel that award-winning design practice Flack Studio have ever worked on. Founder and principal David Flack says his team approached the project like they would any other home, striving to create ‘spaces for people to enjoy from morning to night’.
‘This one just meant we had to cater for 257 rooms and all the common spaces on the lower levels,’ David says.
From the onset, the vision was to create something that represented Surry Hills and Australia, while sympathetically updating the century-old building. The Australian landscape was a key source of inspiration for the hotel’s raw material palette of reclaimed brick, terracotta, sandstone, terrazzo, and the warm tones throughout.
‘The space is purposely nostalgic, prompting Australian childhood memories, and creating that sense of place, which is really important to us, and to Ace,’ David adds.
Because it’s a heritage building, it also means there’s a variation across the rooms, featuring custom-designed Deiji Studios robes and in-room record players to enjoy during your stay.
Nearly all of the furniture and lighting in the hotel is custom-designed by Flack Studio and their collaborators, and each of the hotel’s public areas showcase artworks by locals like Tony Albert, Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran and Nadia Hernández. David notes how Ace Hotels often shine a spotlight on the arts and music communities, in addition to their reputation for their ‘infamous foyers, where you knew you could always gather to meet friends or make new friends’ — and the Sydney edition certainly doesn’t disappoint!
‘Each time you stay there, there really is something different to see,’ David says.
Want to win a two-night stay at Ace Hotel Sydney and breakfast (valued at $1215) for you and a guest? Enter our giveaway to go in the running for this dreamy staycation below!
Please note this competition is now closed. The winner will be drawn and notified via email. See here for the T&Cs.
