Classic Glamour Lives On At Detroit’s Siren Hotel
Escape to another time at Detroit’s one-time Wurlitzer building
(A guest bed at the Siren Hotel adorned with dual mermaids.)
Location: Detroit, MI
Perfect For: Anyone visiting Detroit looking for a stay marked by classic touches and romantic design in a hotel that will trigger your nostalgia for a more upscale era.
If it feels like there’s a history to the Siren Hotel when you first walk into the lobby, it’s because there is. Nearly 100 years ago, what is now the Siren was built and originally served as the Wurlitzer building, a showroom for organs, jukeboxes, and player pianos, in addition to housing a recording studio and administrative offices. By the late ‘60s, however, the building became residential units for tenants, then was vacated by the early ‘80s. Decades of disrepair settled into the Wurlitzer, until Ash Hotels purchased the building in 2015, going on to open The Siren Hotel in 2018.
“We tried to retain the history and some of the architectural details that would've been relevant to the time period.” - Mary Beth Bennett
During their rebuild and remodel, Ash Hotels preserved as much of the building’s original grandeur as possible. Intact remnants of the Wurlitzer’s storied past can be seen in the lobby’s original ceiling as well as the terrazzo staircase leading to the hotel’s second floor.
The lobby features The Siren Cafe, where guests can refuel with coffee and pastries. And just beyond the cafe is Candy Bar, a pink-coated cocktail lounge fit for Barbie herself. The bar is an Instagram dream that exudes old school glamour and sophisticated decadence, featuring cocktails with names like Sugarcube and Doctors Orders.
(The Candy Bar is an all-pink Instagram dream.)
Also onsite is Sid Gold's Request Room, a low lit piano karaoke bar fit for lounge acts from another era. And second floor restaurant Ash Bar recalls the yesteryear of Detroit, with a cocktail menu from the hotel’s F&B director Nick Arone.
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In keeping with the aesthetic of the hotel, the guest rooms at the Siren offer a quiet escape with an effortless charm. Dual mermaids are sewn into the muted pink bedspreads, while the speckled shower tiling for the rooms come in calming shades of blue, green, and red.
The rooms also offer a number of snacks made in Detroit, including chips, jerky, granola bars, and more. And guests staying in The Penthouse can enjoy the room’s top and bottom floors, offering a glass table and blue velvet couch on the first level, with the room’s bed in a loft area in the secluded landing at the top of a spiral staircase.
(The first floor of the Siren Hotel Penthouse.)
Beyond the Siren’s doors, visitors will find no shortage of dining and shopping in downtown Detroit. And sports fans will appreciate that it’s a short walk to Comerica Park and Ford Field from the hotel and a short drive to Little Caesars Arena.
“It was really important to our owners that when we opened, we were not just coming in as an outsider, that…we were partnering with the community, we were getting to know the culture of Detroit.” - Mary Beth Bennett
For more on The Siren Hotel, check out the hotel’s GM Mary Beth Bennett on A HOTEL PODCAST, discussing the history of the property, the hotel’s F&B options, the importance of building authentic relationships and partnerships with Detroit’s creative communities, and more.
Find more about the property at The Siren Hotel, and subscribe for more from A Hotel Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.
Video produced by Gaby Dupont. Stay provided courtesy of The Siren Hotel and M18 Public Relations.