Hotel Quinta Furão | Santana – Portugal | 2009

Turismo

Located in Santana, in one of the first towns to have a hotel, Quinta do Furão is surrounded by vast organic arable land, a setting that offers some of the most spectacular views that extend throughout the entire east coast of the island of Madeira. The idea of ​​being integrated in nature, near a beautiful and simultaneously dramatic cliff, creates the most striking factor of this place. The existing hotel is located in this idyllic setting, ideal for those seeking to make the most of the nature Madeira has to offer. The building is divided into several volumes that extend the program through the large hotel grounds, which now, due to the success the hotel has acquired, has become too small to accommodate all who wish to visit it. It is in this context of extending the hotel that our proposal emerges, seeking first, to understand well the program that was presented to us, and pursue a global solution that gives effective responses to the new needs of the hotel Quinta do Furão.

The extension of the hotel includes two moments, divided by a new wing (20 rooms), as well as the extension of the outdoor pool and some additional spa services. In first place, we refer to the shift of the pool to the west, and the introduction of a sauna, Turkish bath, treatment room, gym and changing rooms. This volume, being separate to the hotel and only connected to the reception area, reveals itself clearly, as an addition and a contemporary building, in respect to the existing building. The volume appears as part of a larger whole that is made up of the existing construction, the new wing of the rooms and the pool area.

The volume is made of light and natural materials, such as glass and wood that form a coating, aimed at being harmoniously integrated into the old hotel. The wing of the 20 new rooms appears integrated in the construction mentioned above, and cannot be read independently from the global solution, however it assumes its great relevance, as it is thanks to the rooms, that a hotel is sustained. It was fundamental to promote the view of the sea and the attainment of natural light, and therefore, the rooms have an east orientation, but with a direct connection to the hotel reception as well. This new wing emerges as a natural follow-up of the route already existing between the reception and the old rooms, which extends to this new 2-storey wing that includes new standard rooms and junior suites.

The new building contrasts from the existing building and these two volumes are connected by a glass corridor that perfectly reflects the idea of a harmonious transition between two distinct periods of time. The idea of ​​a lightweight box, suspended and linked to the hotel, is materialized by a glass skin. The façades are rhythmic through the repetition of the window frames, accentuating its lightness and harmonious integration.

The proposed building allows this close relationship between entities of different time periods, but especially of distinct needs. The challenge was to understand precisely where the investment should be made ​​without seeking a dispersed intervention. We seek to understand this contest as an exercise in architecture and sustainability, with surgical intervention, done where and when it is needed. We always look for this balance, bearing in mind that every gesture in the project is a cost, but also that it has to be beautiful and has to communicate and engage effectively with the surrounding setting.