A boutique-style hotel with 257 rooms, this Surry Hills spot has an intimate feel with a lively cultural programme, slick rooftop dining and a bustling ground-floor bar
Location
Founded in Seattle in the late 1990s, Ace hotels have since opened outposts across the world. Combining boutique luxury with accessible prices, Ace Hotel Sydney is located in the city’s trendy Surry Hills. Known for its award-winning restaurants, buzzy bars and vintage shops, the leafy area is populated by Victorian-era terrace houses, independent art galleries and booksellers.
Sitting on the border of the Central Business District and adjacent to Chinatown, Ace Hotel puts you within walking distance of the Sydney Opera House, Royal Botanical Gardens and Darling Harbour.
The 333 bus from outside the hotel connects you to Bondi Beach in 30 minutes and Circular Quay in 15 minutes, where you can get ferries to Manly, Watson’s Bay and Taronga Zoo. Ace is just 20 minutes from Sydney airport on the T8 train.
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The vibe
Designed by Melbourne design studio Flack Local, Ace Hotel Sydney blends the group’s signature 1970s styling with an outback-inspired colour palette. Tan leather sofas, terracotta tiling and red marble surfaces feature in the lobby, while locally-sourced timber, concrete walls and steel piping reference the area’s industrial past. Plants, original Aboriginal artworks and tapestries brighten up the space. In Kiln, the rooftop restaurant, the colour palette mirrors the city landscape visible through floor-to-ceiling windows.
Just like Soho House – without the membership fees – Ace Sydney is as much of a social hub as it is a hotel. It’s got a creative clientele of freelancers and locals who make use of The Lobby bar, which is designed to evoke a suburban living room. Come evening, laptops are swapped for cocktails and the photobooth is in high demand.
Couples, solo travellers and Sydney dwellers gather over coffee and juices in the all-day Good Chemistry cafe, which also hosts a different artist’s work each month.
Service
Service is informal and relaxed. The check-in team and bar staff give guests a warm welcome and the front desk offers 24-hour service, from luggage storage to taxi arrangement and dining recommendations.
Bed and bath
Despite its boutique feel, Ace Hotel features 257 rooms, from entry-level (choose from a small, medium or “medium-plus” room), to more premium options (large, “double double” and terrace rooms). The upper-floor suites feel like a rock star’s home, with sunken living areas and panoramic views.
Catering for solo guests and couples, the “cosy” rooms are very small (16 to 19 square meters) but are perfectly suited to those who spend most of their time exploring the city.
Music is a theme throughout Ace hotels (it began as a base for touring musicians) and rooms include custom Tivoli Audio radios, vinyl players and a curated record collection, alongside acoustic guitars in the more premium options. Exposed brick walls, terracotta tiled floors and wooden headboards add to the retro feel.
The smaller room categories don’t come with a separate bathroom and instead have an in-room sink and separate shower and toilet rooms, featuring Firsthand toiletries. Larger rooms boast freestanding bathtubs.
Built-in sofas and desk tables feature in the larger accommodations. So if you’re planning on enjoying time in the room, it’s worth paying more for the mid-range or premium types.
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Food and drink
The hotel’s restaurant Kiln, perched 18 floors up and offering sweeping views of the city, is a Surry Hills favourite. The hotel sits on the site where Australia’s oldest ceramic kilns were found, giving the restaurant its name. Specialising in wood-fired Italian cuisine with Japanese and Southeast Asian flavours, it reflects Sydney’s multicultural food scene.
Dishes such as cod roe tuna tartare, kangaroo carpaccio and pickled duck breast are designed to be shared, alongside blue swimmer crab tart and kurobuta pork neck.
The ground floor all-day dining spot, Loam, serves Australian cuisine using local produce. A laidback cafe by day, it turns into a warmly lit bistro at night.
Breakfast isn’t included in room rates, but Loam excels at a signature Aussie brunch – get the “green goddess” poached eggs or the “OG” egg morning roll.
The Lobby bar is lively – particularly during happy hour – with cosy lighting and worn-in interiors. Serving all-day light bites. Among the Ace signature cocktails, the Coconut Bounty and zingy Tokyo collins are standouts.
The Good Chemistry cafe serves batch brew coffees, juices, kombuchas and tea. The hotel caters for dietaries at request.
Facilities
The hotel’s small but sufficient gym features treadmills, a rower, weight machines, dumbbells and yoga mats, with towels and a water dispenser. Bikes and helmets for exploring Sydney are available on a first come, first served basis, while hotel guests also have access to a nearby car park. In lieu of spa facilities, Ace Hotel can arrange in-room treatments, from massages to beauty service. In addition to the vinyls in the rooms, guests can choose records from the hotel’s wider library downstairs. There is also a busy cultural programme, from DJs in The Lobby at the weekend to staged readings of unproduced television pilots, supper clubs and artist residencies.
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Family friendly?
Ace Hotel welcomes families with in its “double double” rooms, terrace and loft room types, as well as offering interconnecting rooms, free baby cribs and infant beds on request. There are kid-friendly menus at the Lom restaurant and Good Chemistry cafe.
However, the atmosphere is far more geared toward couples and groups of friends, with a lively bar in the evening, music events and art programmes.
Accessibility
The hotel offers 10 accessible rooms, featuring wheelchair accessible doorways, step-free access and roll-in shower facilities, alongside grab bars, a raised toilet and lowered sink. There is lift access to all floors of the hotel including the entrance and rooftop restaurant.
Check in/check out
Check in from 3pm; check out by midday.
Pet policy
Ace Hotel Sydney welcomes dogs for an extra $120 (£88) per stay, with a maximum of two dogs per room. Pet beds, food and water bowls, and a mat are all provided, with designated rooms. Dogs are allowed in the public areas – with the exception of the restaurants and bar areas – but a liability waiver is required upon check-in.
At a glance
Best thing: The stylish interiors and trendy location.
Perfect for: Those wanting to explore Sydney’s stylish urban areas.
Not right for: Travellers wanting to be close to the beach or main sights.
Instagram from: The Kiln restaurant, with panoramic views across the CBD and Surry Hills.
Address: 47-53 Wentworth Ave, Sydney NSW 2000, Australia
Phone number: +61 2 8099 8799
Website: acehotel.com/sydney/
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Daisy Lester was a guest of Ace Sydney
