HBA London recently completed interiors for the Orient Jerusalem by Isrotel Exclusive Collection. The firm designed the hotel, located in the city’s cosmopolitan German Colony District, with Jerusalem’s history and culture in mind, taking cues from the native stone that gives the city its lustrous hue. The property combines two restored 19th-century Templar houses reinvented as a nine-story building crowned with a rooftop pool and bar.
The lobby greets guests with illuminated mosaic tiles and a high-glazed ceiling that allows natural light to pour in. A chandelier boasting handblown local glass cascades down the central stairwell. Artwork also inspired by the city’s history and culture is present throughout the hotel, including a collection of sculptures, watercolors, prints, and etchings from local Israeli artists and art students.
Carmel Forest Spa
Guestrooms in the Templar Building combine luxury with local handcraft with a blue and ivory palette that represent the national flag. Encaustic floor tiles that flow from the bedroom into the bathrooms are similar to those found in the original buildings during restoration. Crafted wrought iron bedframes are focal points in the bedrooms with a blue leather chaise lounge at the foot of each bed adding a touch of opulence.
In addition to 24 suites, the 205 guestrooms and suites in the new building feature studded headboards that hint at the old doors of the city, lamps are artisanal, and table tops are of olive wood. Sliding panels between bedroom and bathroom highlight the balance of natural stone, olive wood, wrought iron, and plush woven fabrics across the entire space.
F&B options include the atmospheric Khan Bar and Lounge that flows from the lobby into its double-height space defined by textural surfaces, such as the richly grained green marble-clad bar. The Carmel Forest Spa features a rough-hewn lava stone feature wall with a cascading waterfall and the ceiling’s golden crystalline structure.
