As the school’s first campus hotel, The Celeste Hotel pays homage to the exploratory thinking that put man on the moon — and lives on in UCF’s student body. Baker Barrios led the architecture and interior design missions, drawing inspiration from celestial Space Age design.
Services
Architecture
Interior Design
Project Type
Hospitality
Project Size
116,560 SF
5 Stories
Project Components
179-Room Hotel
207 Parking Spaces
Meeting+Conference Space
Outdoor Dining
Pool and Fitness Center
2019
Opened
179
Rooms
116,560
SQFT
5
Stories
The Celeste Hotel is a Tribute Portfolio hotel designed with UCF’s students and families in mind. The five-story, 179-room hotel blends modern amenities with 1963-inspired design, harkening back to a time when space exploration shaped Central Florida history. Rooms and dining venues are decorated with mid-century furniture, injecting 1960s optimism into guest areas, with cosmic artwork designed by students of the UCF School of Visual Arts and Design hangs in every room.
Baker Barrios spearheaded architectural and interior design for The Celeste Hotel, cultivating an inviting and exciting atmosphere across the hotel’s outdoor dining area, meeting and conference room, and state-of-the-art pool and fitness center.
The spirit of exploration is imbued in every guest touchpoint: a Marshall Islands stick chart displays in the reception area, constellations of lights hang over the Aurora Restaurant, and there’s even a rocket wall in the lobby — chronicling the history of the U.S. space program from Mercury to Ares.
2021 Ovations Awards – Best Hotel/Lodging