Review / The sleek new Melbourne Place hotel pays tribute to the Australian city’s vibrant design and cultural scenes – and comes with thoughtful details and excellent coffee, too

Mar 6 , 2025

Melbourne Place hotel, the new face in the city’s central business district. Photo: Handout

Found on city-centre Russell Street, the hotel and its aesthetics eschew the blandness of corporate accommodation for something warmer and more retro – and quintessentially Melbourne

What makes something Melbourne? Stereotypes abound, of course. A propensity for wearing black and being pernickety about coffee. Moody cocktail bars and understated sophistication, compared to Sydney’s flash.

Melbourne is a city you need to uncover slowly – there’s more beneath its gorgeous surface. And this is the case for its newest hotel, Melbourne Place, which opened last November.

The eye-catching brickwork exterior of Melbourne Place hotel. Photo: Handout

Even at first glance, the hotel – situated on Russell Street in the central business district, close to the buzz of Collins Street, Little Collins Street and Flinders Lane precincts – has superb aesthetics. There’s the striking exterior of glazed brickwork and a colour palette of terracotta, rust, teal and forest green, with wood panelling and retro-accented brickwork throughout.

South Sudanese-Australian artist Atong Atem’s work is on display in the hotel. Photo: Handout

The hotel has a partnership with the Mars Gallery in the Windsor area of Melbourne, so the powerful, exuberant work of South Sudanese-Australian artist Atong Atem is featured in its lobby and corridors. The digital artwork above the reception desk, a 125-minute loop featuring the artist and her family, is especially joyful.

Melbourne Place hotel, inspired by the spirit of the city. Photo: Handout

But perhaps the most appealing thing about the 191-room, independent hotel (which includes surprisingly affordable, entry-level options called Everyday rooms; suites with deep and inviting baths; and a grand penthouse taking up the entire 14th floor, complete with a baby grand piano and dining seating for 12) is the thoughtfulness behind its design. Practically all the fixtures and bespoke furniture are from local suppliers, including Jardan (the nubby Joy Bear Chair is especially appealing), Sussex (bronze taps) and Aesop (bath and body products).

The baby grand piano in the 14th floor penthouse. Photo: Handout

What it feels like, actually, is very Melbourne. Which was the whole idea for the award-winning architects behind the design, Kennedy Nolan.

“The raison d’être of Melbourne Place was to create the hotel that Melbourne needs. While Melbourne is well served by global chains, there was no hotel brand created in [Melbourne] by Melburnians. And so Melbourne Place was created to reflect Melbourne’s unique identity as a city of design, of culture, of hospitality and of major events,” says the firm’s Patrick Kennedy.