New York City has practically become synonymous with small-space living. Micro-apartments have existed in Manhattan even before the term was coined in the 90s, and today, TikTok tours show the concept taken to extremes, highlighting homes that maximize the most minimal square footage. The trend is making its way to the hospitality sector: Take Now Now, on Bowery that combines the budget-friendly benefits of hostel accommodations with the elevated, design-forward appeal of a boutique hotel. The building is no stranger to compact living arrangements; in fact, it was originally built as a lodging house in 1917.
, the local firm that designed the hotel, envisioned the space as a “sanctuary for solo travellers.” The immersive experience starts in the lobby. Past a serene sitting area rendered in soothing earth tones, a hypnotic portal of striped archways leads to the reception area. Here, terracotta-toned display cabinets sit opposite self-serve check-in kiosks in the same hue, creating a colourful focal point that feels of a piece with the organic palette.
Contrast shows up in subtle ways throughout the lobby, most prominently through a pleasing combination of textures that range from rough to smooth, natural and manmade. The idea was to create a “dreamscape of juxtapositions” that evokes the haze between sleeping and waking, the designers explain. This sense of blurred reality is amplified by textured glass that conceals the view of the exterior.
Upstairs, the guestrooms have a similarly disorienting quality. For starters, the 180 sleeper cabins don’t have any windows — though in New York City, where many hotel rooms face a brick wall, you’re not necessarily missing the view. Instead, the rooms have open ceilings with acoustic baffles that let in natural light and fresh air from above, while still ensuring a quiet night’s rest (noise-cancelling headphones are also available, if needed).
As for the design, the aesthetic straddles classic and contemporary, landing somewhere between a European train car and a Japandi capsule hotel. The wood furnishings give the dorm-like rooms much-needed warmth, while a stool upholstered in a playful striped fabric adds a touch of whimsy — and echoes the striped motif used in the lobby. While most of the cabins are minimally decorated, there are a handful of hidden gems: Ten slightly larger rooms feature exuberant murals by local artists, including Alyss Odle, Daniela Araya, Ella Barnes, Lori McMichael, Paul Wackers, Sohyun Lim and Zach Blumne.
The designers managed to cram just about everything a traveller needs into each 3-square-metre module (shared bathrooms, however, are located just down the hall). Every piece was made custom to fit the exceptionally compact footprint, from the furniture to the mattresses. These constraints made careful space planning — and finding efficiencies — essential. To that end, the side table doubles as a vanity topped by an elegantly arched mirror, which helps make the room feel ever so slightly larger. Every detail was considered, from where to set your keys, hang your coat or store your luggage.
Conceived as a “cocoon of comfort,” each guest room is decked out with high-end linens, plush robes, sleep masks and sound machines that lend a sense of luxury even at a budget price point. And the hotel also rents devices that range from Nintendo Game Boys to Meta Quest VR goggles if you’re missing the in-room TV.
You won’t find amenities like a gym, spa or on-site restaurant at Now Now, but with the hotel’s prime location — and the events they host in partnership with neighbourhood businesses — you’ll hardly miss them. It’s a point Mason Studio’s Stanley Sun drove home at Azure’s Human/Nature Conference this year when speaking to the rise of micro hotels. “In a way, the neighbourhood itself becomes the amenity,” he explains. “We’re seeking to foster an exchange between local businesses, to create a sort of micro-economy around the property.”
Sun, along with his firm, is currently working on a small-scale hotel concept in downtown Toronto. Properties like this won’t appeal to every traveller, and they’re not designed to. But if these projects are any indication, the next generation of hotels may be less spacious than their predecessors, yet no less rich in the experiences they provide.
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