I've been having a serious case of wanderlust ever since we got back from our Panamanian vacation a few weeks ago (more on that in a bit). There are so many places I'd love to travel to, and while I usually pick a destination for its exceptional access to nature or its culture (architecture, language or food), the interiors of these hotels have me thinking about hopping a plane just to take a peek inside! Yes, they're that good.
The spaces below are varied: some designs have incorporated color, some feature more muted palettes, others have bold pattern or installations of wallpaper. Yet all of these hotels have one thing in common: they are designed spaces that feel like home. The designers behind these rooms have seamlessly integrated a residential aesthetic into the hospitality space, and it's a trend that I hope continues. Travel can sometimes be a hassle or frustrating...but these rooms provide the comfort of what's familiar (even if your home looks nothing like this).
Architect Matteo Ghidoni and interior designer Laura Sari furnished the spaces inside Venice's Casa Flora almost exclusively with Italian material. For more on this hotel read Daven Wu's piece in Wallpaper Mag.
Alex Hotel in Perth, Australia, designed by Arent & Pyke. Photography by Anson Smart.
The interiors of NYC's boutique High Line Hotel, was designed by the phenomenal firm of Roman & Williams. It has so much vintage character and there's wallpaper in every room. The Tokio (above) is an early Art Nouveau pattern by CFA Voysey (1893), and Hydrangea (below), illustrated by Lindsay Butterfield in 1896, are both produced state-side by Trustworth Studio and available through WallTawk.
Hotel Panache, in Paris' 9th Arrondissement, seamlessly blends historic architecture with modern elements. Designed by Dorothee Meilichzon, this hotel exists in a 19th-century building that was once the Hôtel Opera-Madrid. Images courtesy of Hotel Panache and Architectural Digest.
Love the wallpaper above? Drop by our showroom, we'll happily show you a sample!
Milan's Hotel Giulia- images above and below- was designed by Patricia Urquiola. Photography by Ricardo Labougle via @designboom
Dining room perfection inside hotel Santa Clara 1728 in Lisbon Portugal. (We traveled to Lisbon 3 years ago and stayed at another fabulous hotel, Memmo Alfalma, which is located inside the city's historic district. One exterior length of that hotel is the old Visigoth wall!) Photography Francisco Nogueira for Wallpaper Mag.
Riad Mena in Marrakech, Morocco, is located inside a traditional home and features modern design (Starck and Saarinen ) and local flare (bright Moroccan poufs and Berber rugs). It looks peaceful, quiet and relaxing (yes, please!). Photos - above and below- by Riad Mena.
Here is another fabulous design from the Ace Hotel group, this one in New Orleans, designed by Roman & Williams. I stayed here in August and it's truly a magnificent space. Every detail is considered- from the rooms, to the common spaces, to rooftop bar, to the in-house restaurant, Josephine Estelle. The palmetto murals (below) were salvaged from the New Orleans Opera House and frame the room. Photography by Paul Costello for AD Travel.
The Hotel Jerome in Aspen, Colorado, is rich with detail and warmth...perfect for when you finish up on the slopes.
The Alma Histórica hotel is located in Montevideo, Uruguay and is housed inside a converted 1920s Art Nouveau-style mansion. (Bedroom goals.) Via NYT
If there's one place I want to road-trip to this spring it's Marfa Texas. This is the Hotel Saint George, a modernly redesigned space inside a converted 1930 low-slung stucco building, that was named for an inn that occupied the same site from 1886 to 1924. (The bricks and and marble in the new lobby are repurposed from the site's original 1929 construction.) Photography by Casey Dunn for CN Traveler.
The new luxe boutique hotel, DOWNTOWN, is located in Mexico City's historic district (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) inside a converted 17th Century Palace. Bohemian-chic, meets colonial grandeur, meets modern elements...via designhotels.
This is one of my favorite hotel interiors- the rooms of the Henry Howard Hotel in New Orleans. The city itself holds a special place in my heart. It's where I lived for the majority of my 20s, it's where I learned about myself working as an environmental justice lawyer, it's where I fell in love with design color and pattern, it's where I owned my first home (a shotgun in the Carrollton neighborhood), and it's where I met my husband.
This hotel hits all the design notes that I love: the original brick is exposed, the architecture is historic, vintage rugs galore, modern art, tiling...and of course, wallpaper (a custom toile printed by Flavor Paper and designed by Kathleen Fitzgerald).
And here's one more in New Orleans from the Drifter Hotel. Designed by Concordia Architecture and Nicole Cota Studio, via Yellowtrace.
Happy travels!