Jessie Prince, The Quarter Acre
Coastal Cool
The Sails Motel & Pool Club
There’s a lot to love about the laid-back hamlet of Brunswick Heads.
More low-key and family-orientated than its popular neighbour Byron Bay, this coastal town is also home to The Sails Motel & Pool Club.
Owned and operated by former fashion editor Amanda Newman and her partner Simon Johnson, this reimagined Palm Springs-inspired motel is a welcoming little oasis in the heart of Brunswick Heads.
The original 1960s property has 22 classic motel-style rooms – which can cater for couples and families – and a pool area where you can soak up the sun and enjoy a handpicked selection of craft beer and wine.
Like the retro roadside motels that boomed in popularity in the ’60s and ’70s, Sails offers on-site parking so guests can easily access their cars.
Foodies will love the Saint Maries Pizzeria – and its inspiring list of natural and vegan wines, no less – and Old Maids Burger Store, both of which will deliver to guest rooms for those who are too relaxed to get dressed for dinner.
The couple used the forced COVID-19 closure to give the property a facelift with fresh paint, new beds and carpet and air purifiers in all of the guest rooms ready ahead of its June 5 reopening.
Relaxed Luxury
Halcyon House
Once a former ‘surfing motel’, Halcyon House appeals to the desires of the discerning modern traveller while paying respect to the building’s history.
Queensland sisters Siobhan and Elisha Bickle purchased the rundown 1960s motel, The Hideaway – then popular with backpackers, road trippers and budget travellers – in 2011 and transformed it into one of Australia’s most exclusive and unique beachside properties.
The luxury travel destination – located between Byron Bay and the Gold Coast – combines top-tier service, hatted culinary experiences and acclaimed design, with the 19 bespoke rooms and two luxury suites individually designed by celebrated Brisbane interior designer, Anna Spiro.
Prior to the July 2 reopening, the multi-award-winning hideaway underwent a deep clean and implemented stringent new health and safety practices including a number of hand sanitising stations located throughout the hotel.
Halcyon House’s restaurant, Paper Daisy, will be open exclusively to in-house guests for breakfast and lunch, and only open to the public for dinner for the time being.
Urban cool meets barefoot luxe
The Bower Byron Bay
The brainchild of Taliah and Sein Lowry, this moody, sophisticated space brings urban luxe to the popular coastal bohemian playground of Byron Bay.
Inspired by Manhattan’s hip Bowery neighbourhood during a trip to New York in 2016, the Lowrys and their team, including interior designer Kate Sacks and architect John Burgess, repurposed an original 1970s roadside motel on Bangalow Road, giving it new life as a sleek boutique hotel.
Combining the barefoot, free-spirited ethos of Byron with considered urban design, The Bower offers beautifully appointed guest rooms, Deluxe King Rooms as well as a 100-year-old cottage and a self-contained barn on site.
The piece de resistance, though, is the circular, heated natural mineral swimming pool surrounded by lush tropical gardens and towering palms.
https://www.thebowerbyronbay.com.au/
Nostalgic Kitsch
Ventura Beach Motel
With its candy pink and powder blue exterior and hipster elements, this repurposed Gold Coast 1970s motel is a hit with social media-savvy millennial travellers.
The brainchild of three brothers, and property developers, this Mermaid Beach motel retains nostalgic kitsch but the nine rooms – one, two and three-bedroom apartments – have been completely renovated and styled to cater for modern travellers.
Contemporary coastal-inspired décor, brand new appliances and a communal pool area, put a modern and playful spin on the original drive-in motel concept.
https://www.venturabeachmotel.com.au/
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