As summer hits, the inner-city in Sydney undergoes a giant, big slow down. Streets empty out and long, lazy days ensue. Diaries are clear, and skies (usually) even clearer. So as the humidity sets in and temperatures soar we decided to investigate the city’s most fabulous hideaways. Whether you’re planning an at-home stay-cation or just wanting to set sail for an unforgettable location – we’ve curated a list of Sydney’s best escapes.

Sophisticated surf lodge – Halcyon House

With an imaginative revamp of an old motel, Halcyon House has put Cabarita on the tourist map once again. Located 30 minutes from Byron and 15 minutes from Gold Coast Airport, Halcyon House whisks you away to a parallel world.

Brisbane-based sisters Siobhan and Elisha Bickle and their husbands Adam Flaskas and Dave Wadley, fell in love with the site back in 2011. They then performed a complete overhaul of the site, with the help of award-winning Sydney architect Virginia Kerridge.

Charming and fresh, the interiors by Anna Spiro show a strong influence from American design aesthetic. Halcyon House is now a hotel unlike anything else in Australia.

Virginia’s elegant design of HALCYON HOUSE with Anna Spiro’s interiors includes echoes of the past with the pool and Spanish-style arches retained from The Hideaway, the popular motel that stood on the site from the 1960s. Virginia said she wants the hotel’s guests to be “invigorated by the building”.

Recline on the pool deck, slip down to the beach and learn to surf with local pro surfer Joel Parkinson (winner of eleven elite ASP contests) or book into the beautiful Paper Daisy for dinner. The hotel’s General Manager, Mauro De Riso, comes with enviable hospitality experience gained at JK Place on the Isle of Capri.

Across the hotel, carefully selected artworks and detail in design, fabrics and furniture really set the place apart, making you feel like a guest in home rather than just a number.

HALCYON HOUSE: Along with the owners of the hotel, Interior Designer Anna Spiro has  ‘curated’ a collection of antiques, furniture and art designed to grow and stay within the walls of House for years to come.  Many of the the vintage pieces were sourced on a trip to America including furnishings and art, John Derian sofas, Madeline Weinrib rugs and drawings by Wayne Pate.

“I love to stay in a place that wraps me up and is beautifully decorated,” says interior designer Anna Spiro.

“You want to go home and dream about visiting that wonderful place again. So I wanted each room to be different so that guests can find their favourite room, and then keep coming back and choosing to stay in that room each time they come.”

Water-edged romance – Ovolo Woolloomooloo

Ovolo Wooloomooloo is perfectly poised between the natural beauty of Sydney harbour and the throbbing pulse of Potts Points. This month the wharf hotel re-opened with superb interiors by Hassell. Sunny themes abound in the creative redesign, with in-vogue Pantone shades like rose quartz and tranquil blue giving the wharf a 50s colour kick.

OVOLO: Lo Lounge at Ovolo Wooloomooloo lobby features plenty of Australian art supplied in collaboration with Art Bank

Ovolo is unique in the way it offers the sophistication of a major chain hotel with the personalised service of a boutique establishment.

The rooms all have a distinctly individual and feminine touch, with the interiors feeling far less masculine and cavernous than they have in previous iterations of the hotel. In the common areas the designers have worked hard to create many intimate zones for lounging, working and entertaining.

“We pay attention to all the little things,’’ says Ovolo’s Marketing Executive Michelle Wu. “We’re all about effortless living. Not only do we provide rooms and public spaces designed for comfort, we also offer things like complimentary Wi-Fi, breakfast, mini bar and self-laundry,” says Wu.

“Guests have all day access to coffee and snacks in our Lo Lounge area, and we foster a community environment that encourages guests to interact with each other.”

The Art of Eccentricity –  QT Sydney & Bondi

QT Sydney set our imaginations on fire when it opened with a dramatic overhaul of the Gowings Department store building back in 2012. Now QT Sydney is a well established 200 room hotel, pulsing with a fun cocktail bar and a 120-seater European style restaurant.

All the rooms have their own luxurious quirks and importantly QT staff are friendly and on the ball. Locals love the QT too for its buzz and energy. Inner-city folk use QT as a landing pad for cultural nights out with the restaurant being a draw card for flashy evenings in the city.

From the hall porters and concierge, to the bar staff and waiters, the vibe supports a carefree, holiday attitude. This summer QT is expanding its good vibes with QT Bondi opening from late December on Campbell Parade opposite the beach.

Woollahra local Amanda Love is the art consultant once again, this time enlisting digital artist Shaun Gladwell for the opening. It’s a match made in arty-beachside heaven, with the the Australian-born and London-based Gladwell making artworks for permanent display.

QT BONDI: A close-to-reality computer simulation of the hotel’s interior room design

This collab is on the money mainly because Gladwell credits Bondi as a breeding ground for his work.

“The Bondi landscape was essentially my studio for many years and my QT commission really encapsulates the energy and vibrancy of the local context through digital and sculptural mediums.”

Rancho Relaxo – The Retreat at Pretty Beach House

The Retreat at Pretty Beach House represents idyllic, private luxury in a bush setting. Located on the central coast, Pretty Beach House is a series of private hire pavilions situated just 1.5 hours from Sydney. This is a high-end, authentic Australian development created as part of the Bells at Killcare project.

THE RETREAT: View from the private deck and plunge pool at Pretty Beach House in Kilcare, NSW.

Surrounded by ancient Angophora forests and stunning waterways, the interiors by Michel Leslie are rustic, yet luxe. Art on the walls by Australia’s great painters like Nolan, Boyd and Olsen all add to the wild kind of perfection we experience here.

Each pavilion is entirely self-sufficient, sleeps up to 8 guests and comes its own private plunge pool and day bed. On the food front a 500 sqm metre garden supplies the dining room by Stefano Manfredi with more than 15% of the produce on its menu. Sustainable practices are used across the entire Bells at Killcare operation and this includes eggs from 50 free range hens and honey from the bee hives on site. Locally harvested seafood includes Hawkesbury River oysters and crayfish caught off nearby Macmasters Beach, Gundooee Wagyu beef from the Central Tablelands and Bangalow Sweet Pork from the Northern Rivers. Local likeminded farmers are also supported supplying staples such as as organic beans and snow peas.

THE RETREAT: Interiors by Michelle Leslie at Pretty Beach House.

“The property is designed for international travellers to experience the natural surrounds of an Australian National Park, to see rock art dated back 10,000 years and to experience first hand a member of the darkingjung tribe,” says Marketing Executive Deborah Ramsay. “It’s an extraordinary experience that our guests are overwhelmed by and raving about.”

Chippendale cool club – The Old Clare Hotel NSW

The Old Clare is Sydney’s hottest new hotel. Food and design are the main play here, with a slice of local history on the side. The joining of The Carlton and United Breweries Administration Building with the Old Clare hotel building is a wicked mix. Rooms feature lovely high ceilings, heritage timber panelling and original exposed windows and walls. One suite even uses the Old Clare front bar as a bedhead.

THE OLD CLARE HOTEL: A room where the head board has been made from an pre-existing front bar.

Downstairs the food is really something to write home about. Resident restaurants include the hyped Automata by chef Clayton Wells (ex-Momofuku Sieobo), Silvereye by ex-Noma chef Sam Miller and the more casual Kensington Street Social by Jason Ahterton which will open in late January. The Old Clare plays a very strong hand in the food department, while the upstairs the rooftop pool is hard to pass-up.

General Manager, Timo Bures says the hotel is designed as a theatre upon which guests can stage their own production. ‘Travel is an individual experience,’ Bures says.

OLD CLARE HOTEL: Front reception in the newly converted space in Chippendale.

‘Our aim at The Old Clare Hotel is to not overestimate our own importance: we don’t want to enforce an idea, to impose a thought or to peddle an approach. On the contrary, we’re all about allowing our guests the freedom and opportunity to decide what they like about the buildings, the artworks, how they use the hotel what type of food and what kind of experience they want. All we try and do is facilitate as many options as possible.”

Executive pool pad – Darling Point Pad

Set on a high hill overlooking Rushcutters Bay, the Darling Point Pad features great interiors and sensational decks overlooking a large private garden. This is a private home for hire through Contemporary Hotels.

Darling Point Pad is a two bedroom apartment with interiors and outlooks that possess all the romance and glamour of French or Italian villa on the Mediterranean.

DARLING POINT PAD:  A view from inside the private home, overlooking the new lap pool and deck.

Share the experience with friends, or get prepped for a decadent summer lawn party. The Darling Point Pad is blessed with a brand new pool deck and beautiful interiors inspired by the owners extensive travels through South East Asia and the Pacific Islands.

DARLING POINT PAD: An outdoor room adjacent to the pool deck houses many eclectic treasure from Asia-Pacific.

Here, tucked in a quiet residential street, complete peace and privacy are assured.

Other great spots to lap up this summer include beautiful rainforest retreat The Byron at Byron Bay; the ever reliable converted Watson’s Bay Hotel with water views across the sleepy bay and Raes at Wategos on Wategos Beach where luxury is shaped to meet the highest expectations. And if you are heading g down South, don’t miss the chance to stay at Bannisters or the Emirates One & Only WolganValley

A closer look shows today’s best hotels don’t mimic the Paris Hilton-style buffet breakfasts, butter sachets and club sandwiches by the pool. The most sought-after hotels in Sydney today are stitched into the fabric of the local area. They are places that attract locals and tourists alike with their vibe, clever programming and lush interiors.