50 of the Most Beautiful Hotel Lobbies in the World

Built in 1824, Dublin’s The Shelbourne is an Irish landmark: the country’s constitution was drafted here in 1922. Now, one of the two original copies is on display in the lobby, which also houses work by Irish artists and other historic artifacts.

Known as San Francisco’s first luxury property, the Palace was a beacon of opulence when it first opened in 1875. Today, the landmark property still attracts the crowds with its $10-million stained-glass atrium, featuring Italian marble pillars and Austrian crystal chandeliers.

The Silo opened in 2017 to great fanfare, and it’s easy to see why: the 28-room luxury hotel is set in an old grain elevator in, yes, a silo. The ground-floor lobby is home to a contemporary chandelier created by local designer, Haldane Martin, and colorful accents of African art.

As the island’s first new-build hotel in 45 years, The Loren is unsurprisingly stylish. When guests enter into the expansive lobby, they’re greeted with floor-to-ceiling windows offering sweeping views of the ocean. The real show-stopper, however, is the glass-enclosed spiral staircase.

This chic ski resort has a cozy, welcoming lobby, even in the depths of winter. Stone columns frame secluded seating areas, while expansive windows overlook the neighboring snow-capped mountains. Perfect for apres-ski!

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the lobby at the St. Regis Shenzhen is its sheer height: it occupies the 96th floor, with an incredible exposed-beam design that might remind you of a spaceship. The space also offers some of the best views of the surrounding city.

This exterior of this renovated Art Deco gem was designed by one of the city’s greatest architects, Igor Polevitzky, and now boasts a lobby to match. Meg Sharpe designed the new space, reminiscent of the ‘40s and ‘50s, with shades of pink, coral, and cream contrasted against sunburst golden chandeliers.

The centerpiece of RIMBA’s unique modern design is the ark-shaped lobby, surrounded by more than 2 acres of water. Made from sustainable reclaimed wood, the lobby also includes unique touches such as one-of-a-kind glass art that includes the footprints of the owner’s family, dog included. Views from the lobby are spectacular as well, overlooking the property’s stunning swimming pools.

QT Melbourne blends the neighborhood’s history of fashion, art, and culture into its modern lobby. Set where a cinema once stood, the lobby’s guest elevators have sensory technology that recognize the number of passengers on board and then calls out more than 50 flirtatious phrases in accented female voices.

While it’s not a lobby in the traditional sense (all check-in and check-out procedures are performed by your butler in the comfort of your own villa), Phulay Bay’s open-air reception pavilion is awe-inducing, surrounded by tranquil pools of water and illuminated by 2,000 candles each night.

As Chicago’s oldest hotel, The Palmer House is also one of the city’s largest, with 1,639 guest rooms. Those lucky enough to stay will be in awe of the property’s world-famous lobby, which features Tiffany 24-karat gold chandeliers and ceiling frescoes by Louis Pierre Rigal.

Montage Laguna Beach pulls its decor inspiration from the American Arts-and-Crafts period, using rich woods, muted colors, and period lighting to decorate its lobby. The most impressive design element, however, are the property’s sweeping views over the Pacific Ocean.

Dutch designer Marcel Wanders is the mastermind behind Miami’s Mondrian South Beach Hotel, which greets guests with soaring floor-to-ceiling windows. The real centerpiece, however, is the seemingly-floating staircase, which resembles something from a fairytale.

This Covent Garden hotel was designed by Foster & Partners, the firm’s first hotel project. The futuristic lobby is minimal and dark, with images of jellyfish, pyramids, and celestial life projected on the triangular walls.

In a departure from tradition, the lobby at Tokyo’s Mandarin Oriental occupies the top two floors of the hotel, affording stunning views of the city below. Japanese textile designer Reiko Sudo has designed the space to resemble a “living tree” by layering natural fabrics with warm wood.

Even though it’s situated in a historical bank building, the Mandarin Oriental Barcelona manages to seamlessly blend both old and new. The lobby and adjacent restaurant are adorned with patterned screens that are meant to be a modern take on traditional Islamic designs. Tranquil blue and white furniture rounds out the ethereal space.

Fresh off an incredible restoration, this Parisian Art Deco landmark is set to reopen in spring 2018, with a breathtakingly-detailed lobby that has been painstakingly-restored. The hand-painted frescoes and dramatic marble floors make for a unique space that befits the hotel’s storied history.

Called, appropriately, the Living Room, the lobby at the W Hollywood combines secluded seating areas with a boisterous lobby bar. The centerpiece is a Hollywood-glamorous spiral staircase and a chandelier that appears to drip from the ceiling.

This 18th-century star on Paris’s Tuileries Garden got a contemporary upgrade in 2016, when famed designer Philippe Starck (and daughter Ara) reimagined the hotel’s posh common areas. Now, the lobby salon, named Le Dali after the painter (a regular guest for decades), is filled with a 1,560-square foot surreal canvas mural and a complementary carpet in a similar style.

Entering the lobby at Mexico’s La Purificadora is an otherworldly experience. You’ll think you’ve just stepped into a campsite as you pass the lobby’s flowing stream, volcanic fire pits, and and twinkling stars.

Set on a former 12th-century estate, this intimate Moroccan riad is famous for its otherworldly-entrance in which intricately-tiled columns reflect off of a gleaming floor. The adjacent center courtyard has a bubbling fountain and vibrant bougainvilleas, all of which add to the magical appeal.

At one time, L’Heure Bleue Palais was a literal palace. The formerly abandoned riad was transformed a decade ago and is now filled with British, Portuguese, and African influences. Now, the stunning property greets guests with a palm-filled, fountain-adorned courtyard that also serves as the hotel’s lobby.

One of Sacramento’s newest hotels, the Kimpton Sawyer has a greenery-filled lobby decorated with soothing neutrals and California oak. Lorenzo Sawyer, the hotel’s namesake and a state Supreme Court justice, is honored with a giant painted portrait in the lobby.

Savannah’s stylish Kimpton Brice has a lobby that you might confuse for someone’s chic living room. Lined with books and walls adorned with original artwork, it’s easy to see how you could tuck in here for an entire afternoon.

The lobby at the ITC Grand Chola might be sparse—although it does have a beautiful (and expansive) marble staircase—but a personal touch makes all the difference. The staff, dressed in colorful traditional saris, line the lobby’s staircase to greet each guest personally.

Located in New Delhi, this property is a tribute to the Mauryan Dynasty, the first dynasty of India's empire builders. The hotel was built according to Mauryan architecture and is considered one of the only two examples of authentic Mauryan design in the world. The lobby is home to a giant mural, “The Procession of Life," painted by Indian artist Krishen Khanna.

Antique Florentine marble covers every surface of this south Florida property, which is considered the largest marble structure in the state. The lobby also houses an 18-foot sculpture, weighing a whopping 70 tons—it had to be dropped in through the ceiling!

Bigger isn’t always better, but it is in the case of San Francisco’s Hyatt Regency, which boasts the largest hotel lobby in the world. It clocks in at 42,000-square feet and 17 stories high.

A little bit of Italy in the Midwest! The Hyatt Regency’s grand arcade was built in 1890, modeled after the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. The massive arcade, constructed from iron and glass, allows natural light to pour in throughout the day.

Listed on the National Registry of Historic Places, a visit to Hotel Phillips transports you back in time. The Art Deco-era lobby has classic wood paneling and marble details, as well as the Goddess of Dawn, an 11-foot statue that has presided over the space since 1931.

Affectionately known as The White Lady, Hotel d’Angleterre has been a Copenhagen staple for more than 250 years. Guests are immediately greeted by fresh flowers in the recently-restored domed lobby. Above the reception desk is an “anti-Winterhalter,” one of a limited edition of Andy Warhol’s silkscreen portrait of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.

Located on Paris’s renowned Avenue Montaigne, Hôtel Plaza Athénée has some of the city’s most magnificent Eiffel Towers views. But the real elegance begins in the lobby, which is filled with crystal chandeliers, white Carrara marble, bronze and brushed-oak furnishings, red-silk couches and drapes, and fresh flowers affixed to marble columns.

Owned by the ever-fashionable Ferragamo family, it comes as no surprise that Hotel Lungarno, regarded as the first “fashion hotel” when it opened in the ‘90s, has a stylish lobby. Overlooking Florence’s Arno River, the newly-renovated lobby is decorated in soothing blue hues.

This iconic Berlin hotel is located in the very heart of the city, just opposite of the Brandenburg Gate. In fall 2017, the property unveiled an expanded lobby that still retains all of the charm of the original: a comforting, social space, decorated in rich limestone, leather, brass and onyx, covered by an impressive dome adorned with more than 180 glass stars and a 12-foot-tall crystal chandelier.

Nashville’s oldest hotel is also the only 5-star property in the state. Built in 1910, the property’s grand Beaux-Arts lobby is adorned with Tennessee marble floors and a painted glass skylight, still the stunning centerpiece more than 100 years later.

A long-time celebrity hideaway, Gstaad Palace is home to an intimate lobby bar, perfect for unwinding after a long day day on the slopes. In addition to being beautifully-decorated, the warming fireplace and cozy seating areas make for a restful place to enjoy a mug of glühwein.

Located just outside of famed St. Moritz, Grand Hotel Kronenhof has a majestic hotel lobby,  complete with freshly-restored ceiling frescoes painted by Otto Haberer. During the afternoon, guests can enjoy traditional afternoon teas and a piano accompaniment in this charming space.

Designed by Yabu Pushelberg, the lobby of this luxurious Toronto hotel features book-matched mahogany wood-paneling, hand-painted walls, and a bespoke carpet inlay. The lobby’s walls are made up of more than 50,000 pieces of polished metal.

If you’re overwhelmingly bored by the seafoam greens and crisp whites of every other Caribbean hotel lobby, you’ll love the Four Seasons Anguilla. This property’s Kelly Wearstler-designed lobby is decorated in rich woods, muted stones, and natural furnishings, all of which still evoke the island’s surroundings with nary a hue of blue in sight.

The glittering chandelier in the lobby of Paris’s Four Seasons George V is stunning, but the primary showcase is the more-than-two-dozen elaborate, large-scale floral arrangements that adorn the lobby and the hotel’s common areas. Creative director Jeff Leatham crafts his vision from the more than 12,000 flowers shipped in from the Netherlands each week.

This hotel’s retro-glam lobby features columns preserved from the original landmarked building, sexy mood lighting, and lush greenery. There’s plenty of comfortable, cozy candlelit seating too.

The heart of London’s Corinthia Hotel, the property’s Crystal Moon Lounge serves up afternoon tea and buzzy cocktails under a dramatic domed Baccarat crystal chandelier. (The hotel’s spa is worth a mention too—it spans more than 35,000 square-feet!)

Built on the site of the Sweelinck Conservatory of Music, the Conservatorium is an architectural masterpiece. Guests are greeted with a dramatic, open atrium that shows off preserved exposed brick and off comfortable seating areas with plush sofas and armchairs.

Burj al Arab, with its distinctive sail-shaped design, has quickly become one of the most iconic hotels in the world and the lobby is no different. Open only to hotel guests who arrive via chauffeured Rolls Royce, the property’s lobby has dancing fountains, 24-karat gold leaf pillars, and Statuario marble.

The Box House Hotel, situated in north Brooklyn’s Greenpoint neighborhood, is a converted factory-door factory that still retains loads of original details. The bright and colorful lobby has exposed brick, natural oak hardwood floors, and shelves lined with quirky antiques.

Steeped in history, Switzerland’s renowned Baur au Lac has been the destination for the world’s elite and jet-set for nearly 200 years. In addition to being beautiful, the property’s lobby—known as Le Hall—was the birthplace of the Nobel Peace Prize. Now, renovated and restored in 2014, the light-filled space remains a favorite meeting spot in all of Zurich.

Stunning both inside and out, the first hotel on Dubai’s man-made Palm Jumeirah has a palatial lobby with a jaw-dropping sculptural centerpiece: a 32-foot glass sculpture made by famed artist, Dale Chihuly. In a tribute to the surrounding sea, the piece was constructed with more than 3,000 individual pieces of glass.

Ashford Castle, a 13th-century castle hotel, has a common area filled with antiques and decor that rivals the world’s best museums. Their collection includes a full suit of armor from the 19th-century, a Belgian Val Saint Lambert chandelier, and a 1,043-piece silver-gilt dinner service, formerly owned by Washington Augustus Roebling, worth more than a million dollars.

Aman Tokyo’s dramatic lobby is punctuated by an inner garden with a dramatic reflecting pool, lined with black stone. The 85-foot ceilings are trimmed with backlit shoji paper, which mimics a traditional paper lantern.

This intimate London boutique hotel has been reimagined by New York designer, Thierry Despont. Once called, “the hutch in the park,” 45 Park Lane was a fashionable hangout in 1960s London. Now, it welcomes visitors with a gracious wood-paneled lobby and sparkling chandeliers.