TRAVEL

Announcing The Finalists for The 2019 Surface Travel Awards

From hotels to headphones, New York to the Maldives, these are the candidates for the best new projects at the intersection of travel and design.

At Surface, we explore the world through the lens of design. So we know that great design touches on every moment of a trip—providing inspiration, easing the journey, creating moments of comfort and delight. The Surface Travel Awards honor the best of the new spaces and products—hotels, restaurants, museums, pop-ups, airports, luggage, and more—that travelers experienced this year.

The Surface Travel Awards have become one of the most prestigious honors in the design and travel industries, which means our editorial team and this year’s panel of distinguished judges—chef and restauranteur Daniel Boulud, architect Suchi Reddy, product designer Lee Broom, and curator Isolde Brielmaier—have their work cut out for them.

In advance of the winners announcement in October, we present the 2019 nominees.

HOSPITALITY

Large Hotel, International

Four Seasons Hotel, Sao Paulo, by BAMO and EDG Design
Morpheus Hotel, Macau, by Zaha Hadid
Rosewood, Hong Kong, by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and Tony Chi
The Sukhothai, Shanghai, by Neri & Hu Design and Research
Hotel PACAI, Vilnius, by Salius Mikštas, Indre Barsauskaite, and Greta Valikone
PURO Hotel Warszawa, Warsaw, by DeSalles Flint
Bankside Hotel, London, by Dayna Lee of Powerstrip Studio; architect Ian Simpson

Large Hotel, Domestic

The LINE, Austin, by  Knibb Design and Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
TWA Hotel, New York, by Beyer Blinder Belle, Lubrano Ciavarra, Stonehill Taylor, INC Architecture & Design
The Times Square EDITION, New York, by Yabu Pushelberg
Shinola Hotel, Detroit, by Gachot Studios

Learn more about this year’s large hotel finalists.

Resort

SALT of Palmar, Mauritius, by Camille Walala and JFA Architects
Nobu Hotel Los Cabos, Mexico, by WATG and Studio PCH
Punta Caliza, Isla Holbox, Mexico, Estudio Macias Peredo

Learn more about this year’s resort finalists.

Spa

Mist Hot Spring Hotel, Henan, China, by Department of Architecture Co.
Monteverdi Tuscany, Italy, by Ilaria Mianif
Shou Sugi Ban House, Water Mill, NY, Debbie Kropf Design

Learn more about this year’s spa finalists.

Midsize Hotel

Chapter Roma, Rome, Tristan Du Plessis
COMO Castello del Nero, Tuscany, Paola Navone
Maison de la Luz, New Orleans, by Atelier Ace and Studio Shamshiri
Fife Arms, Braemar, Scotland, by Russell Sage Studio and Moxon Architects
The Ramble Hotel, Denver, by Avenue Interior Design
Tourists, North Adams, MA, by Ben Svenson, Hank Scollard, Julie Pearson, and Reed Hilderbrand Landscape Architecture
Soho House, Mumbai, by Soho House

Small Hotel

Casa Fortunato, Lisbon, by Costa Lopes Architects
Can Bordoy Grand House & Garden, Palma de Mallorca, Spain, by Ohlab
Torel 1884 Suites & Apartments, Porto, Portugal, by architect Miguel Nogueira and Nano Design
Hotel Amparo, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, by Aaron Rambo
Little Shelter, Chiang Mai, Thailand, by Department of Architecture Co.

Learn more about this year’s small and midsize hotel finalists. 

Adventure (Luxury Tent, Camping Experience, Safari Lodge)

Shinta Mani Wild, Bensley Collection, Cardamom National Park, Cambodia, by Bill Bensley
Whitepod, Zen Suite, Monthey, Switzerland, by Montalba Architects
Løvtag, Als Odde, Hadsund, Denmark, by Sigurd Larsen
Shipwreck Lodge, Skeleton Coast Park Mowe Bay, Namibia, by Nina Maritz Architects
Rosewood Luang Prabang, Nauea Village, Laos, by Bill Bensley
AutoCamp, Yosemite, California, by M-Rad
Dômes Charlevoix, Petite-Rivière-Saint-François, Quebec, Canada, by Bourgeois/Lechasseur Architectes

Learn more about this year’s adventure finalists. 

Hotel or Resort Renovation

Matachica Resort, Ambergris Caye, Belize, by Byron and Dexter Peart
Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London, by Joyce Wang Studio
Hôtel Lutetia, Paris, by Jean-Michel Wilmotte
JW Marriott Hotel, Seoul, by JW Marriott
The Evelyn Hotel, New York City, by Parts and Labor Design and Silvia Zofio
Eaton HK, Hong Kong, by AvroKO

Hotel Suite

Penthouse at Hotel G, San Francisco, by Gulla Jónsdóttir
The Muraka at Conrad Maldives, Rangali Island, Maldives
Jean Prouvé Suite at Château La Coste, Le Puy-Sainte-Réparade, France

Micro Hotel

The Pilgrm Hotel, London, by 93Ft and The Pilgrm
Moxy Chelsea, New York City, by Lightstone, Rockwell Group, Yabu Pushelberg, and Stonehill Taylor
Sister City, New York City, by Atelier Ace/Ace Hotel Group
The Modernist, Thessaloniki, Greece, by FORMrelated

Restaurant, Full Service — International

Burleigh Pavilion, Gold Coast, Australia, by Alexander & Co.
Imperial Hotel, Sydney, by Alexander & Co.
ICHU Restaurant & Bar, Hong Kong, by Joyce Wang Studio
The Bridge Restaurant, Chengdu, China, Neri & Hu Design and Research
AÜAKT, Madrid, by Madrid in Love Studio
Under, Lindesnes, Norway, by Snøhetta

Learn more about this year’s restaurant finalists

Restaurant, Full Service — Domestic

Auburn, Los Angeles, Klein Agency
Pacific Standard Time, Chicago, by Parts and Labor Design
Shun and Bar Shun, New York City, by Joseph Dirand
The Fulton, New York City, by Yabu Pushelberg
The Zodiac Room, New York City, by AvroKO
Tied House, Chicago, by Gensler
Willmott’s Ghost, Seattle, by designer Price Erickson and architect Heliotrope Architects

Learn more about this year’s restaurant finalists

Restaurant, Limited Service

El Moro, Mexico City, by Cadena Concept Design
Aster Hall, Chicago, by AvroKO
Humble Pizza, London, by Child Studio
La Bande, San Francisco, by Kelly Wearstler
Cardboard, Mumbai, by Nudes

Learn more about this year’s restaurant finalists

Restaurant, Hotel/Resort

Marcus at Four Seasons, Montreal, by Atelier Zébulon Perron
Benno at the Evelyn Hotel, New York City, by Parts and Labor Design
The Surf Club Restaurant at The Surf Club, Surfside, FL, by Martin Brudnizki Design Studio

Learn more about this year’s restaurant finalists

Bar

SKY, Baa Atoll, Maldives, by Anantara Kihavah Maldives Villas
Citrus Club, Charleston, SC, by Studio Dewberry in collaboration with Workstead
Moon Club, Prague, by Formafatal and Machar & Teichman
XYZ Lounge Bar, Ghent, Belgium, by Didier Fiúza Faustino
Undercote, New York City, by MNDPC

Learn more about this year’s bar finalists. 

Cruise Ship or Yacht

Celebrity Edge, by architects Tom Wright (WKK) and Scott Butler (Wilson Butler), and interior designers Kelly Hoppen, Patricia Urquiola and Jouin Manku, et al.
Celebrity Flora, by BG Studio International and Adriana Hoyos

Learn more about this year’s cruise ship or yachts finalists.

DESTINATION

Park or Public Space

Salesforce Transit Center Park, San Francisco, by PWP Landscape Architecture
The Rail Park (Phase 1), Philadelphia, by Studio Bryan Hanes
Hunter’s Point South Park (Phase 2), Bronx, NY, by Weiss/Manfredi
St. Louis Gateway Arch Park Renovation, St. Louis, MO, by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates
Pier 35 Eco-Park, New York City, by SHoP Architects and Ken Smith Workshop
Carousel at Swarovski Crystal Worlds, Wattens, Austria, by Jaime Hayon for Swarovski

Coworking Space

The Wing Chicago, by The Wing
Spring Place Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, by wHY Architecture
Beauty Shoppe Cleveland, by Beauty Shoppe
Fosbury & Sons, Brussels, by Going East
CANOPY Jackson Square, San Francisco, by Yves Behar, Amir Mortazavi, and Steve Mohebi

Learn more about this year’s coworking finalists.

Private Members’ Club

DUMBO House, Brooklyn, NY, by Soho House & Co.
Fitler Club, Philadelphia, by David Gutstadt, Amanda Potter, and M-Rad
The Conduit, London, by Cavendish Studios and Russell Sage Studios
Annabel’s, London, by Martin Brudnizki Design Studio

Retail Space

Casa Perfect New York, New York City, by David Alhadeff with David Chipperfield
Standard Dose, New York City, by SR PROJECTS
The Verdi Showroom, Bogotá, Colombia, by Verdi and Colette Studio
KREWE 1818 Magazine St. Store & Gallery, New Orleans, by KREWE
10 Corso Como, New York, by Kris Ruhs
The Golden Triangle Hang Dong, Chiang Mai, Thailand, by Techinphat Khachonphurithanakul
Gentle Monster Shanghai Flagship Store, Shanghai, by Gentle Monster

Learn more about this year’s retail finalists. 

Cultural Institution

The Shed, New York City, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (Lead Architect) and Rockwell Group (Collaborating Architect)
New Central Library, Calgary, by Snøhetta
National Museum of Qatar, Doha, by Ateliers Jean Nouvel
Xiqu Centre, Hong Kong, by Bing Thom and Venelin Kokalov Revery Architecture Inc.

Exhibition Design

“Fun House” at the National Building Museum, Washington D.C., by Snarkitecture
“Broken Nature” at the Triennale Milano, Milan, curated by Paola Antonelli, exhibition design by Studio Folder and Matilde Cassani
“Dior: From Paris to the World” at the Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO, by Shohei Shigematsu and OMA
“Heavenly Bodies” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, by Diller Scofidio + Renfro

Pavillion or Installation

“A Space For Being” at Salone de Mobile, Milan, by Google, Reddymade and Muuto
“Sparrow Mart” at The Standard Hotel Downtown, Los Angeles, by Lucy Sparrow
“Etherea” at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, Indio, CA, by Edoardo Tresoldi
Serpentine Pavilion 2019 at the Serpentine Gallery, London, by Junya Ishigami
“Where The Rainbow Ends” at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Cannes, France, by Germans Ermičs x Instagram
“Visionaire: AMAZE” at the Cadillac House Gallery, New York City, by Rafael de Cárdenas / Architecture at Large
HotelTonight Suite at Sight Unseen Offsite, New York City, by Hannah Bigeleisen and Steven Bukowski

Pop-Up or Other Temporary Space

Mrs & Mr Bateman, London, by Selena Beaudry, Clemmie Myers, and Natalie Tredgett
Club Unseen, Milan, by Studiopepe
The Brilliant Sound Experience, New York City, by Sonos

TRANSPORTATION

Cabins and Vehicles

All Nippon Airways Business Class for Boeing 777-300ER, by Kengo Kuma and Acumen
Singapore Airlines First Class Suites for Airbus A380, by Pierrejean Design Studio

Lounges

Turkish Airlines Lounges at Istanbul International Airport, Istanbul, by Softroom
Avianca Lounges, El Dorado International Airport, Bogotá, Colombia, by Francesc Rifé Studio
THE LOUNGE by Lexus, Brussels Airport, Brussels, by FITCH
Le Balcon Air France Business Lounge at Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, by Mathieu Lehanneur

Stations and Terminals

Ramon International Airport, Be’er Ora, Israel, by Amir Mann-Ami Shinar Architects and Planners, in partnership with Moshe Zur Architects
Paine Field, Everett, WA, by Clive Lonstein, Inc., and Fentress Architects
Istanbul Airport, Istanbul, by Grimshaw, Haptic and Nordic, et al.
Jewel Changi Airport, Singapore, by Safdie Architects
Passenger Clearance Building, Hong Kong, by RSHP and Aedas
Terminal 2 at Mactan Cebu International Airport, Cebu, Philippines, by Integrated Design Associates

TECH & PRODUCTS

Luggage or Travel Bag

RIMOWA x Alex Israel
Floyd Check-In
Horizn Studios M5 NASA Edition
Globe-Trotter Riviera Collection
Marc Newson x Louis Vuitton Duffle

Learn more about this year’s luggage and travel bag finalists.

Headphones

MW07 by Master & Dynamic
Beoplay H9i  by RIMOWA x Bang & Olufsen
Noise Cancelling Headphones 700 by Bose
Elite 85h by Jabra

Learn more about this year’s headphone finalists. 

Travel Product or Gadget

Frames Audio Sunglasses by Bose
Self-Cleaning Bottle by LARQ
Angle Razor by Morrama
Mini First Class Tech Case by Stow
Go by OSTRICHPILLOW
Viaggio Travel Styling Kit by Alfa Italia

Learn more about this year’s product and gadget finalists. 

SUSTAINABILITY

Environmental Impact

Belmond Savute Elephant Lodge, Chobe National Park, Botswana, by Belmond, Luxury Frontiers and Inge Moore of Muza Lab
Finca Victoria Vieques, Vieques, Puerto Rico, by Sylvia De Marco
Kudadoo Maldives Private Island, Lhaviyani Atoll, The Maldives, by Yuji Yamazaki Architecture
Ijen, Bali, Indonesia, by Potato Head

Inspired Transformation

The Carpenter Hotel, Austin, Texas, by Specht Architects
The Jaffa Hotel and Residences, Tel Aviv, by John Pawson
Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts, Hong Kong, by Herzog & de Meuron

HALL OF FAME

Airport

Kansai International Airport, Osaka, Japan, by Renzo Piano Building Workshop, 1994
Terminal 4 Madrid-Barajas Airport, Madrid, by Estudio Lamela and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, 2006
Denver International Airport, Denver, by Fentress Architects, 1995
Terminal 2 Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai, by Skidmore Owings & Merrill, 2014
Dulles International Airport, Washington, D.C., by Eero Saarinen, 1962
London Stansted Airport, Stansted, United Kingdom, by Foster + Partners, 1991
Queen Alia International Airport, Amman, Jordan, by Foster + Partners, 2013

All Stories