PURO Poznań Stare Miasto, Poland
A contemporary Old Town hotel refreshed by Holloway Li with limestone, art-nouveau references, and a distinctly local design language
Why DNA Hotels Loves It
● London studio Holloway Li’s 2024 redesign gives the hotel a stronger sense of place, drawing on Poznań’s art-nouveau townhouses, industrial history, and public spaces.
● Sculpted limestone, glossy red tiles, handmade decorative glass, and custom furniture create a tactile, highly considered interior without losing PURO’s approachable character.
● Nifty remains a genuine neighbourhood restaurant, while the Old Town Square is only a few minutes away on foot.
A New Building in an Old Quarter
PURO Poznań Stare Miasto sits on the edge of the reconstructed medieval and Renaissance Old Town, close to the city’s former Jewish quarter. Its architecture is deliberately contemporary. Rather than reproduce historical façades, the hotel introduces clean geometry, large windows, and a modern scale that contrasts with the older city around it. That contrast has always been part of PURO’s identity. In Poznań, the more recent redesign makes that identity far more specific.
Holloway Li Adds the Local Layer
For the hotel’s tenth anniversary, Holloway Li reworked the interiors from top to bottom. The intervention focuses less on decoration and more on key moments along the guest journey. Reception is the clearest example. A curved desk sits on three sculptural limestone plinths and is wrapped in glossy red tiles, creating a strong focal point against an otherwise restrained palette. Nearby, a hand-tufted rug takes its pattern and colour cues from the surrounding city. These gestures are bold. But never arbitrary.
Art Nouveau Meets Industrial Poznań
The local references become more subtle as you move through the hotel. Decorative glass made by Poznań manufacturer Riwal recalls the curves and detailing of the city’s art-nouveau townhouses. A circular opening cut into a partition between reception and lounge nods to the locomotives once produced in factories around Poznań. Historic architecture. Industrial engineering. Contemporary hospitality. The references are abstracted rather than illustrated. That keeps the design from becoming thematic.
Rooms with Softer Edges
The guestrooms shift into calmer territory. Neutral colours, richly textured fabrics, glazed ceramic tiles, and limestone details create a softer atmosphere than the public areas downstairs. Carved limestone bedside tables flow into the curved fabric headboards, giving the rooms a sense of continuity. The overall mood is warm and tactile rather than starkly minimalist. Hilding mattresses, heated bathroom floors, rainfall showers, and smart-room controls handle the practical side. Design does the rest.
Furniture That Earns Its Place
As with other PURO properties, furniture matters. Pieces are selected not simply for brand recognition but for how they shape the space. David Thulstrup’s Font swivel chairs for Møbel Copenhagen appear in meeting areas, while Eikund dining chairs bring Norwegian modernism into Nifty. The mix feels collected rather than catalogued. That is important. A design hotel should feel inhabited, not merchandised.
Nifty
Nifty remains the social centre of the hotel. Part restaurant, part café, part bar, it attracts locals as easily as guests. During the day, floor-to-ceiling glazing floods the space with light. At night, softer lighting brings out the toffee-coloured banquettes, leather seating, and sculptural artwork by Piotr Łakomy. The menu focuses on contemporary takes on regional dishes, which gives the space more than visual appeal. It belongs to Poznań socially as well as aesthetically.
A Hotel Made for the City Outside
The Old Town Square is only a short walk away. That gives the hotel a natural rhythm. Breakfast. Coffee. Out into Poznań. Back for a drink. Perhaps dinner at Nifty. The terrace and garden add another layer in warmer months, while a gym, sauna, and complimentary bicycles make it easy to alternate between movement and downtime. Nothing feels over-programmed.
Why It Works
PURO Poznań Stare Miasto works particularly well after Holloway Li’s redesign because the hotel now speaks more clearly to its city. Art-nouveau curves, industrial references, local craftsmanship, Polish art, and sculptural materials give the interiors specificity without sacrificing PURO’s contemporary ease. It is polished but not generic, playful but not loud, and rooted in Poznań without becoming nostalgic. A strong example of how a modern hotel can sit confidently inside a historic city and still feel entirely of its own time.
