Up, Up and A Stay

Gone are the days of boring white ceilings.  

Hotels are stepping up, or rather up above, with designs that make it totally normal to zone out mid-convo just to admire what’s overhead. Think: disco ball ensconced chandeliers, amorphous metal and cascading petals on floating floral installations.

In short, ceilings are officially in their Renaissance era. Don’t sleep on them — unless you’re doing it under a fresco.  

If you think you're above it, these spots are for you:

^{Every hotel on Late Checkout is independently selected by us. If you buy something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.}

Grand Hotel Minerva, Florence, Italy

Imagine lingering in bed a little longer because the ceiling above you is a full-blown fresco from the 1800s. That’s the reality in two of Grand Hotel Minerva’s suites in Florence, Italy, where historic artwork turns your morning stretch into a museum-worthy experience.

One Aldwych, London

Or maybe you’re more of a martini-under-modern-art kind of traveler. At The Lobby Bar inside One Aldwych, London, the ceiling is a sculptural stunner — fluid, futuristic and shimmering like liquid metal. Designed by Fabled Studio, it adds a hit of contemporary cool to the hotel’s classic bones.

Torel Avantgarde, Porto, Portugal

Meanwhile, over in Porto, Portugal, the Flower Room at Torel Avantgarde, just off the Digby Bar, leans into its name with a biophilic bouquet of live florals dangling above plush rose-hued booths.  

Gran Hotel Ciudad De Mexico, Mexico City, MX

In Mexico City, Gran Hotel Ciudad de México is a luxury hotel set on the historic Zocalo square. A former department store, this stunning art-nouveau building features an immense stained-glass Tiffany ceiling, designed by the French artisan Jacques Gruber. The pattern is meant to evoke the railroad, at that time the symbol of modernity.

Nellim Wilderness Hotel, Finnish Lapland

But if you’re after a ceiling that goes beyond interior design entirely, the Aurora Cabins at Nellim Wilderness Hotel in Finnish Lapland have you covered — well, kind of. Their glass dome roofs turn your bed into a front-row seat to the stars, and if you’re lucky, a Northern Lights show with zero frostbite risk.