Medusa Hotel

Quirky, stylish Medusa is a converted eighteenth-century Victorian townhouse in ultra-fashionable Darlinghurst, Sydney's gallery and boutique district. The award-winning design, by prominent Australian interior architect Scott Werner, is anything but Victorian; in fact, these daring, modern interiors are a large factor in Medusa's draw, especially among the young, creative types the hotel (and the neighborhood) caters to.

Make no mistake: this is not the sort of place where you would want to hole up for a few days and avoid the outside world. Medusa is a comfortable, stylish home base, a place to leave your suitcase while you browse the shops and cafés by day, a place to lay your head after a fun night out. There is no restaurant, no bar, not even a lounge where you can see and be seen - that's what the rest of Darlinghurst is for.

Don't expect a Spartan flophouse, or some kind of glamour hostel; these rooms are vividly decorated, each to an individual scheme, with queen or king beds and marble and glass en-suite bathrooms. The larger, high-ceilinged Grand rooms have breakfast tables, lounge chairs, and a chaise lounge, and overlook either the quiet inner courtyard or colorful Darlinghurst Road. Animal lovers take note – the courtyard rooms (of all sizes) allow guests with dogs, making Medusa the only dog-friendly upscale hotel in Australia. And if you are here on business, there is a conference room and a fully-equipped business center, with high-speed internet and color printing facilities.

Enough has been said about Darlinghurst's pub & club scene – the rest of the city is easily accessible as well, from Oxford Street (home of the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras) to the more traditional tourist spots. The Opera House is just on the other side of the Botanical Gardens, which themselves make for a gorgeous walk to the harbour. Kings Cross railway station is five minutes from the hotel, taxis are easy to come by, and several bus lines stop right at Medusa's door, for a ride to Circular Quay or the central business district.

Travel advisory: Passport and visa requirements differ from country to country. Please check with your local authority before booking.