What’s New and What’s Due: 11 Fabulous New Australian Stays To Check Out in 2026

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Surf Hotel, Torquay

Sixteen rooms – and a four-bedroom penthouse – have been given substantial makeovers by architects Forum Studio and interior designers Pasquale Cook at this mid-century former motel on The Esplanade in Torquay. The property, from the very busy Blackwood Hotels (see The Roy and The Warby listings in this article), is a short drive from several majestic Surf Coast beaches, including world-famous Bells Beach, and the area’s surf scene is a major motif throughout the site. (A new collection of gun-shaped boards by Rip Curl co-founder and long-time Torquay local Doug Warbrick is available exclusively at the hotel.) Rooms are luxe, with granite finishes and timber cabinetry, and the attached restaurant and bar has a stellar deck overlooking the Torquay foreshore. Broadsheet has the exclusive First Look of the hotel next week.

The Owston, Fremantle

This 11-room hotel occupies a heritage site in Fremantle’s buzzy West End. It’s inspired by the Italian concept of the locanda, a small family-run guesthouse that melds dining, accommodation and community. Guests get a welcome drink downstairs at wine bar Ode to Sirens, while in the room there’s freshly ground Good Seeds Coffee and snacks from Common Bakery (also downstairs). Local design firm Rezen Studio is behind a fit-out that pays homage to the building’s Federation shopfront and the area’s Italian migrant history, with terrazzo floors, timber joinery and archival photos of post-war European immigration in Fremantle.

Avani Mooloolaba Beach Hotel, Sunshine Coast

The 180-room, 12-storey Avani Mooloolaba Beach Hotel is the first international hotel brand to open on the Sunshine Coast in 40 years. The rooftop is a big draw here, with its sparkling turquoise pool and 180-degree views across Mooloolaba Beach, Point Cartwright and the Pacific Ocean. It’s also a must for sunset drinks – Avani has enlisted executive chef Marky Godbeer, previously at Brisbane’s Calile Hotel, to lead the rooftop’s seafood-focused restaurant and bar Sully’s. Rooms are spacious and light, with a mix of warm wood and concrete in the living spaces and travertine and terracotta marble in the bathrooms (suites have freestanding baths). There’s also direct access to the family-friendly, white-sand Mooloolaba Beach.

Monarto Safari Lodge, Monarto

Monarto Safari Park is the largest open-range zoo outside Africa, and it’s less than an hour’s drive from Adelaide. Last year, Monarto opened its first on-site accommodation – a 78-room, five-star resort – and in April the park revealed the follow-up: a luxury 20-tent safari lodge situated in the park’s Wild Africa precinct. The lodge is intended to be a more intimate, secluded experience than the resort, with the tents and communal areas all oriented to give guests expansive views out to the plains. Stays at the Safari Lodge are all-inclusive and involve a Wild Africa sunset safari. (Read more here.)

Hyde Perth, Perth

US-based Hyde’s second Australian property opened in March, taking up residence in an old 1960s hotel building in the Perth CBD. Interior designer Sarah Townson visited LA for inspiration, resulting in spaces filled with natural light, richly grained timbers and a warm palette that reflects Hyde’s both sunny Californian heritage and the Western Australian landscape. Rooms are glam, and feature handcrafted Pampa rugs, and custom furnishings by local makers like Patricia Braune and Grace Garret, with bathrooms stocked with Bumble and Bumble hair products. Very LA poolside suites give guests direct access to the pool, restaurant and bar. (Read more here.)

Allawah Designer Sanctuary, Noosa Heads

Allawah Noosa has a collection of luxury homes and apartments for rent around Noosa. Its latest has views across Laguna Bay and the Noosa River, with room for six across three bedrooms. A north-facing terrace is set up for outdoor dining. The apartment is a short drive or a leisurely 15-minute walk through to Hastings Street, via a boardwalk that cuts through the lush national park, and on to the main beach. The apartment is housed in a resort complex with a tennis court, sauna and rooftop pool and jacuzzi.

The Warby, Warburton

Blackwood Hotels, the group behind the aforementioned Surf Hotel, purchased the longstanding Warburton Motel in 2024. The 12-room, mid-century site has expansive views of the surrounding Yarra Ranges – one reason Blackwood was so enamoured with it – and is near a load of outdoor adventure experiences, from bike trails to hiking to tubing on the Yarra River (stage one of the new Warburton Bike Park, with more than 80 kilometres of mountain biking trails, just opened). Over the next 12 months, there’ll be a series of upgrades made to the site, including adding a sauna and gym, refurbing the al fresco dining area and converting some rooms to family-size layouts. Blackwood is also renaming the motel The Warby, it’s local nickname.

Coming soon

Levantine Hill Hotel, Coldstream

The Yarra Valley is getting a new luxury stay in Coldstream, with Levantine Hill winery’s soon-to-open 33-suite hotel, designed by renowned Australian architects FK (formerly Fender Katsalidis). The building will be partially embedded in the hillside, with a façade dominated by concrete, bronze metallic screening and floor-to-ceiling windows. All suites will feature private balconies and generous living areas (some have oversize baths) appointed with timber joinery and leather upholstery. There’ll be an on-site gym, outdoor exercise spaces and a new 1.5-kilometre sculpture walk featuring works by Australian and international artists.

Levantine Hill Hotel is due to open mid-to-late 2026.

The Roy, Rainbow Beach

Blackwood Hotels purchased the 24-room Rainbow Sands Resort in December 2023 and began a significant refurbishment last year. Renamed The Roy, the building is a town icon, located at the entry to the main street. Interior designers Pasquale Cook are drawing on the area’s palette of coral, sand, burnt orange and sky blue in reimagined rooms that still respect the nostalgia and spirit of the original architecture. It’s going to be the kind of place where wet bathers and sandy feet are part of the dress code. Rainbow Beach is the gateway town to K’gari, and sits half way between Noosa and Harvey Bay. It’s also just a short drive from Double Island Point, home to Australia’s longest surf wave. Set over three levels and offering motel rooms, family suites, twin rooms, and a family bungalow, The Roy is built for all, coastal voyages, couples, families, groups of friends, solo travellers who want to read a book by the pool and not talk to anyone.

 The Roy is due to open in June 2026.

Saffire Freycinet Jewel Private Villa, Coles Bay

Saffire Freycinet changed Australia’s luxury hotel game when it opened in 2010. The Coles Bay lodge, on Tasmania’s pristine Freycinet Peninsula, will soon open its latest addition – the three-bedroom Saffire Jewel Private Villa. Designed to cater to families and small groups, the villa has its own infinity pool and spa, as well as a terrace, replete with outdoor fireplace, with views overlooking the granite peaks of The Hazards mountain range. Interiors mix charred timber, travertine and marble with works by Tasmanian artists.

Saffire Freycinet Jewel Private Villa is due to open in the second half of 2026.

The Bonobo, Byron Bay

The iconic Raes hotel brand is opening in the heart of Byron Bay with a modernist three-level, 33-room property designed by Richards & Spence (the architects behind Brisbane’s acclaimed Calile hotel) with interiors by Studio Manifold. There are also more than 40 “residences” available for short and longer stays, with a mix of one, two and three-bedroom layouts for families and groups. Wellness is a major part of the offering here, and The Bonobo is partnering with Sydney-based Reset on a program that includes spa treatments and amenities including cedar saunas, ice baths and a eucalyptus steam room.

The Bonobo is due to open in June.

With additional reporting by Bonita Grima.