Kimamaya Boutique Hotel | Atelier BNK

[ENG] - People are increasingly looking for emotional experiences and memories, rather than flashy displays of opulence. Kimamaya is the answer to this trend – a homely, relaxed and soulful mountain hotel where you’re free to do as you please – and the trio’s company, Odin, provides much of its creative energy. Even before its total renovation, the old wooden lodge at the heart of the hotel had the name Kimamaya. “The name means ‘be yourself’ in Japanese,” says Chris. “It’s a very casual word. The building has a Swiss-style chalet roof, which is a very unique charm for Niseko. We very much wanted to keep that charm in the service signature and the experience when you walk in. It’s small and cozy, and there’s real timber everywhere. It’s peaceful, quiet and slightly dim. It’s meant to be intimate so that people can go out and have a wild day in the snow and then come back and really have a change of tone.” At the center of the main lodge is the timber-floored Living Lounge, where lazy couches frame a flickering fireplace. This is where you can meet other guests, read books left behind by previous visitors, or sip on vintages from vineyards owned by Gontard’s family back in France. The style is Scandinavian in places, with slatted lampshades hanging from the ceiling, but the Nordic influence is never felt strongly enough to override the purity of the Zen Japanese design. Star architect Koichi Ishiguro from Atelier BNK managed to re-design the building beautifully while keeping the old wooden structure, and brings a Japanese touch to the Swiss look. Andrew Bell from Earth Home Limited worked on interiors from the rooms, some of which have their own mezzanine floors, to the restaurant, which is housed in a separate building inspired by Hokkaido-style farm architecture. Using a warm palette of chocolate wood, grey walls, rich elm floors and smooth black granite, he created simple and soothing spaces that are minimalistic yet luxurious. Beds wrapped in soft down and cotton sit alongside straight-edged furnishings from Odin’s own collection, inspired by silhouettes, which was worked on by designer Jamie McLellan. Add rain showers, B&W iPod docks, high-definition televisions and an extensive pillow menu to the mix, and you’ll feel right at home. Kimamaya was a 25 year-old ski pension with shared toilets and bathrooms. The idea was to transform it into a Boutique Hotel with its own Restaurant. The objective was to renovate the Hotel, and keep the wooden structure and windows. Then everything inside the Hotel was disassembled and rebuilt with new materials. A restaurant was build next to the Hotel with a connecting entrance, with a Hokkaido Barn architecture www.nisekobarn.com result is a Boutique Hotel with warm wooden floors, a fire place, spa rooms, a massage room, and warm bedrooms with the highest quality bedding and bathroom equipment. www.kimamaya.com Hotel renovation was completed in December 2009.