PORTES LITHOS LUXURY RESORT | TAKA + PARTNERS

The development of the luxury hotel Portes Lithos Luxury Resort, was organized in a coastal area of Kassandra Chalkidiki, in a special protected wetland with sand dunes, and a rare species of plant that thrives in the area, the lilium. The primary design goal was to respect the natural landscape and preserve the uniqueness of the area. The hotel consists of 130 rooms and suites with private pools and unobstructed views of the sea and private gardens. The common areas include the reception, the dining room, wellness and entertainment areas as well as the common pool overlooking this unique natural landscape. The central reception area is structured in two sections, the lobby and the central bar. Both units are double-height spaces and for their visual separation, two different flooring materials are chosen as well as curved ceilings, creating sub-areas with curved boundaries and fluidity in the reception area. From the lobby, circulation is distributed to the hospitality rooms through indoor, but also covered outdoor spaces with dense vegetation. The bar welcomes the public in a specially designed space with a sea view and plenty of natural light. The material of the floors constitutes a neutral basis for the development of the functions with their special characteristics, where the furniture, the claddings and the lighting give the character of the space, intensifying the basic characteristic of the space, i.e. the double height. Colors were chosen in natural shades, gray, white, olive, green to combine harmoniously with the facade stone of the shell and the dominant planting element of the exterior, the olive tree and the Mediterranean planting. In parallel, wood was chosen as the main cladding material for the individual architectural elements. Next to the central walkway to the communal pool is the breakfast room. Curved carvings have been used in this space as well. For the breakfast room, the floor is the reference point of the design, while all the other elements, such as the furniture, the claddings and the lighting appear more gently in the background, so that all together form a calm and pleasant environment. The hall has plenty of natural light and a superb view of the common areas of the hotel. The palette of materials and claddings is in soft tones with natural materials. A more contemporary, and free layout was chosen for the buffet area to better serve the users. The main goal for the design of the rooms is to create the appropriate environment to combine high standard comforts allowing the contact with the unique nature and the local environment. Thus, all the rooms are designed in such a way as to provide a calm environment and to focus on the view of the sea. The palette of materials is calm shades with soft contrasts. The details of the metal constructions and the choice of floor and wall tiles also offer the required discreet luxury. Finally, for the design of the outdoor corridors and the landscape, Mediterranean plants with a rich volume, continuous poured floors and mild hidden lighting were proposed to intensify the desired resort feeling that we wanted to convey in the project.

Lead architect: Aspasia Taka
Design team: Maria Avramidou, Maria Solidaki, Nastia Chatzigoga