AUSTRALIA | Melbourne has welcomed two new hotels in IHG's portfolio, Hotel Indigo Melbourne Little Collins and Holiday Inn Melbourne Bourke Street Mall.
IHG Hotels & Resorts has opened its first dual-branded hotel in Australia, with the opening of Hotel Indigo Melbourne Little Collins and Holiday Inn Melbourne Bourke Street Mall. The highly anticipated openings are part of an eight-year development in the heart of the reimagined ‘Melbourne Walk’ precinct and on the doorstep of Bourke Street Mall, one of the city’s most coveted retail destinations. The opening marks a significant milestone for the Holiday Inn brand as it returns to Melbourne’s CBD with its newest interior design style, while Hotel Indigo offers guests a distinct stay experience through its strength as a neighbourhood storyteller.
Developed by Steadfast Capital, each hotel has been brought to life through the vision of acclaimed global design studio, Buchan, with architectural feats including Hotel Indigo’s soaring spiral staircases, internal courtyard and a cathedral-like atrium.
The 179-room boutique hotel introduces a vibrant new energy to the heart of the CBD. The Hotel Indigo storytelling experience begins with the building’s exterior, rising behind four preserved heritage façades, Diamond House, the Public Benefit Bootery, Allan’s, and the York Building, where the site’s past as home to jewellers and bootmakers weave Melbourne’s cultural heritage into every element of the guest experience.
Connection to the locale’s unique heritage continues as guests arrive surrounded by the property’s signature Mondrian blue, a nod to Melbourne’s iconic street signs. Monkey motifs feature throughout the hotel’s lobby, referencing E.W. Cole, the eccentric owner of Cole’s Book Arcade, whose monkey-filled menagerie was once located within the precinct. Downstairs, a circular bar sits around the bottom of the spiral staircase inspired by Sidney Myer’s drapery store, offering the perfect vantage point to admire the cathedral-like atrium space and three-storey ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ artwork by acclaimed Melbourne-based muralist and figurative painter, Lisa King. Commissioned exclusively for the hotel, the mural features objects symbolic of Melbourne, from a sneaker and tennis ball nodding to the Australian Open, to fruit and flowers emulating the Queen Victoria Market.
Holiday Inn returns to Melbourne’s CBD for the first time in five years, showing off its new modern design and the brand’s signature open-plan lobby, restaurant and public space. The 273-room Holiday Inn is located above the reimagined Melbourne Walk and on the doorstep of Bourke Street Mall, placing guests in the beating heart of Melbourne.
A greenery backed “Hello” sign welcomes guests into the large open lobby, with its design combining soft blond wood and fresh pops of green to create a sense of calm and connection. Flexible seating and power outlets make it equally suited to relaxing or working, consistent with Holiday Inn’s next-generation design ethos.
Guest rooms are bright and welcoming, decorated with modern artworks inspired by Melbourne’s monuments and skyline. A warm palette of greens, pinks and mustard, paired with retro-inspired finishes, gives each space a relaxed, playful feel. With 92 double-double rooms, the hotel is especially suited for families and small groups travelling together.
The hotel’s standout feature is its 220-square-metre private terrace event space, offering unobstructed views over Bourke Street Mall to the striking GPO clock tower, the historic Myer building, and Melbourne’s skyline, an adaptable setting for both corporate functions and celebratory gatherings.
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