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About 21c Museum Hotel
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Developer: 21c Museum Hotels
Designer: Deborah Berke Partners
Size: 150,000 square feet
21c Museum Hotel is a vibrant contemporary art museum, boutique hotel, restaurant, spa, and rooftop bar in the heart of downtown Cincinnati. Building on the success of the brand’s first hotel, which debuted in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2006 and was twice voted a top hotel by readers of Conde Nast Traveler, 21c furthered its mission to engage the public with art and support the revitalization of urban centers with the opening of its Cincinnati property in 2012.
The 156-room hotel became the first full-service hotel to open in downtown Cincinnati in 28 years. With the goal of engaging the public with art in a new way, 21c renovated and restored the 100-year-old former Metropole Hotel into a contemporary art museum, boutique hotel, and Metropole restaurant. The 150,000-square-foot, 11-story space preserves the original architectural character of the hotel, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, while complementing it with contemporary art and design. 21c’s museum is free to the public and features curated exhibitions of 21st-century art, multimedia installations, and cultural programming.