Holiday Inn, HafenCity

Urban Argument
"Am Lohsepark" is part of Hamburg’s HafenCity. Here, on a high-profile site at the intersection of Überseeallee and Shanghaiallee, a new eight-storey hotel building is located: today's Holiday Inn. The tectonic structure of the façade forms a three-dimensional body. As a central design element, pilaster strips give the façade rhythm and a relief effect that is particularly effective in the light. The striking, long façade gives HafenCity a new urban address.

Spatial Conversation: The formulation of the corner Shanghaialle/Überseeallee becomes the significant theme of an engaging dialogue with urban space.
The slanting cuts of the building block give the façade its plasticity. The elevation of the attic above the body of the building reveals the volume of the façade. Towards Shanghaialle, the façade displays an urban and cosmopolitan character.

Sculptural Statement: With its precise silhouette, the bladelike façade at the corner facing Lohsepark effectively takes up the harbour theme.
A simple cut-out in the façade results in the precise separation of the body of the building and the façade. The subsequent sharp formulation of the corner sets another strong accent towards Lohsepark: Like the bow of a ship, the cubature divides the space.

Tectonical Rethorics: A façade that is quite naturally hotel.
A large fixed-glazed window is accompanied by two vertical pillars of equal width. This basic rhythm per room axis becomes the theme in the composition of the façade and is multiplied horizontally and structured vertically in the height of the façade. The result is a wall panel that say HOTEL in the most matter-of-course voice.

Material in Dialogue: Colour and relief of the facade hail to the tradition of hanseatic town- and warehouses at the core of the city’s character.
Every stone in the façade is planned. Formats and special stones are precisely captured to create a coordinated image with equal rhythm. A bluish red-purple engobe on a red body brings a play of colours and depth to the façade. At the same time, the strong colour tone refers to the tradition of historic Hanseatic office buildings. The hotel is rooted in the city plan.
The suspended ceiling on the ground floor, folded like a ship's keel, is already introduced by the canopy. This follows the tradition of hotel canopies made of black steel and frosted glass and accentuates the entrance with a backlit glass ceiling. An inviting entrance situation and address for the HolidayInn is created along Überseeallee.

The hotel has 268 rooms. The ground floor houses a large conference area with three event rooms that can be combined to cater for up to 220 people as well as a restaurant, bar, lounge and business centre.