Samphire Rottnest

Samphire Rottnest hotel has 98 rooms, lagoon-like pools and beachside dining.

Before opening in late 2020, the luxury hotel had been 13 years in the making. When Peter Prendiville, chairman of the Prendiville Group (Cottesloe Beach Hotel, Tradewinds Hotel, Broome’s Mangrove Hotel), took over the leasehold on the pub and existing 18-room Hotel Rottnest in 2007, he always knew he wanted to bring something big to the island in terms of accommodation. Now, his vision is about to be realised.

Situated on Thomson Bay on the island’s east coast, close to the arrival jetty, the beachside hotel celebrates the surrounding environment – rugged, organic, relaxed. Prendiville enlisted Perth architecture firm Christou Design Group (Scarborough Beach Pool, Subiaco Hotel, City Beach Surf Club) to integrate the essence of the island into the hotel design.

The result expertly blurs the line between indoor and outdoor, relaxed and luxury. Hints of the island’s limestone foundations, sandy beaches and scrubby land are apparent in the finishes: wood-clad walls, sisal rugs and natural linen furnishings warm up the breezy rooms, and natural stone tiling adds an element of luxury to the bathrooms. Outside, there are lagoon-like pools and space for outdoor dining.