There are tons of interesting hotels located across the globe nowadays, some which are very beautiful indeed. And then there are the novelty hostels, like tree houses, tubes, caves and ice warrens which are designed to appeal to quirky travelers who have seen it all. Which is probably where this delightful Australian project sits to be honest.

This Dakota Hotel, situated some 300 miles south of Perth at a place known as the Lily Airstrip, has been lovingly converted over 2 years by a two man team, and it’s a real beaut (as they say down under). The exterior has been left as original looking as possible, the gorgeous craft looks like she’s just about ready to take off, but inside it’s all change.

Instead of bare hot metal, there’s a profusion of beautiful wood furnishings and fitments, including a pantry and kitchen, two beds, an audio-visual system and space for all your knick knacks and things. It’s beautifully done, and clever too, since the floors on the sloping plane have been leveled out into a series of elegant steppes. Nice.

But it’s the finishing touch which is really ultra cool. The designer and craftsman, Pleun Hitzert, has converted the cockpit into a live working flight simulator by marrying up a late model Apple Mac with the X-Plane flight simulator all connected to the original C-47 Dakota controls. So you literally can take off and fly using the yoke and pedals. What a way to spend your leisure time, instead of watching boring movies on the A/V. Beautiful work guys.