Sobriety and elegance may sound old-fashioned, but as design principles they help provide a distinctly modern version of luxury at Bilbao’s Miró Hotel. Fashion designer Antonio Miró has brought the spare sensibility that makes him a favourite on international runways to the hotels’ interiors, to stunning effect.

Located between Bilbao’s Museum of Fine Arts and Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Bilbao, the hotel’s façade makes a simple but strong statement, a grid of large windows atop six white columns, creating a light-box effect at night. An in-house collection of art and photography juxtaposes old and new works, as do wengé-finished tables and Flexform chairs in the bar. Guestrooms feature the luxury of soothing colour palettes and textures, continuing the beige-and-black scheme of the hotel’s public areas. Curtains, rather than walls, separate work and living areas, creating a fluid, multifunctional space. And the hotel’s Miró bar features long, low-slung lines that suggest a sleek version of modernity while providing Bilbao with a truly chic watering hole.

Miro Hotel Bilbao is ideally situated in the city centre, 200 meters from the Guggenheim Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts. 200 meters from the Euskalduna Auditorium and Congress Centre. 150 meters from the Zubiarte Shopping Centre.