Six hotels

Art Hotels

Six hotels are gathered here because of what their buildings do. One keeps the tiled halls of a public bathhouse, another links a row of medieval houses, a third fills its shophouse rooms with framed work. Descriptions follow published sources, and nothing on this page is rated, ranked or sold.

Daylight falling through a tall hotel lounge with panelled walls and grouped seating

The hotels

Rattan chairs and layered textiles in a small panelled hotel sitting room

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationCopenhagen, Denmark
CheckedMarch 2029

Hotel Sanders

Copenhagen, Denmark

In short

Hotel Sanders is an independent hotel in central Copenhagen, opened by a former dancer of the Royal Danish Ballet. The house is small, and much of its character sits on the ground floor, where the restaurant, the bar and the plant-filled conservatory are used through the day.

Where it is

The hotel stands on Tordenskjoldsgade, a quiet side street a short walk from Nyhavn and the Royal Danish Theatre. Kongens Nytorv and the harbour front are close on foot. The entrance is set into a plain terraced facade, with a small lobby directly behind the door.

What the place is like

Interiors were designed by the studio Lind and Almond, and they mix rattan, dark timber and layered textiles rather than one uniform look. Rooms are compact and panelled. The conservatory at the back is glazed and green, and the bar upstairs is furnished as a sitting room rather than as a counter.

Good to know

The ground floor rooms draw people who are not staying here, so times vary through the week. Room sizes differ a good deal from one type to another. Ask the hotel directly which of the public rooms will be serving when you plan to arrive.

A covered courtyard lounge lit from a glazed roof above

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationStockholm, Sweden
CheckedMarch 2029

Nobis Hotel

Stockholm, Sweden

In short

Nobis Hotel occupies two connected historic buildings on Norrmalmstorg, a square in the middle of Stockholm. It works as a city hotel, with restaurants, a bar and meeting rooms that are used by residents and by people from the surrounding offices.

Where it is

Norrmalmstorg sits between the shopping streets of Norrmalm and the water at Nybroviken. The Old Town is a walk across one bridge, and the waterfront quays are minutes away. Guests arrive from the square itself, through doors set in the stone facade.

What the place is like

The architects Claesson Koivisto Rune reworked the interiors, keeping the historic shell and adding calm modern rooms. A covered courtyard forms an atrium lounge at the centre of the plan, lit from above and used for sitting and dining. Corridors and stairs link the two houses at several levels.

Good to know

Rooms vary because the buildings are old and no two floors match exactly. The atrium grows busy in the evening when the restaurants are serving. Confirm which entrance and which restaurants are open during your stay, since arrangements shift with the season.

Original wall tiling and columns kept in a converted bathhouse interior

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationParis, France
CheckedMarch 2029

Hôtel Les Bains

Paris, France

In short

Hôtel Les Bains is a hotel in the third arrondissement of Paris, in a building that began as public baths and later spent many years as a nightclub. It now holds guest rooms, a restaurant and a bar, with the pool kept below ground.

Where it is

The address is rue du Bourg-l'Abbé, a narrow street between Réaumur-Sébastopol and the northern edge of the Marais. Shops, galleries and cafés fill the blocks around it. The doorway is modest, and reception sits just inside on the ground floor.

What the place is like

Much of the old fabric survives. Tiled walls and columns from the baths remain in the ground floor rooms, and the pool below keeps its original lining. Guest rooms above are darker and quieter, furnished in velvet and timber, and they vary in shape from floor to floor.

Good to know

Access to the pool and to the club rooms is not the same at all hours, and parts of the building are given over to private events. The structure is old, so lifts and corridors are tight. Ask the hotel what is open before planning an evening around it.

Exposed medieval beams and painted ceiling above modern furniture

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationZurich, Switzerland
CheckedMarch 2029

Widder Hotel

Zurich, Switzerland

In short

Widder Hotel was made by joining a row of medieval townhouses in the old centre of Zurich. Rooms, restaurants and a bar are spread through the linked buildings, so the hotel reads as a small quarter rather than as a single block.

Where it is

It stands on Rennweg in the Augustiner quarter, inside the old town and above the Bahnhofstrasse shopping street. The Limmat and the Fraumünster are within a short walk. Entrances open from the lanes, and reception is reached through a glazed courtyard.

What the place is like

The architect Tilla Theus led the conversion, and it leaves old walls, beams and painted ceilings visible beside glass, steel and modern lighting. Rooms differ from house to house, and passages step up and down as the original floors did. Works of art hang throughout the public parts.

Good to know

Because the houses were built at different times, layouts and ceiling heights are not consistent. The lanes outside are pedestrian, which affects arrival by car. Ask about access, and about which building your room sits in if the layout matters to you.

A sculptural staircase rising through a quiet stone-lined arrival floor

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationHong Kong
CheckedMarch 2029

The Upper House

Hong Kong

In short

The Upper House occupies the upper floors of a tower above Pacific Place in Admiralty. It is run as a quiet hotel, with few public rooms, a restaurant near the top of the building and lounges kept well apart from the shopping levels below.

Where it is

Admiralty lies between Central and Wan Chai on Hong Kong Island, with the harbour to the north and the wooded slopes of the Peak behind. Arrival is through the Pacific Place complex, and a lift carries guests up to the hotel's own arrival floor.

What the place is like

André Fu designed the interiors, working in limestone, oak and bamboo with long sightlines. A sculptural staircase rises from the arrival floor, and a planted terrace gives outdoor space above the street. Guest rooms are wide, with window seats facing either the harbour or the hillside.

Good to know

Public rooms are few by design, and the restaurant and lounge keep their own hours. The lift route from the mall can confuse a first-time visitor. Ask where to enter and what is serving, and note that terrace use depends on the weather.

A dense salon of mirrors, drapery and closely hung framed works

CategoryArt Hotel
LocationSingapore
CheckedMarch 2029

The Vagabond Club

Singapore

In short

The Vagabond Club is a hotel in the Jalan Besar area of Singapore, set in a row of shophouses. Its public rooms hold a collection of art and objects, and the hotel has run residencies that bring artists and writers into the building for periods of work.

Where it is

The address is Syed Alwi Road, in a district of low shophouses north of the city centre, near Little India and Rochor. Surrounding streets hold hardware shops, cafés and small workshops. The entrance is under the shophouse arcade, level with the pavement.

What the place is like

Jacques Garcia designed the interiors, and they are deliberately dense: deep colours, mirrors, heavy drapery and framed works hung close together. The bar and salon at the front are the busiest rooms. Guest rooms behind are smaller and calmer, though they keep the same palette.

Good to know

The building is narrow, so rooms and corridors are compact and some face a light well. Programmes and displays change, and the residency does not run at all times. Ask what is on show and whether the salon is in use during your stay.

About this page

Blue Resort Group is an independent guide. The descriptions on this page come from open sources, including hotel websites, maps and published writing, and buildings change more often than records of them do. This site is not connected to any hotel, sells nothing and takes no bookings. Check every detail with the hotel directly.