1 Hotel Austin has opened in downtown Austin as part of the mixed-use Waterline development, bringing 252 accommodations, three food and beverage venues, a dedicated wellness floor and more than 10,000 square feet of event space to the city.
Developed by Lincoln and Kairoi Residential, the hotel sits near Waller Creek and Lady Bird Lake, alongside the Waterloo Greenway and the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail. The property is part of the wider Waterline development at the edge of Austin’s Rainey Street District. Pasted markdown
Kohn Pedersen Fox designed the architecture, with HKS Architects serving as architect of record. Studio MAI worked on the interiors in collaboration with the Starwood Hotels design team, while TBG Partners handled landscape design.
“Opening in Austin is a milestone for 1 Hotels,” says Barry Sternlicht, Founder of 1 Hotels and Chairman of Starwood Hotels. “Austin is a remarkable city, as it maintains its great traditions while embracing change and acting as a poster child for the brightest future. Few cities have been able to grow with the confidence Austin has while holding onto the qualities that make it special: its creativity, independent spirit, welcoming character, and extraordinary natural beauty. 1 Hotels’ DNA is about celebrating nature and healthy and sustainable living; this location is perfect for us—set in the heart of the city, alongside Waller Creek, overlooking the Waterloo Greenway, and steps from the trail around Lady Bird Lake. The connection between nature and urban life is our perfect site.”
Rooms & Design
The hotel is within walking distance of the Waterloo Greenway and Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail. Restaurants, music venues, cultural attractions, parks, Waller Creek and the 10-mile trail around Lady Bird Lake are also nearby.
The 252 accommodations include 60 suites. Interiors use locally quarried limestone, oak and reclaimed wood, along with woven textiles, oat-colored fabrics, handcrafted textures and plants. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer views of Lady Bird Lake, Waller Creek or the downtown skyline. Pasted markdown
More than 4,000 plants representing over 30 species are used throughout the property, including a living plant wall. The lobby features wood ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows and seating arranged in clusters rather than a conventional reception-style layout.
Guest rooms include filtered water taps, reusable glassware made from recycled wine bottles, cotton robes and slippers, yoga mats and Bamford bath amenities made with organic ingredients.
Minibars include beverages, snacks and personal care items. Local products include chocolates from Desnudo, snacks from Austin Pretzel Company, Wildflower Caramels and Tamalitoz treats.
Dining & Bars
1 Hotel Austin has three food and beverage venues, with menus shaped by seasonality, local sourcing and low-waste practices. Ingredients are sourced from Texas farms and producers, while the hotel said it also looks for ways to use ingredients that might otherwise be discarded. Pasted markdown
Alteño is the first Austin restaurant from James Beard Award nominee Chef Johnny Curiel. His Denver restaurants, Alma Fonda Fina and Mezcaleria Alma, both hold Michelin stars.
The restaurant draws on the Jalisco Highlands, where Curiel grew up. It also reflects the culinary traditions of his father, the original Alteño, or “highlander.
Its menu includes fire-cooked meats, seafood-focused dishes and other dishes influenced by Curiel’s family experiences and visits to cevicherías and marisquerías along the Mexican coast.
The bar offers more than 40 mezcals, alongside additive-free tequilas, raicilla, sotol and ancient corn whiskey.
An open kitchen forms the centre of the restaurant. The space also includes a private dining room surrounded by windows.
“Opening a restaurant in Austin has been a dream for a long time,” says Curiel. “The meals I remember most from growing up were spent around the fire with family and friends, sharing food and staying at the table long after we had finished eating. At Alteño, I want guests to feel like they have been welcomed into our home, where plates are passed, drinks are poured, and everyone has a place at the table.”
At street level, Neighbors Café and Wine Bar is the first Neighbors wine bar in the 1 Hotels collection. It connects directly with both the lobby and the surrounding neighbourhood.
The venue serves breakfast, cocktails and small plates. Its wine list focuses on Mediterranean producers, including biodynamic, minimal-intervention and sustainably farmed wines.
The drinks menu also includes spritzes, mini martinis, Gin & Tonics and cocktails such as the Nitro Espresso Martini. Vinyl music provides the soundtrack, while recurring events include game nights and Matcha Mondays with Mori Matcha. Pasted markdown
Meanwhile, watr is the second location of the rooftop concept that debuted at 1 Hotel South Beach.
Located 16 stories above the city, the venue overlooks the Austin skyline and Lady Bird Lake. It combines cocktails with Japanese-inspired cuisine and a programme of poolside activities, DJ sets and monthly Full Moon parties.
The cocktail programme uses ingredients in multiple ways. Examples include turning spent sparkling wine into syrups, coffee grounds into treacle and citrus into oleo saccharum and dehydrated garnishes.
The food menu includes tasting flights of hand rolls, a raw bar and a Binchotan experience with chutoro prepared tableside.
The hotel’s Happenings and Daylife programme includes cocktail-making classes, sound baths and natural clothing-dye workshops led by the Central Texas Fashion Coalition.
Other activities include 1 Reset, a monthly journaling and vision-boarding gathering, and Dark Sky evenings, when lobby lighting is dimmed for a candlelit event focused on light pollution.
Wellness Facilities
The hotel’s dedicated wellness floor includes a fitness centre with cardio and strength-training equipment, as well as an outdoor terrace overlooking the Austin skyline and Lady Bird Lake.
A dedicated yoga studio hosts classes for hotel guests and local residents. When weather permits, sessions can also take place on the adjoining terrace.
The hotel offers personal training through its partnership with with Monroe, an Austin private members club with indoor and outdoor training areas, two fitness floors, a sauna and cold plunge. Pasted markdown
The Bamford Wellness Spa has six private treatment rooms, a couples suite with a steam shower, locker rooms and relaxation areas. Its retail boutique sells Bamford skincare, bath and body products made with organic botanicals.
The spa’s design draws on bathhouses and cabins in Texas Hill Country. Treatments include Bamford rituals, massages, personalised facials, infrared sauna sessions, soundwave therapy, red light treatments and recovery experiences.
Beyond the wellness floor, the hotel runs a three-mile Sunday run club around Lady Bird Lake. First-time guests also receive a complimentary three-day pass to Monroe, including access to its sauna, cold plunge and infrared therapy. Pasted markdown
Art & Design
Art is displayed throughout the hotel, with works connecting Austin’s natural environment and architectural history with artists and makers from Texas and elsewhere.
The collection draws on the city’s relationship with water and the history of Rainey Street. Materials and techniques include fibres, pigments and found materials connected to their original locations.
Artist Nate Page used the imprint of a historic Rainey Street bungalow to create a large-scale installation spanning corridors across all 10 guest-room floors.
At Neighbors Café and Wine Bar, Christian Kasperkovitz created a site-specific mural using clay collected from Waller Creek to produce its pigments.
Other commissions include biophilic installations by Alejandro Bataille, woven works by Peruvian textile artist Jimena Bedoya, hand-carved wood sculptures by Vince Skelly and works by Los Angeles artist Sarah Lesher. Pasted markdown
Sustainability
The hotel is pursuing LEED Gold certification and uses responsibly sourced wood, natural stone, reusable glassware and other durable materials.
Planting is also a major part of the property’s design. Thousands of native and climate-appropriate plants are used across indoor and outdoor spaces. The hotel said these plantings support biodiversity and local pollinators.
An on-site apiary, operated with Keeper’s Harvest, supplies honey used at Neighbors. Plants requiring additional care can be moved to off-site greenhouses before returning to the property.
Sustainability measures extend into guest rooms and operations. These include FSC-certified wooden key cards, natural stone “Not Now” door signs, recycled-paper hangers, seed-paper amenity cards and in-room chalkboards in place of disposable notepads. Pasted markdown
Fully electric Audi Q6 e-tron house cars are available for guest excursions around Austin.
Through the hotel’s 1 Less Thing programme, guests can leave gently used clothing for donation to Thrift-ish, a local community organisation that provides clothing to shelters and encampments for people experiencing homelessness.
Food and beverage waste reduction is managed with Foodprint Group, while Texas Disposal Systems handles recycling, composting and waste diversion across the property.
Meeting & Events
For meetings, celebrations and private events, 1 Hotel Austin has more than 10,000 square feet of event space available for privatization and buyouts.
The 14th floor includes a 4,500-square-foot divisible ballroom, 6,000 square feet of pre-function space with indoor and outdoor terraces overlooking downtown and Lady Bird Lake, plus three boardrooms with floor-to-ceiling windows.
The brand supports events through its Certified Sustainable Gatherings programme. which includes responsible sourcing, lower-impact menus, reusable serviceware, donation practices and event-specific operational planning intended to reduce waste.
1 Hotel Austin Now Open
1 Hotel Austin is now open at the meeting point of Waller Creek and Lady Bird Lake, as part of the Waterline development.
The hotel combines accommodation with restaurants and bars, wellness facilities, art installations, sustainability initiatives and event spaces within the wider downtown Austin development.
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