Next-Gen ‘Pod Hotel’ Brand Pitches Plans for Glitter Strip

Hospitality giant EVT has filed plans to bring its new next-gen, budget pod hotel concept to Queensland’s Glitter Strip.

It would be EVT’s second Lylo-branded hotel in Australia following its upcoming debut in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.

The four-storey Gold Coast hotel is earmarked to be co-located with the group’s 5-star QT Hotel at Staghorn Avenue, Surfers Paradise.

It would replace two tennis courts and a hardstand area spanning 2595sq m that front Ferny Avenue on the western side of the existing hotel site.

Under the beach shack-inspired, Rothelowman-designed scheme, the Lylo hotel accommodates 121 pod and micro king, queen and family rooms across its three upper levels

It also features a lobby, pool deck, veranda, food and drink outlet, self-catering kitchen, communal dining area and guest laundry—all on the ground floor.

The planning documents said the proposed development aimed to “make better use of an underutilised portion of the [QT Hotel] site while increasing product and price diversity with a separately branded short-stay offering”.

In its design statement, Rothelowman said the proposal for 7 Staghorn Avenue “seeks to refine the ‘backpacker’ experience by combining the relaxed, beach shack charm of the Gold Coast with a generous eye for life and considered sustainability initiatives”.

It said the development would avoid significant and costly excavation and was designed to “touch the ground lightly” with an array of eco-friendly transport options and the strong integration of landscape.

Overall, the hotel would have only 13 ground-level carparking spaces.

“Building upon the strongly emerging local identity that expresses its beachside history, coastal climate and unique geography, the Gold Coast is an unapologetically iconic place to holiday,” the design statement said.

▲ Renders of the proposed Lylo Surfers Paradise ‘beach shack’ hotel and, bottom centre, an example of the brand’s sleeping pods.

“By drawing from and feeding into this identity, 7 Staghorn Avenue makes a significant contribution to the reinvigoration of the north Surfers Paradise precinct.”

The expansion of the youth-oriented brand in Australia follows its launch in 2022 as a “new game-changing lifestyle budget accommodation experience” in New Zealand, where it has opened hotels in Auckland, Christchurch and Queenstown.

The concept—including its mix of sleeping pods and shared or private micro rooms—was born from target audience research by EVT that highlighted a gap in the sector.

As well as Lylo and QT, other hotel brands in the EVT stable include Atura and Rydges, Independent Collection and Thredbo Alpine Resort. 

Bookings from April are being taken for Lylo’s yet-to-be opened debut Australian hotel at 142 Constance Street, Fortitude Valley—the former boutique Limes Hotel. It will feature a rooftop “hangout space” that doubles as a social and working area with a bar and retractable roof.