Australians are notoriously laid-back, and our version of high-end hospitality often follows suit, but at Capella, nonchalance is not in the handbook.
The early-20th-century Department of Education building, which launched as the Capella Sydney hotel in 2023, now comprises 192 rooms and suites with a neutral modern palette, Frette linens and more than 1400 pieces of art throughout. Some rooms look out to the CBD while others offer Sydney Harbour glimpses from the bathtub.
Like finding cash in a pocket you haven’t explored in a while, the feeling of returning from a wholly satisfying dinner to a proper turn-down service is hard to rival. At Capella Sydney, this evening intervention is exceptional: a bucket of ice is left on your bar (just in case), charging cables are neatly gathered in a leather loop, and those toiletries you left scattered? Perfectly aligned on the expansive bathroom shelf. Meanwhile, a fragrant sleep balm by Indigenous-owned Groote Eylandt business Bush Medijina entices sweet dreams.
Australian hotels have adopted quality in-house restaurants in recent years, but Capella’s standout offering is the moody and modern McRae Bar. Perhaps you’ll choose a cocktail from a custom tarot deck, or tuck yourself away in a dim corner for a sacred solo burger. There’s also an Italian-leaning grill with checkerboard flooring at Brasserie 1930, and the all-day atrium venue Aperture. It’s a popular spot for locals to hold meetings or sip coffee under the undulating Meadow artwork by Studio Drift, which is hard to look away from.
As the first Australian property from the Singapore-based brand, Capella’s roots are tangible from an elaborate congee station offered at the breakfast buffet in Brasserie 1930 to gua sha facial massages, and an annual embrace of Lunar New Year, complete with lion dances.
Auriga Spa is a contemporary warren of enormous private treatment rooms for facials, body wraps and massages. It neighbours the Technogym-equipped fitness centre and – perhaps the hotel’s most recognisable drawcard – the enclosed, 20-metre swimming pool that transformed the building’s original gallery into something temple-like in its aesthetic and atmosphere.
Concierges – or Culturists, as Capella calls them – can arrange thoughtful activities like First Nations history tours, Harbour cruises aboard a 1950s yacht or a coffee-roasting course. Surrendering to suggestion is easy when presented with such style. In the guest-only The Living Room, someone offers a cocktail and dainty crab and caviar tart during the complimentary Afternoon Swill ritual. Why not?
All winners in the Gourmet Traveller Hotel and Travel Awards have been determined by Gourmet Traveller editor David Meagher, deputy editor Ceri David and digital editor Georgia Condon. We also sought input from our team of luxury food and travel industry experts including our Victoria state editor Michael Harden, Queensland state editor Elliot Baker, New South Wales state editor Alexandra Carlton and travel writer Carrie Hutchinson.
How we pick the Gourmet Traveller Hotel and Travel Awards winners
