25hours Hotel The Oddbird operates as a masterclass in spatial storytelling, material friction and narrative-driven design. As the eclectic lifestyle brand’s inaugural flagship in the Asia-Pacific region, this striking property within the District 8 development, featuring architecture by Airmas Asri Architects, bridges Indonesia’s rapid modernisation with a deep-seated appreciation for craft and architectural history.
True to the global brand’s irreverent ethos, the Jakarta branch proudly wears its ‘Oddbird’ identity. It functions as a vibrant study in contrast where an urban jungle meets a secluded garden oasis, and mid-century retro nostalgia sits comfortably against contemporary cool.
Conceptualised by a collaborative design pool featuring international studios 1508 London, EDG Design and Stylt Trampoli, the hotel’s interiors pay homage to Jakarta’s layered past and post-independence modernist Jengki architecture. Bypassing a conventional ground-floor arrival, visitors are drawn upward to Level L on the eighth floor, which opens into an expansive social hub. A monumental installation of repurposed Freitag bags shares the space with birdcage-inspired seating structures, while a shifting digital art display by teamLab pulses in the background. Whimsical illustrations by Yoshi Sislay track across the walls, anchored by an original sculpture by Arkiv Vilmansa. This frames the space not merely as a hotel lobby, but as an evolving gallery of design; it’s a local narrative that enacts an energetic communal living room for international design pilgrims and Jakarta’s creatives alike.
The property features 210 guest rooms and 135 longer-stay units, split into two distinct aesthetics inspired by international gentlemen’s cinema. The Garden Rooms draw influence from nature, incorporating local flora from the Senopati and old Jakarta forests. In contrast, the Urban Rooms mirror the Jakarta skyline through vintage wallpapers and finishes reminiscent of old Jakarta residences. During the day, expansive glass and warm wood create a bright, open environment. By evening, deliberate lighting fixtures pull the space inward, fashioning a private urban refuge.
This emphasis on local texture continues into the bathrooms, stocked with custom-made local products. To help guests navigate Jakarta’s notoriously congested, non-pedestrian-friendly roads, the hotel also provides custom Schindelhauer bicycles from Berlin.
The design is equally attentive to the rituals of working and unwinding. Alongside human-scale, birdcage-like work hubs that offer tucked-away co-working pockets, the hotel houses dynamic flexible meeting spaces and Creative Lounges complete with communal pantries. In a nod to the brand’s global identity, these meeting rooms are named after other cities where 25hours hotels operate, including Berlin, Hamburg, Copenhagen, New York, Zurich and Paris.
Each room is uniquely styled with colour palettes and elements reflecting its namesake city, yet all are tightly grounded by a distinct Indonesian twist. Throughout these spaces, traditional local elements shine, notably traditional Indonesian encaustic patterned flooring known locally as Tegel. Stepping out of these zones and into the hallways evokes the atmosphere of Kota Tua, the historical heart and original downtown settlement of Jakarta. The corridors channel a distinct blend of seventeenth-to-nineteenth-century Dutch colonial design and tropical climate adaptations, known locally as the Indies style.
Custom audio touches, including timber radio and record consoles, reinforce the idea that the rooms are experienced as much through sound as through sight. Music, material and light combine to give the spaces a lived-in quality, steering clear of the polished neutrality typical of conventional corporate hospitality.
Across these private and public domains, the furniture curation reads as an eclectic exhibition. Contemporary visions by designers such as Ronan Bouroullec converse effortlessly with mid-century icons, including Florence Knoll pieces and low-slung Togo sofas by Michel Ducaroy. These are layered alongside vintage Italian Murano glass accents, introducing a tangible sense of history and tactile warmth. Rather than adhering to a single period or design language, the collection embraces friction: smooth against rough, polished against patinated, nostalgic against new.
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Crowning the property on the 52nd floor is an exclusive penthouse tier comprising The Loft and The Proper One suites, designed by EDG Interior Architecture + Design, bridged seamlessly by BAR-i to form a private, panoramic venue high above the skyline. Emanating a distinct cinematic secrecy, BAR-i channels a gentleman’s club aesthetic through rich velvet-toned seating, polished brass tables, and dark bar finishes. Dining across the property continues this material exploration, led by COPA Restaurant with its wood-fired Latin American charcoal grill, the adjacent Oddbird Bar, and the tropical poolside enclave of Cabana by the Pool.
Wellness and leisure find equal expression on the ninth floor, where a state-of-the-art gym meets VIDA Spa, a subterranean sanctuary of cave-like textures and subdued lighting designed to restore equilibrium. Flexible zones nearby accommodate wellness elements like yoga and movement rooms, while playful additions such as ping-pong tables dismantle the rigid formality of typical corporate hotels.
Ultimately, 25hours Hotel The Oddbird is less interested in creating a singular visual identity than in orchestrating a sequence of moods. From the kinetic buzz of the lobby and the playful intimacy of its themed meeting rooms to the tactile quiet of its rooms after dark, the hotel shifts effortlessly with the rhythm of the day. Founded on values of materiality, craft and cross-cultural storytelling, it offers guests an immersive, wall-to-wall narrative experience.
Airmas Asri Architects
airmasasri.com
Photography
Courtesy of 25hours Hotel The Oddbird
