Italian architecture practice Peter Pichler Architecture has designed luxury suites as part of a new 7-star Hotel development close to Kitzbühel, Austria. 

Called Tree Suites, the wooden structures, elevated from the ground, ensure privacy for its users, while becoming a glowing element within the forest at night. An arrangement of diagonal framework creates both structural durability and a different visual adaptability to the forest, acting a part of the forest.

The complex consists of suites that elevate in the nearby forest of the hotel, and that share the public facilities of the hotel like lobby, restaurant, and spa. 

The suites differ in size, and they go from 60 square meters to 80 square meters. The structure is reachable by a glass elevator that brings users directly up to the room. Each suite includes bathroom and bedroom with glazed facades for stunning views towards the surrounding forest and mountains. The larger units additionally have a private living room and a sauna in the bathroom.

Peter Pichler Architecture takes cues from local vernacular architecture while reinterpreting it in a contemporary way. "The connection between men and nature is a fundamental criterion in this project," said the studio. 

"It should activate and amplify human senses with the use of simple and local materials while slowing down and living a moment within the top of the trees, a spatial experience within nature."

The architects proposed a special wooden exoskeleton that enwraps the entire building and the structure is made of two layers: a diagrid structure and a second layer made of intersecting wood sticks to filter the light and create privacy. 

During the day, light will be filtered through the structure to create a playful effect of light and shadows. At night, the structures will glow in the forest. The use of wood echoes a local and sustainable material giving a warm feeling within the spaces and the entire structure.

Project facts

PPA Principals: Peter Pichler, Silvana Ordinas 

PPA Design Team: Cem Ozbasaran, Silvia Pennisi, Marco Caprani

All images courtesy of Peter Pichler Architecture

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