The Revitalization of the Old Hotel with New Experience for the Guests 

The project is an interior renovation of a hotel built more than 20 years ago. Making the most of the existing architecture, the designers redesigned not only the aesthetic of the hotel but also the experience. Thus the hotel came back to life with new distinctive values. Next to the hotel is a theme park where a majority of the hotel guests are staying to visit. Therefore the theme park was inseparable from planning the hotel renewal. Borrowing the park’s concept associated with dynamism and scale while connecting them with the energy and vitality of nature from the context, we created the design concept of “Charge from Nature.” It represents the hotel becoming a place where guests come to be rejuvenated and healed by the great power of nature.

 The guests are welcomed at the main lobby by a forest of impressively lofty trees. A lighting system is programmed for this space to create an ambience of a living forest. Each of the three gigantic tree-like pillars in the middle shines differently as if it is breathing. The conceptual furniture offers a comfortable place to every single guest, including those who are excited to visit the park and those who already had a lot of fun. Thus, the lobby which was a place exclusively for checking in and out has been transformed into a capacious area to meet the diverse needs of the guests. 

Upon renovation, the existing walls, floors, and ceilings were preserved for the most part. The main focus was to renew the finishing materials of walls and ceilings that deteriorated with age. Some parts still fit for use, such as floor stone cladding, were left as they were. To match the new finishes with the old, we adjusted the overall interior color scheme. The iconic trees in the lobby used to be neutral columns, but they were transformed to become the main feature of the hotel through decoration without structural intervention. 

The restaurant also had a dramatic makeover, while preserving existing moldings and decorations. Recognizing the value of the existing architecture, we effectively drew the best out of the space with minimum intervention. The goal of the renovation was to create a place where anyone, regardless of their age, could have a good time in a relaxed mood. Therefore the plan was not to feature the characters from the theme park nor show off the luxuriousness but to design a soothing experience for the guests. As a result, the hotel will be able to avoid being quickly consumed but gain loyal customers in the longer term. With minimum interventions and maximum scheme, the inherited hotel is successfully restored as a place that continues to be loved by everyone.