hostel

[esp]
[eng]

architecture and design competition for a hostel in Quesa

location: Quesa, Valencia, Spain

total area: 357 m2

year: 2011

architecture and design competition for a hostel in Quesa, NMBA

Our idea is based on the qualities and values of the landscape around the plot, an environment portrayed by large forests and nice views over the valley. Thus, we have decided to reduce the density and volume of the hostel and distribute the program all over the plot.
Certainly, this decision is far from the common idea of a hostel as a compact building with hierarchical uses and controlled flows. However, once the building is divided into 13 smaller units we obtain more little green areas around the rooms which are completely accessible by simply opening windows and doors. What’s more, we get also some interesting visual relations between the pieces. We introduce in our project the local vegetation that grows around the plot, so the intervention could be understood also as a way to recover a fragment of the forest. The small vegetable gardens and orchards in the green area are used as leisure spaces for the guests, and also for self-supplying the hostel with food -you can eat what you have planted-.
After distributing the uses over the plot to reduce the visual impact of the project, the building is perceived more as a tiny village instead of as a big isolated building. And, maybe the most important thing is that each of the rooms is isolated to provide their guests with a comfortable rest, surrounded by the sounds and the smells of nature.

hostel in Quesa-NMBA
ground floor plan, hostel in Quesa, NMBA
room façade, hostel in Quesa, NMBA

room floor, hostel in Quesa, NMBA
The room can be divided into three interconnected spaces: the hall (1), where the wardrobe is, gives access to the bedroom and the bathroom. The bathroom (2) is lit by a skylight on the roof. From the bathroom, grey water is collected and conduced to a well in the middle of the plot. This water, once cleaned, is reused for irrigation and hosing. The bedroom (3) opens to the hostel garden through windows that can be opened up to 180 degrees. The table can also be used from outdoors. Thanks to that, the garden comes into the room.