Inside the Nyngan Hotel’s renovation

Transforming a 141-year-old historic hotel into a modern Outback retreat is no easy feat. But that’s exactly the challenge local Nyngan couple James and Emily Stanton took on last year.

The Stantons, who also juggled parenting three primary school-aged boys, kicked off their renovation journey back in March 2023 after seeing a gap in the small NSW town’s market and spotting potential with the historic Nyngan Hotel, located on the Mitchell Highway in Nyngan, NSW.

“We felt like there was an untapped market, like all the people in their 30s and 40s with kids, they just weren’t going anywhere. They’d stay home and cook for themselves,” Emily explains. The answer? Refurbishing the old Nyngan Hotel, which was originally a wooden structure built in 1883. Over the years it has withstood everything from two world wars to natural disasters, outliving everyone who’s enjoyed a drink or bed for the night at the establishment.

It was crying out for a new lease of life and the Stantons had the skills and the motivation to deliver. With Emily’s previous experience at the Nyngan Riverside Caravan Park and James’ ownership of a building business up their sleeves, the pair bought the hotel and committed to restoring it to its former glory while adapting it for the modern age. The hotel rooms were remodelled and given a luxe boutique design, using some of TileCloud’s most popular tile choices to achieve the desired look.

Depending on the rooms (they’re all unique!), Thirroul Bone Matte Subway Tiles or Newport Gloss Subway Bone Tiles were used for the bathroom walls to complement the exposed brick walls that remained. 

For the bathroom floors, the Stantons went for Byron Travertine Look Ivory Matte tiles. Topping this off was Antique Brass tapware to complete the style. All of these style choices flowed naturally from the refreshed bedroom aesthetic that was designed to be inviting.

But it’s not just the rooms themselves that were given the star treatment. The pub’s bathrooms were also injected with a new lease of life thanks to an overhaul. The Stantons opted for the Coogee Antique Forest Green Kit Kat Mosaic Tile for the bathroom’s walls, leading to a result they couldn’t be more pleased with. Revealing the transformed bathroom via the Nyngan Hotel’s Instagram account, Emily described the final version as “truly one of my favourite spaces in the hotel.” She added, “Luxurious and elegant, we know our female guests at the Nyngan will absolutely love it.” 

While the renovation of the accommodation side was impressive enough, the Stantons didn’t stop there. “We only bought it for the accommodation and then we started the process and there was this whole side of the building and we were like, what are we going to do with that?” Emily says. “The more and more I thought about it, the more I was like, ‘Nyngan is screaming out for something like this. The whole dream is to make a destination, somewhere people want to travel to.” In addition to the hotel and restaurant, the Stantons also added an ice cream bar and play equipment to the venue to complete the family vibes.

After sharing their pub renovation journey every step of the way on social media, the Stantons didn’t need to wait long for business to boom after opening the doors in July this year. In fact, many of the Nyngan Hotel’s Instagram followers were keen to see the new-look boutique accommodation and pub in real life as soon as possible.

Some even made a lengthy trek to get there and the restaurant was fully booked every day in the opening week. “On our first weekend, there was a couple who drove out from Geurie just to have lunch. There was a family from Dubbo who came out for a birthday lunch,” Emily says. “Social media has made it so much bigger. We had some middle-aged mums in here on the first weekend and they’d had a few wines. They were all blowing James kisses and wanting to hug him. They tell us ‘we’ve been following you and we feel like we know you’.”

So what’s next for the Stantons? After a long renovation journey and whirlwind few months opening up, they’re looking to lock in a supervisor or manager so they too, can enjoy the family atmosphere their refurbishment has created in town.