The Efendi Hotel — Akko, Israel
The conjoined Ottoman-era stone buildings that now form the Efendi were restored and converted into a 12-room hotel in northern Israel by local entrepreneur Uri Jeremias. Boutique architecture firm Arstudio restored the intricately painted ceilings, wood friezes and carved cornices, and an interior by Orit Kolonimos features armchairs by Moroso and Tom Dixon's cast-glass chandeliers, which cling to vaulted sandstone arches above an imposing six-metre dining room table. Public spaces, including a wine cellar converted from Crusader and Byzantine ruins, can be found in the hotel's southern structure, while a 400-year old hammam was transformed into the spa. Covered terraces overlook the rooftops of this Unesco heritage city.
ADDRESS
Louis IX Street
Old Acre
Akko
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Lauren Ho is the Travel Director of Wallpaper*, roaming the globe, writing extensively about luxury travel, architecture and design for both the magazine and the website. Lauren serves as the European Academy Chair for the World's 50 Best Hotels.
-
Out of office: The Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekFrom sumo wrestling to Singaporean fare, medieval manuscripts to magnetic exhibitions, the Wallpaper* team have traversed the length and breadth of culture in the British capital this week
-
Doshi Retreat at the Vitra Campus is both a ‘first’ and a ‘last’ for the great Balkrishna DoshiDoshi Retreat opens at the Vitra campus, honouring the Indian modernist’s enduring legacy and joining the Swiss design company’s existing, fascinating collection of pavilions, displays and gardens
-
Issey Miyake’s shape-shifting A/W 2025 collection transforms the paper bag into something you can wear‘Can anything be considered a garment, as long as it’s on the body?’ says creative director Satoshi Kondo of the art-infused collection, which sees the everyday reimagined
-
Six Senses Shaharut offers an Israeli desert escapeSet in the Negev Desert, some hours outside of Tel Aviv, Six Senses Shaharut is a reminder of the hotel group’s undeniable stake in luxury with a wellness twist
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico -
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland -
Tattersalls Hotel — Armidale, Australia -
KLoé Hotel — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia -
Elmina — Tel Aviv, Israel -
Casa Hoyos — San Miguel de Allende, Mexico -
Littlenap — Hangzhou, China