NOT A HOTEL has launched its first hotel brands: HERITAGE by NOT A HOTEL, which reinterprets architectural heritage, such as temples and museums, through a contemporary sensibility and vertex by NOT A HOTEL, which embodies design at the intersection of architecture and technology.
The inaugural vertex hotel will be on the island of Okinawa. Zaha Hadid Architects’ (ZHA) design continues the firm’s relationship with Japan that began four decades earlier with internationally acclaimed designs for intricate pavilions, buildings and interiors informed by the country’s landscapes and urbanism, creative tradition and immaculate craftsmanship.
Nestled between the turquoise waters with white sand beaches of Okinawa’s Bay and the steep terrain of the surrounding forest, the design has been carefully integrated within its 25,322sq m site to mitigate environmental disturbance. Offering uninterrupted ocean views and privacy for each villa, the hotel includes facilities and amenities of the highest standards for guests and residents.
Conceived to preserve the island’s unique coastal and marine ecosystems, environmental considerations have been a guiding principle shaping the hotel’s architectural design and engineering, site strategy, material selection and procurement, as well as the development of specialist construction processes to minimise environmental impact.
Ludovico Lombardi, ZHA Project Director, explains: “Informed by the site’s remarkable topography, the design is a continuation of ZHA’s ongoing research of composition and materiality that is driven by explorations of landscape formations evident in nature. The stepped canopies of the hotel gently transition from the unique geology of the shoreline to the dense vegetation of the rain forest – giving uninterrupted views of the ocean and a deep connection to the surrounding environment, while providing a sense of privacy that enriches user experience and charts a journey through the varied natural ecosystems of the region.”
