Raes has opened bookings for its newest Byron Bay property, The Bonobo by Raes, a boutique hotel and lifestyle destination set to welcome its first guests in June.
Positioned in the heart of the town centre at 116–118 Jonson Street, the three-level modernist building will comprise 33 hotel rooms alongside 41 serviced residences, four one-bedroom, 28 two-bedroom and nine three-bedroom apartments, aimed squarely at the corporate traveller, the extended-stay market and groups seeking flexible accommodation.
The property represents a more social expression of the Raes brand, sitting within a portfolio that already includes Raes Hotel, Raes Guesthouses and Sea Raes. Hotel executives say The Bonobo has been conceived as a cultural touchstone in the town centre, connecting locals and visitors in a way its beachside sister properties do not.
For business travellers, the residence-led mix may prove the most notable feature. Every apartment has been fitted with a full kitchen and laundry, and adjoining rooms can be joined to create larger multi-bedroom configurations, a layout increasingly sought after by executives on longer deployments and by small corporate groups travelling together. Appliances throughout have been supplied by Breville, including pieces from its Aboriginal Culinary Journey collection.
Architecturally, the building has been designed by Richards & Spence, with interiors by Studio Manifold. The practice has leaned into natural timbers, soft plaster finishes, stone and layered textures across the Lobby Lounge, courtyard, wellness spaces, rooftop pool and guest rooms, in what the operator describes as an exercise in understated luxury grounded in Byron Bay’s coastal setting.
Food and beverage will be overseen by Jason Saxby, executive chef of the two-hatted Raes Dining Room. At the centre of the operation is a 50-seat Lobby Lounge, designed to flow from breakfast service through to afternoon aperitivo. In-room and rooftop menus, available daily from 7am until midnight, will offer what Raes calls an elevated take on hotel classics, including a club sandwich, steak frites and a cheeseburger delivered with the group’s signature polish.
Wellness has been handed to Reset, the Sydney-based operator whose Double Bay studio opened in October. The Byron Bay outpost, its second site, will include traditional cedar saunas, ice baths, a eucalyptus steam room, a magnesium bath and vitamin C–infused showers, alongside a private treatment room for LED light therapy, facials and body treatments. Crucially for the hotel’s business-travel proposition, treatments will be available to non-resident guests and the wider Byron Bay community, giving corporate visitors the option to book wellness slots independently of their stay.
Reset co-founders William Schrumpf and Melissa Schrumpf, the latter the firm’s creative director, said the Byron Bay site had been designed to feel like a private residence, with private and small-group sessions at its core. They described the partnership with Raes as a natural fit for translating the Double Bay concept into a new setting.
Retail partners at The Bonobo are expected to be announced in the coming months. The hotel opens in June 2026.