QT SYDNEY, NSW, AUSTRALIA

When it comes to hotels brimming with that special element of coolness, QT Sydney is a great example. In fact, every part of the property oozes cool, and the good thing is that it is organic. Some properties try too hard to be cool; here, it comes naturally. When we walk in the understated doorway off Market Street, right next to the beautiful State Theatre, a chirpy ‘Director of Chaos’ dressed in a quirky, avant-garde uniform shows us to the elevator, which will whisk us up to the lobby.

The hotel is a brilliant mix of restoration, innovation and invention, blending the historic Gowings department store that opened in

1929, with the iconic State Theatre next door. There are signs of the old Gowings everywhere, including in our beautiful corner suite, with the famous Gowings sign on the side of the building shining in neon red when we open the lavish drapes, with Myer on one side and the Queen Victoria Building on the other. The suite, one of 200 rooms in the hotel, is spacious, with a king-sized bed that you could float away on (it has a gel mattress), a simply gorgeous fit-out, original timber floors and a beautiful bathroom with a very Instagrammable round Japanese bath, separate rain shower and screens that you can either shut, or open up to the room.

There are just so many things to love, from the tiled staircase to the luggage wall, the spectacular Gowings Bar & Grill, original barber shop – still operating – and hand-held room numbers. It is Gothic, Art Deco, and Italianate, cheeky, luxurious, bold and beautiful. Next time you’re in Sydney, or even if you live in Sydney, experience it for yourself.