June 2, 2021

Combining Waterfront History and Views, a New Hotel Opens in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor

Replete with tasteful references to the city’s seaport–turned–tourist hub, the outpost’s interior was conceived by BraytonHughes Design Studios.

By: Ethan Tucker

Durston Saylor1 — At the new Canopy by Hilton Baltimore Harbor Point, full-height windows create deep connections with the city’s Inner Harbor area, which can be glimpsed from the restaurant and guest rooms. Designed by BraytonHughes Design Studios, the hotel interiors—including each of the 156 guest rooms—are also filled with artworks as part of a robust art program overseen by Nathalie Beatty of Beatty Design and Karl Connolly, a Baltimore-based painter, photographer, and educator. **Courtesy Durston Saylor**

On a redeveloped stretch of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, a hotel attempts the difficult task of making a gleaming new building’s interior feel like part of the historic Fell’s Point neighborhood. Occupying five floors of a recently built 12-story glass tower on a remediated brownfield site previously home to a chrome-processing plant, Canopy by Hilton Baltimore Harbor Point is replete with tasteful references to the city’s seaport–turned–tourist hub. “We want you to wake up and think, ‘Oh, I’m in Baltimore. I’m not in any other place in the entire world,’” says Kiko Singh, principal at BraytonHughes Design Studios, who led the design of the project’s interiors.

Singh and her team took inspiration from the surrounding waterfront as well as Baltimore’s arts community. With a palette based on the colors and textures of the old working harbor, they added touches like rope accents on tables, a dark metal fireplace, and a feature wall made of glass bottles that adds nautical flair without stepping into theme restaurant territory.

Durston Saylor2 — **Courtesy Durston Saylor**

Sheltering every bed in the hotel is a canopy—a nod to the brand. For this location, BraytonHughes developed a canopy made of bentwood that cleverly hides recessed lighting. The material and the form, Singh says, recall steam-bent ships’ planks, a reference to the area’s past life as a shipbuilding center. But the harbor is the real focal point.

Nowhere is this more important than in the ground floor restaurant. With a central bar and an atmosphere that’s suited to both an early-morning cup of coffee and an evening cocktail, “it really showcases the incredible views,” says Singh.

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