Having opened last April, Hotel SP34 is the new hotspot for design fiends in the Danish capital Copenhagen – it had us at the lemon yellow neon sign hanging above the doorway. Previously the arty Hotel Fox, the interiors have been completely overhauled by Danish architect and designer Morten Hedegaard, and the result is the clean-cut but sumptuously snug. Located in the city’s Latin Quarter close to the Town Hall on Rasmussen Square, the whimsical Tivoli gardens and the main shopping street Strøget, is very different to the hotel that previously stood in its place. Whereas Hotel Fox appealed to an arty backpacker crowd who were drawn to its playful interiors created by various artists, SP34’s owner hopes to attract a more upmarket clientele (as well as the SP34, the Brøchner group comprises the hotels Astoria and Danmark also located in Copenhagen).

The new hotel which comprises 118 rooms, two restaurants, two bars, a gym and a private cinema as well as a conference centre, is well on the way to becoming a neighbourhood icon due to its friendly atmosphere and the will to both preserve and focus on the building’s original architecture in its design (including several rooftop terraces and a courtyard). On the ground floor, an open plan lofty lounge area and a small television and library den adjoin the reception, bar and café. Simple, light and bright, its walls are a lighter shade of grey than the rest of the hotel and are interrupted by an amusing spider graph mural. Next door, the Bar Moritz is a laid-back, lively tapas restaurant with contemporary bistro wood interiors wrapped in petrol grey-blue walls. Also part of the group, a little further along the same road, the Din Nye Ven café has more of an industrial Brooklyn coffeehouse look with exposed brick walls and artwork.

The rooms range from a functional single standards to plush penthouse suites with balconies boasting beautiful views of the city’s skyline where soothing palettes of greys are lifted by crisp white linens, moulded wood and caramel leather headboards, alongside the flowing lines of 50s Danish style furniture – including an adaptation of the Hans Wegner Rope Chair design. The lighting is subdued throughout the hotel, punctuated from time to time by playful neon bulb table lamps and custom made ceiling lights by the Swedish company RUBN. In fact, anyone who have stayed at the Ibsens (previously part of the Brøchner group), a boutique hotel with a strong focus on minimalist Danish design also by Morten Hedegaard, will be sure to notice elements of the designer’s signature style at play here too.

Clean lines and a minimal decor give the occupant plenty of breathing space as well as allowing for the building’s original features to shine through. Refined, contemporary and low-key, SP34 comes as a much-needed breath of fresh air on Copenhagen’s hotel scene and has unlocked the Brøchner group’s newfound flair for reintroducing understated luxury in the city. If there were such a term, indeed the SP34 would be a prime example of ‘neo-retro’.

via Yatzer