editorial

Capella’s newest hotel celebrates Australian artists and makers while weaving together Sydney’s past and present.
<figure id="attachment_141823" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-141823" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-141823 size-full" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Main-Entrance-Farrer-Place.jpg" alt="Capella Sydney’s historic sandstone facade. (All photos courtesy of Capella Sydney)" width="1200" height="800" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-141823" class="wp-caption-text">Capella Sydney’s historic sandstone facade. (All photos courtesy of Capella Sydney)</figcaption></figure>
Sitting under a kinetic floral installation suspended from a glass ceiling, I am hypnotized by the sight of gossamer flowers opening and closing in synchronized breathlike bursts. The sunlight streaming into the atrium adds to the magic of the moment, as does a seven-meter-tall vertical garden where house crickets chirp among ferns and other native plants.
This calming scene greets diners at Aperture, the all-day restaurant and tea lounge at the heart of Capella Sydney, the Singaporean hospitality brand’s first foray outside Asia. Located in the city’s financial district, it’s a low-rise affair that has breathed new life into the century- old former Department of Education building, a sandstone landmark by Scottish-born architect George McRae.
Global design firm Make Architects oversaw a seven-year restoration and refit, adding a four-story extension clad in aluminum alloy panels to the roof of the Baroque-inspired Edwardian structure. There are now 192 rooms and suites, a swanky spa, and a skylighted 20-meter swimming pool.
<figure id="attachment_141827" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-141827" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-141827 size-full" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-McRae-Bar-and-Pool.jpg" alt="Left to right: McRae Bar; the indoor pool." width="1200" height="894" srcset="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-McRae-Bar-and-Pool.jpg 1200w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-McRae-Bar-and-Pool-300x224.jpg 300w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-McRae-Bar-and-Pool-1024x763.jpg 1024w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-McRae-Bar-and-Pool-768x572.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-141827" class="wp-caption-text">Left to right: McRae Bar; the indoor pool.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_141828" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-141828" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-141828 size-full" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Aperture.jpg" alt="A seating area at Capella Sydney’s Aperture restaurant." width="1200" height="800" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-141828" class="wp-caption-text">A seating area at Capella Sydney’s Aperture restaurant.</figcaption></figure>
The muted interiors come courtesy of Melbourne-based BAR Studio, which employed walnut wood and natural stone throughout. Guest quarters start at a generous 46 square meters, with curated artworks and furnishings, objets such as antique compasses, and beds draped in custom Frette linen; the spacious bathrooms feature standalone tubs. For the best views in the house, check in to a Skyline Suite.
Downstairs at Brasserie 1930, a menu conceived by Sydney F&amp;B hotshots The Bentley Group spotlights premium local produce. Especially memorable are the plump Tasmanian scallops cooked in artisanal butter and jazzed up with the tangy acidity of finger lime. Australian ingredients also find their way into the high tea treats at Aperture: expect to see wattleseed-mascarpone éclairs and pavlova with passion fruit curd.
Then there’s the hotel’s impressive 1,500-piece art collection, which champions contemporary Australian artists. McRae Bar, a plush drinking den already favored by bankers, gets pops of vivid color through murals by Gumbaynggirr painter (and professional surfer) Otis Hope Carey. Waanyi multimedia artist Judy Watson has contributed new panels for the original brass directory boards, narrating the initial encounters between the First Nations people and 18th-century European settlers, and the subsequent colonization of Australia.
That element of storytelling is present from the moment of arrival, when local folklore accompanies a fizzy welcome drink infused with a eucalyptus species found only in New South Wales. Beyond the hotel’s four walls, Capella “Culturists” can arrange guided history walks and meetings with indigenous elders like Aunty Margret Campbell, who worked in the building in the ’70s as a teacher and Aboriginal education advocate. Chef-led market tours and yacht excursions to places well off the tourist trail are also in the cards, creating a Sydney stay like none other.
<a href="https://capellahotels.com/en/capella-sydney" target="_blank" rel="noopener">capellahotels.com</a>; doubles from US$500
<figure id="attachment_141824" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-141824" style="width: 1380px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-141824 size-full" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Liberty-Suite.jpg" alt="The Liberty Suite comes with Sydney Harbour views." width="1380" height="920" srcset="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Liberty-Suite.jpg 1380w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Liberty-Suite-300x200.jpg 300w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Liberty-Suite-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Liberty-Suite-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1380px) 100vw, 1380px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-141824" class="wp-caption-text">The Liberty Suite comes with Sydney Harbour views.</figcaption></figure>
<figure id="attachment_141826" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-141826" style="width: 1200px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-141826 size-full" src="https://staging.destinasian.com/wp-content/uploads/Capella-Sydney-Review-Brasserie-1930-Beef-Tartare-and-Architecture.jpg" alt="Left to right: Beef tartare at Brasserie 1930; the British coat of arms hangs above Capella Sydney’s western entrance." width="1200" height="850" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-141826" class="wp-caption-text">Left to right: Beef tartare at Brasserie 1930; the British coat of arms hangs above Capella Sydney’s western entrance.</figcaption></figure>
This article originally appeared in the <a href="https://subscription.destinasian.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">June/July 2023</a> print issue of DestinAsian magazine (“Going for Baroque”).

The Liberty Suite at Capella Sydney comes with Sydney Harbour views.

Checking In: Capella Sydney