Now the lockdown in Kuwait has eased, the new Hilton Garden Inn Kuwait is welcoming guests again. Strategically located, adjacent to The Avenues – Kuwait, the hotel is popular with business travellers and families alike.

Mabanee Company, a leading Kuwaiti real estate developer, commissioned Gensler for the architectural design and Godwin Austen Johnson (GAJ) for the interior design. Havelock One was responsible for the interior implementation for most public areas and 385 spacious guest rooms and suites.

Blurring the boundary between the external and the internal environment, the design for this hotel is natural, fluid and welcoming, evoking a feeling of being surrounded by a contemporary interpretation of a garden. The unique interiors are designed to channel a sense of place with traditional Middle Eastern influences through the use of locally inspired colours, textures and materials.

A flood of natural daylight from a fully glazed double height wall highlight the palette of soft browns, golden yellows and vibrant green hues bring the spirit of the city and the desert into the hotel. There is a natural fluidity in the public spaces where the lobby, garden lounge and all-day dining flow into each other yet still retain their own distinct zones.

The guestrooms and suites have a contemporary feel with clean lines and fresh interiors complemented by comprehensive state of the art technology. Carefully selected artwork throughout the property captures beautiful and interesting elements of the local flora and fauna.

To make GAJ’s design vision a reality, Havelock One combined its expertise in interior contracting and manufacturing for the fast-track project. While the factory in Bahrain supplied juice bar counters, banquet seating and guest room millworks, as well as the ceiling panelling, a pattern that is repeated across different public areas, the local fit-out team provided the finishing works, including regular and acoustic ceilings, corridor wall cladding, painting, screeding, wallpapers, tiling, carpets, glass, and movable partition works.