{"id":292509,"date":"2026-09-23T20:52:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T20:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/292509\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T20:52:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T20:52:12","slug":"the-diplomat-hotel-stylishly-honors-phillys-founding-father","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/292509\/","title":{"rendered":"The Diplomat Hotel Stylishly Honors Philly\u2019s Founding Father"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNews<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

The showpiece of the Diplomat is a sprawling, subterranean five-bedroom suite.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"the<\/p>\n

The Diplomat Hotel in Old City \/ Photography by Matthew Williams<\/p>\n

Beneath the sidewalks of 2nd and Arch streets in Old City \u2014 a stone\u2019s throw from the site of Benjamin Franklin\u2019s former home \u2014 stretches a sprawling, subterranean five-bedroom suite. The space, crowned the Harmony Suite, is the showpiece of the Diplomat, a boutique hotel<\/a> that opened in April: four group-stay apartments located in adjoining circa-1900 buildings, gut-renovated by Brooklyn-based Studio MaR\u014d. (The firm\u2019s co-founders, Nicky Kyrtsis and Carmen C\u00e1rdenas, also designed the Diplomat\u2019s sister hotel, the Artisan<\/a>, in NoLibs.)<\/p>\n

\u201cGuests can spend their days exploring together and their evenings reconnecting under one roof,\u201d says Kevin Wilson, CEO of Philly-based HostAid<\/a>, a short-term rental management company that oversees both hotels. The Harmony Suite can sleep 14 and has a private entrance on 2nd Street that leads to a first-floor sitting room; the suite\u2019s other living spaces are in the basement. Before its renovation and debut, \u201cit looked like a dungeon,\u201d says C\u00e1rdenas. \u201cOur most challenging part was making it feel welcoming.\u201d<\/p>\n

We saw Ben Franklin as the original American diplomat, and that framing opened up a wealth of material.\u201d \u2014 Nicky Kyrtsis, co-founder of Studio MaR\u014d<\/p>\n

The easy part? Finding a muse. After choosing the hotel\u2019s name, Kyrtsis says, Benjamin Franklin was a natural choice. His legacy looms large throughout the property, with a bibliophile aesthetic that embraces the spirit of Franklin\u2019s intellectual Junto Club salons and nods to his (many) interests, from botany to travel. \u201cAnd diplomacy is woven subtly into the artwork,\u201d says Kyrtsis.<\/p>\n

Franklin himself would surely appreciate this effort and the result, an homage reflective of his own words: \u201cWish not so much to live long as to live well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bedroom<\/p>\n

\"the<\/p>\n

The bedrooms are tucked behind original brick arches, which Studio MaR\u014d highlighted with custom inset glass and steel doors. The velvet bed is by Skyline Furniture, and the portraits are from art books. \u201cThe checkerboard patterns nod to Franklin\u2019s essay \u2018The Morals of Chess,\u2019\u201d says C\u00e1rdenas.<\/p>\n

Sitting Room<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Interior Define<\/a>\u2019s marigold velvet sofa anchors a collection of artwork centered on Franklin\u2019s interests, historical moments, and period portraiture. The antique coffee table was a local Facebook Marketplace find.<\/p>\n

Nook<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A seagrass coffee table from TOV Furniture sits beneath a print of Belgian artist Alfred Stevens\u2019s 1888 painting In the Studio, part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art\u2019s permanent collection.<\/p>\n

Dining Room<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Downstairs, Sandberg\u2019s pine wallpaper complements the rich green paint. A linear tube light hangs above a table lined with brass wishbone chairs.<\/p>\n

Published as \u201cFinding Franklin\u201d in the September 2026 issue of Philadelphia magazine.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t