Australia Now Has 54 Michelin Key Hotels

The 2026 MICHELIN Guide selection has been announced and this year's pool adds 22 Australian hotels, promotes three properties and gives Australia two new Three-Key stays.

Written by Stephanie Mikkelsen

Last updated September 22, 2026

3 min read

Brisbane, Queensland
The Calile Hotel
Sydney, New South Wales
Capella Sydney
Hobart, Tasmania
Henry Jones Art Hotel
Mornington Peninsula, Victoria
Jackalope
Lizard Island, Queensland
Lizard Island Resort
Hobart, Tasmania
Macq01
Outback Queensland
Mount Mulligan Lodge
Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Sequoia Lodge
Kangaroo Island, South Australia
Southern Ocean Lodge
Sydney, New South Wales
The EVE Hotel

The local Australia hotel scene has just received its biggest international endorsement yet. The MICHELIN Guide’s 2026 has expanded the country’s MICHELIN Key list to 54 properties, spanning remote lodges, city hotels, private island resorts, heritage stays and wellness retreats.

The announcement, made on 18 September, adds 22 new Australian properties to the selection. Three existing hotels have also moved up a tier, including two that now hold the Guide’s highest distinction.

The MICHELIN Key is the hotel equivalent of the MICHELIN Star. Inspectors visit anonymously and assess properties across design, service, personality, value and their contribution to the surrounding setting.

The hotel Keys are only the beginning. Australia’s MICHELIN moment continues on 14 October, when the Guide heads to Adelaide to unveil its inaugural South Australian restaurant selection – giving travellers another reason to put the state on the menu.

Australia’s Three-Key hotels

Three Keys signify “an extraordinary stay” – and Australia now has three of them.

Lizard Island Resort, Lizard Island, Queensland
Saffire Freycinet, Coles Bay, Tasmania
Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, South Australia

Saffire Freycinet and Southern Ocean Lodge were both promoted from Two Keys. Michelin describes Southern Ocean Lodge as “a shining example of creative modern architecture”, set in “neutral tones and ample glass” beside Kangaroo Island’s rugged coastline.

Australia’s Two-Key hotels

Two Keys recognise “an exceptional stay”. The hotels to be awarded with Two Keys are:

Capella Lodge, Lord Howe Island, New South Wales
Capella Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales
Jackalope Hotel, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria
Longitude 131°, Yulara, Northern Territory
Sequoia Lodge, Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Silky Oaks Lodge, Daintree Rainforest, Queensland
Spicers Peak Lodge, Maryvale, Queensland
Spicers Sangoma Retreat, Blue Mountains, New South Wales
Thorngrove Manor, Adelaide Hills, South Australia

Capella Sydney was promoted from One Key, while Sequoia Lodge entered the selection with Two Keys. The Adelaide Hills property brings panoramic suites, thermal pools and a wine-country setting to a category otherwise dominated by remote lodges and island escapes.

Australia’s One-Key hotels

One Key represents “a very special stay”. The 42 properties in the 2026 Australian group are:

1 Hotel Melbourne
Ardour Milton Park, Bowral
Basq House, Byron Bay
Blackbird Byron Bay
Chalets at Blackheath
COMO The Treasury, Perth
Crystalbrook Albion, Sydney
Drift House, Port Fairy
El Questro – The Homestead, Kimberley
Four Seasons Hotel Sydney
Gaia Retreat & Spa, Byron Bay
Halcyon House, Cabarita Beach
Il Delfino Seaside Inn, Yamba
InterContinental Sorrento Mornington Peninsula
InterContinental Sydney Coogee Beach by IHG
Lanson Place Parliament Gardens, Melbourne
Le Mas Barossa
Lon Retreat & Spa, Point Lonsdale
MACq 01 Hotel, Hobart
Maleny Lodge, Sunshine Coast
Mount Lofty House & Estate, Adelaide Hills
Mt Mulligan Lodge, Queensland
Osborn House, Southern Highlands
Park Hyatt Sydney
Pretty Beach House, Central Coast
QT Sydney
Qualia, Hamilton Island
Sticky Rice Villas, Adelaide Hills
The Calile Hotel, Brisbane
The Corinda Collection, Hobart
The EVE Hotel Sydney
The Henry Jones Art Hotel, Hobart
The Islington Hotel, Hobart
The Langham Melbourne
The Langham, Sydney
The Porter House Hotel Sydney – MGallery
The Ritz-Carlton, Melbourne
The Sanctuary at Alba Thermal Springs & Spa, Mornington Peninsula
The Sundays, Hamilton Island
The Tasman, Hobart
Wildlife Retreat at Taronga
Yala Yallingup Retreat and Spa

The new additions broaden the list beyond established luxury names. They include thermal-spring stays, design-led city hotels, private villas, regional retreats and wilderness lodges – a testament that MICHELIN Key rewards the quality of the overall stay, not simply a hotel’s room count or nightly rate.