The hotel is 'green' with an alpine meadow on the roof (above) whilst the view of the concierge desk from seating shows the use of materials Rollover to see the view from a room.

:: Panoramic Views

•  LIBRARY AND BAR •  RESTAURANT •  HEAVEN...

The hotel is literally across the road from the boundary of the Park and makes a contribution to the local campaign to restore the golden eagle, symbol of Germany, to its alpine breeding grounds. With its own ski lifts as well as the proximity to Salzburg, the hotel is looking to attract walkers and those who love the wild country, to become a part of the cultural life of the region and with the very large Mountain Spa, offer a high level of health and beauty treatments at its wellness centre.

The design is strongly architecturally driven and whilst interior concepts were formed by Mahmoudieh of Berlin, the final interiors have obviously been further developed through their linkage with the architectural concepts for the building. Whilst this can often lead to a mismatch of function and form (architects are not, after all, interior designers) this is not the case here, where the architecture continues its powerful external statement with some dramatic signature interior treatments. Throughout the hotel however the management team has insisted that the designers relate the interiors to the exterior views – often with quite breathtaking results, as a turn on a stair or the exit from a lift presents fantastic views over mountains and valleys.

From the granite of the exterior brought into play as an interior element to the treated timber natural materials dominate the finishes.The granite curved wall that defines the Receeption lobby sweeps from window to window across the width of the hotel giving theatrical and spectacular views at each side. The granite inner wall is pierced by access to the bar, lounge and library. The bedrooms all have views and balconies, and the exterior shot shows the same stonework detail and colouration that has been brought inside as the signature of the interiors.The brown of the window frames also repeats inside. Rollover to see a sample of the signage on the wood above.

This high up, (the hotel is situated at around the thousand meter mark, some 3,400 feet) weather also plays a part in this visual drama, from over three metres (13 feet) of snow in the winter to bright sunlight whilst looking down onto a cloud filled valley below in spring. In the summer, the 9 hole golf course may be small but poses golfers an interesting challenge when it is created on a mountain side with a sharp slope as part of the hazards. The external pool is heated to 33° in the summer, 36° in the winter, allowing swimming outside in all seasons, and it is accessed though the water via electrically powered sliding doors that keep the inner pool area warm in winter.

The stone of the exterior is carried through into the interior treatments and is reinforced by the creative use of timber for both walls and floors throughout the hotel. The timber is vigorously treated (steamed, sand blasted, limed, stained, polished) to provide a visually rich dark, warm plum/brown coloured contrast to cream painted walls and the ochre, dun and orange of stone. The internal colour palette is warm and fairly neutral, which allows the views to provide so much of the interest. The stone of the building structure allows the hotel to rise from its elevated position like the rocks of the mountains around it and provides a sense of stability and mass, whilst the large areas of glass allow light and the view to flood the interiors.