Need to know
Rooms
106, including eight suites.
Check–Out
11am, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 3pm.
More details
Rates don’t usually include breakfast: grab-and-go pastries and coffee at the Siren Café or sit-down specials at Ash Bar.
Also
All public areas are accessible and eight of the guestrooms.
At the hotel
Rooftop, vinyl bar and shop, barbershop, piano-karaoke bar, garden courtyard, boutique, café, charged dry-cleaning service, ice-machine and ATM in the lobby, free WiFi. In rooms: flatscreen TV, selection of bottled cocktails and gourmet snacks (turkey jerky, candy bars, nuts, granola) American Medicinal Arts bath products.
Our favourite rooms
The rest of the hotel might be frilled up to the gills, but rooms are kept relatively simple, with just a handloomed throw there, a small vintage picture there, and perhaps a spray of flowers. Although jazzy red, blue or green terrazzo makes the bathrooms pop. However, if you do want a to-the-maximalist space, choose the Penthouse, which has an enormous bird sculpture, deep-pile rugs, velvet chaises, and a chandelier. Or one of the duplex suites (Parlor or Chamber), which have adequate fringing, frippery and strokable fabrics, plus some ‘oh, Canada’ views.
Spa
There’s no spa, but gents can get a little TLC thanks to ‘cultural emcee’ Sebastian Jackson, founder of the Social Club, which aims to bring the camaraderie and community feel back into barbershop grooming. He built his first salon using timbers from blighted Detroit homes, distributes hair clippings to local parks to use in fertiliser, and sells ‘anti-racist’-branded clothing, but above all, he’s good for a natter. Get settled in one of the two retro seats he’s set up here and learn a lot about Detroit then and now as you get a trim or classic straight-razor shave. And, guests can use their key to enter the YMCA gym next door for free.
Packing tips
Just have your boy bring in the steamer trunks and hat boxes… If you can resist surfing on the old-time-y luggage cart then you’re a stronger person than us. However, if you’re staying in one of the lower category rooms, they can be on the snug side and a little lacking in storage, so give the boy a break and pack a weekender.
Also
The hotel boutique is a seriously curated space where you can buy cult books and magazines from B_KS@, limited-edition photo prints by Detroit artist Bill Rauhauser, fragrances, jewellery, clothing and apothecary potions.
Pet‐friendly
As long as they’re under 50 pounds, your pup can stay with you for free (one pet a room). See more pet-friendly hotels in Detroit.
Children
The hotel has packaways and bunk rooms, but the fun is all adult.
Sustainability efforts
Before super-cool hoteliers Ash NYC bought the Wurlitzer building it was due for demolition, but now – after a thorough refurb – the 1926 Italian Renaissance Revival marvel has become a part of Detroit history in the best possible way. And the city’s multifaceted past hasn’t been papered over – rather embellished and celebrated, while making meaningful connections with the city’s new groovers: barber and activist Sebastian Jackson, music obsessives Paramita Sound, chic chef Kate Williams, in-the-know curator Sarah Ayers. And, to keep the building in good shape, there’s an energy-saving HVAC air-conditioning system.