From spectacular seaside escapes to sky-high stunners, Australia is home to some seriously luxurious hotels. We’ve all got a dream stay, but ten in particular have just been crowned the best of the best in Australia for 2025 — and they deserve a top spot on your bucket list.
Renowned travel media brand Travel + Leisure has named Capella Sydney as this year’s winner of the best city hotel in Australia. Opened in 2023 after an eye-popping $300 million refurbishment, this lavish heritage-listed hotel features a naturally lit 20-metre indoor pool, Italian Frette linen, 24-hour room service controlled by a tablet, and a chic French bistro, Brasserie 1930.
Capella isn’t the only Harbour City stay that’s worthy of a crown; five of the top ten city hotels for 2025 are in Sydney. The Park Hyatt Sydney landed in third, followed by Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay in fifth, Shangri-La Sydney in seventh and Pier One Sydney Harbour in eighth.
The ultra-stylish Ritz-Carlton Melbourne ranked as the second-best city hotel for 2025. Soaring 80 storeys high, this luxe stay features 257 fancy rooms with incredible views of the city, a heated infinity pool, bougie spa packages and an award-winning modern Australian restaurant, Atria. Guests here are well and truly sitting in the lap of luxury.
Another one of our Melbourne favourites, W Melbourne, claimed the sixth spot on the best city hotels list, with its sister hotel in Brisbane landing in tenth. You can read the full list of award-winning hotels over here.
These are Australia's best 10 city hotels for 2025
- Capella Sydney
- The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne
- Park Hyatt Sydney
- The Tasman Hobart
- Sydney Harbour Marriott Hotel at Circular Quay
- W Melbourne
- Shangri-La Sydney
- Pier One Sydney Harbour
- COMO The Treasury, Perth
- W Brisbane