Coming Soon, your luxury destination travel Part 2

Svart, Holandsfjorden

Snøhetta has revealed its design for Svart, the world’s first energy positive hotel concept in the Arctic Circle. Developed in collaboration with Arctic Adventures of Norway, architects Asplan Viak and construction firm Skanska, the circularbodied hotel will sit at the foot of Svartisen, a 370km2 glacier running through Meløy, Norway. Designed to leave minimal footprint on the landscape, the architecture is inspired by fiskehjells – a wooden structure for drying fish – and the vernacular of rorbue, traditional seasonal homes for fishermen. The hotel will be built to Powerhouse standard, meaning it functions to both reduce the use of energy whilst generating its own, and is set to open as the northernmost building of this type in the world. Reducing yearly energy consumption by approximately 85% compared to modern building standards in Norway, Svart’s roof is clad with solar panels to optimise the harvest of solar rays, and positioned so that guestrooms and restaurants enjoy the sun all year round. Coming Soon, your luxury destination travel Part 2

Secluded terraces create a shaded façade to ensure privacy and isolation from the high summer sun, whilst large windows offer panoramic views and natural light in the shorter winter days. Built atop weather-resistant wooden poles below the fjord’s surface, the foundation doubles as a boardwalk for visitors whilst geothermal wells connected to heat pumps will be used to warm the hotel. Accessible only by boat, Svart will surround guests with untouched natural features including the glacier’s blue ice, a host of rare plant species and the clear waters of Holandsfjorden. Plans are also in place for an energy neutral boat shuttle from the city of Bodø.

Six Sense, Singapore

Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas has announced the conversion of two heritage nearby buildings in Singapore to create its first city hotels. Six Senses Duxton – sustainably restored by designer Anoushka Hempel – comprises 49 guestrooms and suites, while the 138-key Six Senses Maxwell, incorporating a spa, outdoor lap pool and club lounge, will be designed by Jacques Garcia. Celebrating local culture and history while adding a touch of playfulness, both structures feature a mix of international elements including neo-classical lion head motifs, Chinese porcelain-chip friezes, Malay timber fretwork, French windows, Portuguese shutters and Corinthian pilasters. “Such unique properties do not come to market often and we are delighted to be working with Satinder Garcha and Harpreet Bedi of Garcha Hotels on this project,” comments Six Senses CEO Neil Jacobs. “The buildings will be the last heritage hotels of this quality to be developed in Singapore. Each building has its own distinct personality, but what makes Six Senses Singapore so special is that guests can enjoy all the offerings of both locations plus the neighbourhood when staying with us. It’s all about community and being part of the rich, local culture of Singapore.” Six Senses Duxton, set in Chinatown, will feature eccentric surprises including golden fans in hues of black and yellow, layered with Oriental screens or calligraphy wallpaper from Hempel’s personal collection. Maxwell, meanwhile, reflects the authentic decor of the era in which it was built with a contemporary, colonial twist. Duxton is due to open in April 2018 within the city’s Central Business District, with Maxwell following suit three months later.

YotelPad, Various Locations

Yotel has announced a new venture into the extended-stay market with the launch of YotelPad, a branded aparthotel concept. Known as Pads, standard guestrooms will start from 215ft2 and feature Yotel’s adjustable smartbeds – as well as en-suite bathrooms, kitchenettes and storage space – whilst the brand’s signature Technowall will facilitate easy connectivity and personalisation. Location-specific amenities include gyms, cinemas and libraries. Hubert Viriot, CEO of Yotel, comments: “Following the successful roll-out of YotelAir and Yotel, we saw a natural opportunity to rethink the traditional extended-stay segment in the same fashion we disrupted conventional hotel models.” YotelPad will launch globally with five projects already confirmed in North America, Europe and the Middle East, the first two being in Utah and Downtown Miami. YotelPad Park City is located at Utah’s Park City Mountain, the largest ski resort in the US and will be developed by Replay Destinations, whilst the Miami location will form part of a mixed-use development that includes 250 Yotel Cabins and 208 Pads by the Aria Development Group. Further YotelPads in Geneva’s lake region and Dubai’s Business Bay are set to follow in the coming years. Jo Berrington, Vice President of Brand at Yotel, explains: “YotelPad will transcend traditional boundaries with a blend of hotel-quality standards and home-like comforts, all achieved through our signature design DNA making the most out of compact spaces. Not only does this allow each guest or owner to have a fully functional private pad, but with the added benefit to work, connect, relax and socialise in multifunctional and fun spaces, creating a strong sense of community.”

Rosewood Half Moon Bay, Antigua

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts has been appointed to manage Rosewood Half Moon Bay Antigua, set to open in 2021. Situated on 132 acres of oceanfront, the project will rejuvenate the former Half Moon Bay Hotel with a scheme borrowing from historic Caribbean architecture and reflective of its beach locale. Comprising 47 pavilion-style suites, each featuring views and with amenities including private infinity plunge pools, hammocks, open-air baths and live orchid walls, Rosewood Half Moon Bay Antigua will further integrate a residential component and 13 estate homes. “With its secluded location and breathtaking beach, Half Moon Bay is one of the world’s most stunning hidden gems, and a natural destination for Rosewood’s affluential explorers,” says Sonia Cheng, CEO of Rosewood Hotel Group. “We look forward to integrating Rosewood’s Sense of Place philosophy into Half Moon Bay’s incredible natural environment to create unforgettable experiences for our guests.” The resort is also set to feature several dining concepts, including a signature lounge perched on a cliff overlooking the Caribbean Sea, as well as a pool grill, beach bar, and on-site organic farm to supply fresh ingredients year round. Meanwhile, a fitness centre, tennis court and six treatment room Rosewood spa will complete the offer. Developed by Vancouver-based Replay Destinations, Rosewood Half Moon Bay will join a regional network of Rosewood properties including Rosewood Baha Mar – slated to open in Spring 2018 – and the soon-to-reopen Rosewood Bermuda and Rosewood Little Dix Bay. In total, Rosewood manages 21 hotels in 12 countries, with 17 new properties currently in the pipeline.

Artyzen Hotel, Nanjing

Artyzen Hospitality Group is set to open its second hotel in China, Artyzen Hotel, within the anticipated Sifang Collective arts hub. Situated in Nanjing, the project comprises 22 buildings designed by two-dozen of the most recognisable names in international and Chinese architecture. Featuring creations by dissident artist Ai Weiwei, British architect David Adjaye, and Italian designer Ettore Sottsass, the mixed-use project will house art galleries, conference and event spaces, a museum and spa. Part of CIPEA (The China International Practical Exhibition of Architecture) Sifang Collective is set for a 2018 opening, and features interiors by Hirsch Bedner Associates throughout the hotel element. Situated within the Sottass-designed recreation centre – a bold, enveloped structure incorporating circular walls and an internal garden – the 22-key hotel features public and private spaces designed with bold primary colours and prominent geometric structures. Emphasising a light atmosphere to create a sense of space, guestrooms will feature walk-in wardrobes, freestanding bathtubs and panoramic views out to the lake, woodland and hills that surround the cluster. HBA’s use of irregular wall grids, geometrical rugs and contemporary furnishings seeks to fuse the scheme with Sottass’ distinctive vision and Artyzen’s philosophy of art, culture and emotional wisdom. “Sifang is a one-of-a-kind project, unique in so many different ways. Not just a hotel – an experience – driven by remarkable architecture that is not just about design,” says HBA Partner David T’Kint. “All the buildings somehow embrace the natural surroundings and each unit is unique and has its own narrative.”

The DogHouse, Aberdeenshire 

Independent brewer BrewDog has announced plans to build the world’s first craft beer hotel in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Scheduled to open in the first half of 2019, The DogHouse will be built on a 3.25 acre site adjacent to BrewDog’s current 1 million hectolitre brewery, with funding coming from the company’s Equity for Punks initiative, a crowdfunding drive that has raised over £53 million from 73,000 backers. 26 guestrooms will feature beer taps and a built-in beer fridge in the shower, whilst guests will be able to watch brewers at work with rooms overlooking a newly completed brewhouse expansion and canning and packing hall. “The DogHouse is our gift to passionate craft beer fans making the pilgrimage to our brewery in Aberdeenshire,” explains James Watt, co-founder and Captain of BrewDog. “The idea of opening a beer hotel has always been high on our agenda, and now we are finally able to realise that dream, right here at our headquarters. This will be the ultimate destination for craft beer fans seeking hops with their holidays. This is a beer Nirvana.” BrewDog introduced the DogHouse concept last year with the announcement of a hotel in Columbus, Ohio, at the site of its American brewery. The venture into hospitality follows the fifth round of Equity for Punks in October 2017, with sights set on a programme of global expansion. This includes construction of new breweries in Australia and China, the opening of 15 new craft beer venues in the UK, increasing the production capacity of its UK brewery, and the creation of a dedicated craft beer TV network.

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Hollywood, Florida

Hard Rock Hotels has unveiled plans to expand its flagship Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino with a guitar-shaped tower that will add 806 guestrooms. Designed to resemble two guitars back-to-back, with necks that reach 450ft into the air, the structure is part of a USD$1.5 billion expansion that will double the resort’s current size, adding new gambling and entertainment facilities with 60,000ft2 of retail and restaurant space. The vision of James F. Allen – longtime CEO of Seminole Gaming and Chairman of Hard Rock International – the project also features contributions from design firms including Rockwell Group, EDSA, Wilson Associates, Wimberly Interiors and Cleo Design. “Our talented team of architects and designers have done an amazing job of designing this incredible structure and working to bring it to life,” Allen comments. “It will be the first building in the world that’s truly to scale designed as an authentic guitar, so it’s not just an exterior façade, the curving of the building will be identical to an authentic guitar.” A 10-acre water complex surrounded by private villas will be set at the tower’s base, with waterfalls greeting guests on arrival. A pool tower will also flank the new structure, containing an additional 168 guestrooms and bringing the total key count to over 1,300. Further amenities include a 41,000ft2 spa, and a Hard Rock Live venue. Seminole Tribe Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr adds: “Our ancestors and elders welcomed curious tourists to our Florida reservations, and today’s members of the Seminole Tribe of Florida will soon welcome visitors from all over the world to what will become a landmark destination.”

Tetusa Oasis Thermal Resort, Cesme

Ljubljana-based architectural studio Enota has revealed its design concept for Tetusa Oasis Thermal Resort, an undulating complex in Turkey’s coastal town of Çesme. The extensive wellness and medical facility is set within a low-rise housing area, and comprises a spa, water park, hotel, healthcare centre and elderly care facilities. With strict site regulations meaning that limited space was available to facilitate the complex’s numerous programmes, Enota found an unconventional and striking solution, raising the scheme from the ground as a series of rolling hills. Billed as ‘an introverted oasis,’ construction will begin in 2019. Designing the entire resort in circular blocks, each section of the structure is wrapped around a deepened inner atrium, allowing sunlight to reach the subterranean levels. The same principle is applied to the semi-circular units on the site’s perimeter, where the surrounding land is used to obscure the view of the levels gained. As additional levels are added, each block is individually adapted to fit the topography, resulting in a series of unique yet unobtrusive architectural shapes. Filled with trees and water features, the spaces between and atop the structures will be adapted to blend with the surrounding area, whilst creating an environmentally conscious attraction for guests, with the 58,700m2 complex doubling as a city park. Founded in 1998 and led by principal architects Dean Lah and Milan Tomac, Enota focuses on research-driven, environmental designs incorporating new technologies, including Slovenia’s Hotel Ribno and Croatia’s forthcoming Stone Terrace Hotel.

Sources: Sleeper, 03-04, 2018

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