The W Hotels brand has returned to Sydney for the first time since 2007, with the opening of a 588-room hotel overlooking Darling Harbour.
W Sydney is situated within The Ribbon, a curved mixed-use development designed by Australian architectural firm Hassell, which also houses an IMAX theatre, retail space and serviced apartments.
The hotel features four F&B venues including BTWN restaurant (so called because it is situated between the city’s expressways), the brand’s signature Living Room bar, and the two-level rooftop 29/30 bar.
Other facilities include a 30-metre open-air infinity pool featuring a giant jellyfish motif crafted from glass mosaic tiles, as well as AWAY Spa, FIT Gym and 1,300 sqm of events space including the 592 sqm pillarless Great Room.
Design elements include a copper-clad entry paying homage to subterranean Sydney and its disused railway tunnels, and a blue circular bar and nest-like seating referencing the Australian Bowerbird.
Sydney was in fact the first location for the W Hotels brand outside the US, but the original W Sydney in the city’s Woolloomooloo suburb was rebranded as the Blue Hotel (managed by Taj Hotels and Resorts) in 2007, and has since again been rebranded under the Ovolo brand.
W Sydney becomes the third property operating under the brand in Australia, joining W Brisbane and W Melbourne – the latter of which opened within the mixed use Collins Arch development in Melbourne in 2021.
Commenting on the opening George Fleck, vice president and global brand leader of W Hotels, said:
“W Sydney marks our W Hotels brand’s triumphant return to Sydney, a long-awaited addition to our robust portfolio in Australia, following our recent debuts in Melbourne and Brisbane.
“W Sydney will cultivate a new cultural and social hub in the vibrant Darling Harbour precinct. It is the perfect canvas for a non-conformist approach to the luxury hospitality landscape with W’s bold and energetic ‘Whatever/Whenever’ service ethos, dynamic design, and immersive programming as we celebrate Sydney through a new lens.”
For our recent feature looking at post-pandemic developments in Sydney, see:
