Madrid, 9th January 2012. For some time now architecture and design have been used to make a destination more attractive. Travellers want to remember their stay and lodgings as something unique. Tourism professionals are well aware of this, and FITUR will show off some of these special places.

As far as design goes, the Nordic countries have always been the leaders. Sweden is one of the places with some of the most original lodging, such as the Tree Hotel and the Icehotel. The Tree Hotel, located in Harads, consists of modern cabins built among the pines. The Icehotel, on the outskirts of the city of Kiruna, is the first hotel in the world to be built entirely of ice and snow. Its 5,500 square metres also make it the largest such establishment.

The H10 chain is opening its first hotel in Germany, designed by the German studio Kleihues+Kleiues. Called the H10 Berlin Ku’damm, it has some unique architecture and has been built starting from one of the city’s historic buildings, an old university technical school. To this there has been added a new seven-storey construction. Among the features of its innovative design are the superimposed bricks and a central glass vault that joins the two buildings and brings luminosity to both. 

If there is one hotel chain that puts art and design on the same level of comfort, it is the Derby Hotels. Among its establishments is the Hotel Claris, in Barcelona, a real treasure because it exhibits one of the most important private collections of Egyptian art in Spain. There are also Hindu sculptures from the 2nd to 10th centuries, engravings commissioned by Napoleon, English furniture from the 18th and 19th centuries, Turkish Kilim rugs of the 19th century, Roman sculptures and mosaics, engravings by Guinovart, pop-art lithographs by Andy Warhol... These archaeological pieces and antiquities combine with the most advanced contemporary design.

Ruralka will also use FITUR to present its latest innovations. Among them: the recently opened Finca de los Arandinos, in Entrena, in Spain’s Rioja region. This hotel-winery-spa, designed by architect Javier Arizcuren, features soft but powerful lines, and is very well integrated into the landscape. Its interior is the work of designer David Delfin, and includes both noble materials and recycled pieces from the 1950s and 60s. It also has the Tierra restaurant featuring products from the area —popularly known as Km 0— and traditional cuisine with an avant-garde touch.

The combination of antiques and contemporary art is also what characterises the new interior design at the AC Santo Mauro Hotel in Madrid, the work of decorator Lorenzo del Castillo. He has created a warm, balanced ambience that includes such special pieces as some original 1940s appliqués from the casino in Antibes and even elements from the home of interior designer Duarte Pinto Coelho that were recently acquired at auction at Christie’s in London. The result is three public rooms inspired by the neo-classic palaces of the end of the 19th century: the Red Room, the Chinese Room and the Bar Chivas, the latter with an Art Deco air.