Despite the fact that international tourism is unlikely to resume in earnest in the foreseeable future, Sydney’s luxury hotel boom shows little sign of slowing. The Sofitel and the under-construction W Hotel in Darling Harbour, as well as the nearby Crown Towers at Barangaroo have not only brought hundreds of five-star guest rooms to the Harbour City, they’ve also made their mark on the Sydney skyline – most notably the Crown Tower which overtook the Sydney Tower to come the city’s tallest building in 2020. Now, another sky-scraping addition to Sydney’s luxe accommodations has been announced, adding to the recent cluster of towers being thrown up around Circular Quay.
The 47-storey hotel and high-end apartment complex, complete with a rooftop infinity pool, will have unmatched views of the Harbour, Bennelong Point and the Royal Botanic Gardens. The sleek, glazed tower is set to rise out of the preserved heritage-listed facade of the 19th-century sandstone building currently located at 52 Philip Street, which the hotel’s developers, Built and Irongate, have owned since 2017.
A render of the proposed tower at 52 Philip Street overlooking the Botanic Gardens
Once the $800-million development is complete, it will boast 240 ‘six-star’ hotel rooms, and 16 high-end apartments, just a block from Circular Quay.
As yet, it's not established which hotel company will be attached to the project, although the developers have teased that several internationally recognised luxury hotel brands had signalled interest in the development. Plans have now been submitted for approval for the ambitious project, but there's no firm timeline on when the construction will commence or reach completion.