Get set for a gorgeous stream of images coming your way today as Emily McAuliffe checks out the second hotel in our three part Byron Bay series.

The Bower redefines the concept of an Aussie motel by pushing no-frills into sleek sophistication. Fourteen ground-level suites stretch along the property, in addition to a cottage, house and barn. When the four owners gutted and restored the old motel on the site, they drew inspiration from the architecture of New York. Taliah Lowry, who handled the concept and design, spent much of her childhood in the states and was drawn to the look and feel of the Big Apple’s Bowery neighbourhood. “I adore the squat-shaped buildings with their distinct lines and add-on structures, such as the imposing awnings, which provide such a grand presence from street view and a moody privacy shield from within,” she says.