Archipalego | Crystal R. Crystal

The Archipelago Concept Downtown hotels in international hubs have high occupancy rates and can be very profitable when well-timed to the business cycle. High land costs, however, limit design possibilities and viable business models. The Archipelago hotel is boutique hotel concept that seeks to overcome these limitations by establishing "floors" across a number of rooftops in the downtown core. Building managers are increasingly seeing their roofs as potential income sources - places to build bars, pools or gardens – and they would love to generate revenue by hosting a rooftop hotel. At the same time, future-oriented cities are on the lookout for solutions to green their downtowns and to provide progressive architecture/facilities that improve the brand of the city. Rooftops offer fantastic views, lots of outdoor space, and a location that simply cannot be beat for business travelers. With a little bit of clever design to ensure comfort and ease of construction, the archipelago concept creates a fantastic boutique hotel in the downtown core, one where rooms can be added whenever the demand and timing is right. The Architecture The architecture is light weight for easy installation on top of existing buildings. Views and gardens are integral to the long-term attraction of this boutique hotel - the twisting facade allows for a variety of perspectives on the city and helps accommodate the greenery. Roofs will be abundantly planted with local plants and grasses to create beautiful fresh air spaces. The units are flexible - designed to be easy to implement, modular, and repeatable, facilitating their fit to various roof layouts while maximizing experience and views. By laying the units out with attention to wind and sun paths, outdoor communal spaces are sheltered from the elements, ensuring a pleasant and scenic outdoor experience year-round. Specific roof layouts will depend on the roof in question and the unit types to be implemented (Standard, Deluxe or Penthouse). Similarly, the number of suites in a given implementation will vary across different roofs. In any case, the rest of the roof space will house outdoor and indoor facility spaces and will maximize greenery. The Experience With the reception/lobby at street level, bellhops and maps to assist wayfinding, and a limited distance between building and associated facilities, navigating the hotel becomes painless. Although each roof will not have every imaginable service, proximity and planning means that staff and guests will always be able to meet needs quickly and easily. Many of the facilities can be sourced from existing local businesses (gyms, restaurants, etc), but some will be integral to the overall concept and purpose-built. For instance, yoga/meditation spaces, communal outdoor meeting areas, conference rooms, and outdoor restaurants serving rooftop- and locally-grown food will be features of the hotel and act as attractors to guests as well as locals. The end result is a scalable, capital unintensive hotel in a place with known strong demand, one that provides a unique downtown experience highly desirable to the business traveler.