7132 Hotel

19^th-century tourism in the Alps pursued the vision of transposing urban culture into the highly distinctive mountainous alpine setting. It aimed to ensure that visitors from bustling metropolises could enjoy city culture in the midst of appealing landscapes. This unrealised design for a hotel high-rise in Vals transposes the historical concept of a cosmopolitan hotel in the mountains into the contemporary world. At the same time it establishes a connection between the urban high-rise typology and the Engadin landscape, as well as Vals’ village atmosphere. The massing is based on a division into three differently sized towers as a response to the scale of the village. The small tower accommodates the hotel reception while the central tower contains the spa area, and the hotel rooms are located in the high tower. The design combines three distinct ideas: three hotel towers as a village-style ensemble, the crystal as an analogy to Alpine lifestyle, and a reference to the historical castle keep, where all the service functions encircle the core like a cape.