Hotel Metamorphosis

11:54 25 February 2019

More and more corporate travelers are turning their backs on the established five star giants and their suffocating sense of comfortable conformity. Instead, in the ascendancy are a new breed of hotel that offer innovative concepts that are fresh and bold. The following represent our pick of the bunch. By Alex Webber

Warsaw

Indigo

Warsaw, indigowarsaw.com
The lobby alone stops guests in their tracks: suspended from a glass-covered atrium, find a chandelier that dances and dazzles in a riot of color. Housed inside an elegant townhouse, the Indigo pulses to a design that juxtaposes a contemporary design ethos against the historic airs and graces of this ornate city center residence. Before bed, make time to catch a drink in the stunning Bourbon Lobby Bar.

Autor Rooms

Warsaw, autorrooms.pl
An increasing number of younger business travelers are eschewing the humdrum traditional chains and instead seeking out something with that unique taste of home. Autor Rooms is one such place: set around a hip communal living space with retro styling and its own vinyl record library, find four rooms touting custom-made furnishings and art and design pieces from both upcoming and established Polish designe

Wrocław

DoubleTree by Hilton

Wrocław, doubletree3.hilton.com

Swan white in color, the amorphous exterior of the OVO complex became one of the big talking points in Polish architectural circles when it opened last year. Leasing a considerable amount of space inside is DoubleTree, Hilton’s acclaimed four star brand. Adhering to the principle that “less is more,” the understated design combines form and function to create a sophisticated space that feels expertly devised.Nice welcome cookies, as well!

Grape

Wrocław, grapehotel.pl

An odd inclusion you might think, but the justification is thus: though on the face of it the 13 wine-themed rooms seem more suited to eloping couples, there’s something about the Grape that makes it feel like a blueprint for all other boutique residences. Found in a gabled villa with pointy towers, it’s a place that bleeds with elegance, identity and that cloistered feeling of undisturbed seclusion.

Gdańsk

Puro

Gdańsk, purohotel.pl/gdansk

Technophobes: hide! With much emphasis placed on tech (room functions are controlled by an iPad), there are some who think the Puro are too smart for their own good. All, however, agree that the design team (London-based DeSallesFlint) are onto something: pride of place goes to a lobby / lounge / living area that subtly explores the industrial history of this so-called Granary Island.

Craft Beer Central Hotel

Gdańsk, centralhotelgdansk.pl
If you thought craft beer was the realm of wax-whiskered hipsters and woolly jumpered dorks, think again. The summer launch of the CBCH marks a crossover point between millennial cool and traditional luxury. Beyond a quite astonishing brewery, points are earned for a design that’s chic but never loud and always mindful of the heritage of this turreted, red brick beauty.