Soma — Byron Bay, Australia
For Gary Gorrow, a Vedic meditation teacher already in-demand for his legendary retreats (including an annual one in Bali, now in its 12th year), opening his own sanctuary was inevitable.
Located in Byron Bay, the handsome two-storey timber and galvanised steel building, created with the help of his brother George and Balinese architect Rieky Sunur, akes the most of its location with floor-to-ceiling glass walls that frame the surrounding 22-acres of rainforest.
Inside, the interiors unfold through a sequence of fluid communal spaces, swathed with poured concrete – flecked with the warmth of local sand – a mix of custom-designed and mid-century furniture, and a variety of open-weave natural fabrics in coffee, ash and saffron tones. The retreat itself – either scheduled or private sessions - extends into Ayurvedic health and life coaching, and is conducted within an expansive geodesic glass dome, surrounded by ancient towering bamboo.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
221 Kennedys Lane
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ewingsdale NSW
-
Discover Locus and its ‘eco-localism' - an alternative way of thinking about architectureLocus, an architecture firm in Mexico City, has a portfolio of projects which share an attitude rather than an obvious visual language
-
MoMA celebrates African portraiture in a far-reaching exhibitionIn 'Ideas of Africa: Portraiture and Political Imagination' at MoMA, New York, studies African creativity in photography in front of and behind the camera
-
How designer Hugo Toro turned Orient Express’ first hotel into a sleeper hitThe Orient Express pulls into Rome, paying homage to the golden age of travel in its first hotel, just footsteps from the Pantheon
-
The most stylish hotel debuts of 2025A Wallpaper* edit of this year’s defining hotel openings. Design-led stays to shape your next escape
-
Lose track of time at a retro-futuristic listening bar in MelbourneLB’s Record Bar is a cinematic sanctuary designed for lingering and listening
-
Has the ice cream parlour come of age?A global wave of architecture studios is treating the scoop as spectacle, turning parlours into immersive social spaces
-
The Calile Hotel is an urban resort reframing BrisbaneA seven-storey refuge in Fortitude Valley, The Calile Hotel bridges tropical retro with urban polish, elevating Brisbane’s hospitality landscape
-
Mondrian makes waves at Burleigh Heads with a striking Australian debutMondrian Gold Coast emerges as a sculptural new anchor for Burleigh Heads, pairing surf-side glamour with global polish
-
Rediscover a classic midcentury hotel in SydneyFK leads a major renovation of the landmark Sofitel Sydney Wentworth hotel, pairing 1960s modernism with an elevated, Australian-minded reset
-
Wallpaper* checks in at The Grand National Hotel by Saint Peter: ‘a lush restaurant with rooms’In Sydney’s Paddington, chef Josh Niland opens the 14-bedroom luxury hotel alongside his pioneering restaurant
-
Book a brutalist one-room wonder Down Under, the Vipp Tunnel in TasmaniaThe Danish design brand's bookable showcases arrive in the southern hemisphere, thanks to the vision of Tasmanian architectural firm Room 11