Hotel Profile: SKYE Suites Sydney | Australian Traveller

Whether travelling with family or a few friends, SKYE Suites Sydney offers both convenience and luxury in the heart of the city.

Combining spacious suites, a location within walking distance of Sydney’s best landmarks, and sophisticated style and service, SKYE Suites Sydney ticks all the boxes for a stay in Sydney’s CBD with kids or friends. Here’s everything to know about staying at SKYE Suites Sydney for your next staycation or visit to the city.

Location

Navigating Sydney’s CBD by car can sometimes cause anxiety levels to rise – for those who don’t do it often – but SKYE Suites Sydney was so simple to find, and we arrive at our destination feeling relaxed. We drive into the car park, where our car is taken care of by valet ($85). The beauty is, we don’t need it again until we leave because this Kent Street accommodation is an easy walk or tram ride from all of Sydney’s major landmarks.

From the front door, SKYE Suites is a six-minute walk to Darling Harbour, around 10 minutes to Barangaroo, just eight minutes to the QVB and 17 minutes to The Rocks. The closest tram stop is Wynyard, which is just six minutes’ walk away, and runs along George Street between Circular Quay and Central.

SKYE Suites is within walking distance of Sydney’s best landmarks.

Style and character

SKYE Suites is part of a striking 25-storey complex designed by Japanese firm, Koichi Takada Architects. The charming building was inspired by the curvilinear nature of Australia. The street-front heritage-stye façade is a masterpiece of arched window frames built using 30,000 bricks, while atop this are two contemporary towers (housing residential apartments) featuring a rooftop composed of 59 steel arches.

the interior of the SKYE Suites in Sydney

The charming complex is designed by Japanese firm, Koichi Takada Architects.

The lobby is a chic, dimly lit space, with a ceiling of curved white arches and blue and grey velvet lounges. Just beyond the reception, we spy one of the most striking hotel swimming pools we’ve seen (but more on that later).

the swimming pool at SKYE Suites in Sydney

The swimming pool is one of its best features.

A glass-sided elevator whisks us up to our level, which again is moodily lit. On the contrary, our suite is bright and airy with a floor-to-ceiling window overlooking Clarence Street. Its design is inspired by Japanese minimalism with a muted colour palette of Tasmanian oak, white, greys and black, and contemporary furniture.

the suite interior at the SKYE Suites in Sydney

Each suite is bright and airy, with contemporary furniture.

Facilities

The curved architecture continues in the pool area, with a ceiling of white arches creating a dramatic cavern-like space that was designed to resemble an ‘ice cave’. We take a dip in the illuminated, blue-tiled pool and enjoy a soak in the spa. There is an adjacent gym that overlooks the pool and comprises a decent amount of equipment: rowers, treadmills, weights and resistance machines.

The pool evokes a dramatic cavern-like space.

Reception is manned 24 hours, and all staff are extremely affable and helpful. I am in the city to see a show and return late that night to a friendly face, which is comforting. Housekeeping staff also quickly attend to a broken glass in our room, courtesy of our four-year-old.

The gym comprises a generous amount of equipment.

Rooms

SKYE Suites Sydney has several suite types. There’s a deluxe studio suite and a slightly larger executive studio suite, both featuring a queen bed, lounge space and kitchenette. The one-bedroom suite features a queen bed, a separate lounge area and a kitchenette.

All suites boast a small balcony for fresh air.

While the deluxe two-bedroom suite and premier two-bedroom suite both comprise two private bedrooms, a full kitchen and laundry. All suites boast a small balcony for fresh air, which is always a bonus in a city hotel.

Sleep soundly in the one-bedroom suite.

We stay in a one-bedroom suite and have more than enough room for our small family, with a queen bed, a single bed, and a spacious living and dining area.

the dining and kitchenette at the SKYE Suites in Sydney

The rooms also feature a separate lounge area, dining and a kitchenette.

The bathroom is a decent size and stocked with lovely New Zealand-made Smith and Co amenities, with refillable bottles in the shower and at the sink, as well as smaller tubes on the bench. The towels are plush, the lighting is good and the shower pressure is spot on.

the living area at SKYE Suites in Sydney

Inside, you’ll find a floor-to-ceiling window overlooking Clarence Street.

The kitchenette features a microwave, oven, Espresso coffee pod machine and a fridge stocked with Sydney Beer Co beer, Angove wine from South Australia, Santa Vittoria soft drinks and Apani glass bottled water. There is also a small selection of snacks to purchase on the bench (chips, chocolate bars and nuts). Free wi-fi is also available.

the suite interior at SKYE Suites in Sydney

The suite is spacious enough for families.

Food and drink

SKYE Suites doesn’t have a restaurant on-site, unfortunately, but it is close to many great dining options. Darling Harbour is a close walk with ample eateries along its waterfront. Or walk a little further to Barangaroo, with a host of excellent options such as Anason for flavoursome Turkish cuisine or Muum Maam for delicious Thai.

We walk the other way into the CBD for breakfast the following morning at The Grounds of the City (a 10-minute walk). It serves great coffee and food in an utterly charming Parisian-inspired venue (be sure to make a reservation).

the kitchenette at the SKYE Suites in Sydney

The rooms have a kitchenette where you can prepare your meals.

Does SKYE Suites have access for guests with disabilities?

Lobby entry is on the ground floor, with lifts to all levels. There are rooms available for guests with disabilities, with wheelchair access and features such as bathroom rails.

Is SKYE Suites family-friendly?

It is very family-friendly, with suites that can accommodate up to four guests. Kitchen and laundry facilities, as well as lounge space, are added bonuses when travelling with kids as they provide freedom and convenience.

Each suite can accommodate up to four guests.

Details

Best for: Families, small groups of friends, business travellers

Address: 300 Kent Street, Sydney

Phone: (02) 9052 7588

Cost: From $361 per night

Discover more fantastic Sydney accommodation options.

Welcome to the first instalment of Hotel Addict, a monthly column where I check into Australia’s best hotels, exploring not just the rooms, but the stories, service and settings that make each stay unforgettable and worth adding to your wishlist.

Hotel stays have quietly become my thing. Long before I became a travel journalist, I was booking staycations just for a change of scenery. Some had charm, some had character, some had neither. Once, I even stayed in a hotel directly opposite my own apartment – partly for the novelty, partly because I wanted to see my life from a different angle.

For me, hotels represent a kind of mystery – I find myself wanting to know what these buildings contain. Many of them are designed with intention: lighting, materials, scent and sounds that often reflect the city they sit in. Time seems to gently pause in these spaces, which have increasingly become the destination itself for modern travellers.

It only felt fitting for the first hotel in this series to be in my home city and at the hotel that’s been at the top of my list: Capella Sydney.

A sandstone heritage building and palm trees

Capella sits within an Edwardian Baroque‑style sandstone building.

An email with a hotel program from the “Culturist Team” lets me know this will be a luxurious stay. There’s a guided walk around the Botanic Gardens, a weaving workshop and a Sydney contemporary art tour – the kind of addition that signals a hotel that’s tuned into the finer details, and one that’s not surprising given that Capella’s ethos centres on delivering personalised, immersive experiences.

Capella opened in 2023 within a transformed Edwardian Baroque‑style sandstone building in Sydney’s CBD that was originally designed by renowned Scottish-Australian architect George McRae. I often walk past this building and once attended an event inside – I distinctly remember being surprised by how beautiful it was. Bar Studio, Make Architects, and stylist Simone Haag were engaged to sensitively adapt the building for contemporary luxury while honouring its past, in collaboration with Heritage NSW and the City of Sydney.

When I arrive, I’m greeted by three different staff members along the way to reception. There’s a lovely subtle scent, which I later learn combines notes of bergamot, green tea leaves, peony, freesia, vetiver and cedarwood. This hotel strikes such a beautiful balance between grandness and intimacy, with large floral bouquets, contemporary artworks, impressively high ceilings that give it an international feel and quieter nooks to unwind in. Each space is unique, but they’re all unified by a warm, textural and layered design.

Sydney has been deserving of a hotel of this calibre for quite some time, with many of the accommodations in the city looking and feeling dated.

A modern hotel reception with high ceilings

The design strikes the perfect balance between grandness and intimacy.

I have a treatment booked at the hotel’s Auriga Spa prior to check-in. The space is ultra-luxe, moodily lit and intimate, featuring timber joinery, green walls and a sleek design that’s so perfect it almost transports me to Japan. I opt for the Replenish Beauty and LED Facial – a strategic choice with a TV segment on the horizon, and a hopeful bid to look extra fresh for the camera.

The treatment begins with me sitting in the softest robe of my life, wearing slippers and sipping chamomile tea. I’m then whisked away to my private treatment room, which has its own bathroom, a large skylight and a small Japanese-style garden. The treatment is extremely relaxing and moves through cleansing, exfoliating, massaging (arm, head, neck and face) and LED Light Therapy. There’s so much attention to detail – even at the end, the facialist puts my slippers back on me, while I’m still lying down.

Spa treatment room with a massage bed, featuring timber walls and a serene Japanese-style garden visible through a window.

A treatment at Auriga Spa might be the best way I’ve ever started a hotel stay. (Image: Rachael Thompson)

While this treatment certainly hasn’t had a Benjamin Button effect, my sister seems to think I’m glowing, so I walk away happy, or at the very least, zen.

Auriga Spa has a sauna, steam room, ice fountain and a beautiful indoor heated swimming pool. There’s also “experiential showers” – new to me, but essentially it combines water flowing from different places, changing temperatures, mood lighting, gentle sounds, and a subtle lemongrass scent.

You could easily spend the better part of a day at the spa and pool, even if you’re not a guest.

The indoor heated swimming pool with glass ceiling at Capella Sydney.

Guests outside the hotel can use the spa and swimming pool. (Image: Rachael Thompson)

I’m escorted to my room, drunk on relaxation, but I make sure to take note of how noisy the hallways are – answer: dead quiet. My room is 50 square metres, which is huge by hotel standards, but particularly for one in the CBD. It feels like a high-end apartment with floorboards, a freestanding bath and a seating/dining area. My eyes are immediately drawn to the line-up of macarons waiting for me on the dining table.

I’m thrilled to see the mini bar armoire includes a small wine fridge stocked with Minuty Prestige Côtes de Provence, Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, Handpicked Wines Pinot Noir, and Moët Grand Vintage. Not that I plan on using it (I simply could not justify the prices) – but it’s a nice extra that makes the room feel that much more luxurious. The drinks lineup reads like a who’s-who of local favourites – Young Henrys, Maybe Sammy cocktails, Four Pillars gin and Archie Rose gin. Snacks include Tyrell’s chips, Pringles, Natural Confectionery lollies, and a Carman’s oat bar.

Some small touches I appreciate that some hotels don’t offer: the option to choose your housekeeping time, an iron that actually works well, a Bluetooth speaker, the beloved wine fridge, aluminium water bottles and a bathroom without a glass door or screen that awkwardly exposes you. The one downside is that some of these rooms don’t offer much in the way of a view.

A modern hotel room with a monochrome paletter.

I stayed in a Premier Room which was elegant and relaxing. (Image: Rachael Thompson)

4:30pm is Swill Hour – a daily tradition that nods to the historical “six o’clock swill” in Australia. This one-hour event takes place in the Living Room and invites guests to gather and enjoy each other’s company with a signature cocktail in hand. This afternoon’s tipple is a Eucalyptus Gimlet, a clever, herbaceous little cocktail, by the multi-award-winning Maybe Sammy Team, served on coasters depicting drawings of the historic building. The canapé of the day is a tomato and stracciatella tart. I noticed several staff members chatting with guests like old friends, asking how their adventures earlier in the day went – clearly remembering previous conversations from earlier visits.

Dinner is booked for 6:30pm in Aperture – arguably the most beautiful area of the accommodation. It’s decorated with Australian flora and features a kinetic sculpture hanging from the roof that opens like flowers, with softly changing lights. Tyler, who is serving us, clearly admires the Capella brand, speaking enthusiastically about the other international properties he’s been to and sharing how he sometimes brings his five-year-old daughter here to use the pool.

Interior of Aperture at Capella Sydney, featuring lush greenery and a striking ceiling-mounted sculpture.

The scale of Aperture gives it an international feel.

I kick things off with a basil melon margarita – a winning recommendation – before tucking into the best prawn toast I’ve ever had. For mains it’s crispy Ōra King salmon and spaghetti with mud crab.

When I arrive back at my room, there’s a vegan leather journal on my bed with a note that says: “The ritual of journaling allows us to pause, reflect and focus.” This is part of the turndown service, and my slippers are neatly lined up next to my bed. Will I journal? No. Do I think it’s a nice touch? Yes.

Brasserie 1930 at Capella Sydney, where Art Deco elegance meets contemporary Australian cuisine.

Brasserie 1930 boasts Art Deco elegance.

The next morning, I make the predictable choice of smashed avo for breakfast at the on-site restaurant, Brasserie 1930. There’s also a buffet brimming with all the usual suspects.

Afterwards, I head to the pool to relax for a few hours before the 11am checkout. Despite my earlier resolve not to journal, I find myself reflecting nonetheless – an irony not lost on me – on my 21st hotel stay in Sydney. I write this with growing assurance that great hotels don’t just provide a place to stay; they create memorable moments, thanks in large part to fantastic staff. Kudos to the hiring manager.

Next stop: The Tasman, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Hobart!

Stay in the heart of the city at SKYE Suites Sydney

Whether travelling with family or a few friends, SKYE Suites Sydney offers both convenience and luxury in the heart of the city.

Location

Style and character

Facilities

Rooms

Food and drink

Does SKYE Suites have access for guests with disabilities?

Is SKYE Suites family-friendly?

Details

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Welcome to the first instalment of Hotel Addict, a monthly column where I check into Australia’s best hotels, exploring not just the rooms, but the stories, service and settings that make each stay unforgettable and worth adding to your wishlist.