A Knight at The Ritter
The Hotel Ritter, or Hotel Knight, has recently undergone a significant update. Breaking away from its previous, dated image, the hotel interior has managed to evolve from its beginnings, making a leap into the style conscious age, whilst still paying a respectful homage to its roots.
The Hotel Ritter, located between Baden- Wurttemberg and the French region Alsace, was recently taken over by the Mueller family and refurbished by JOI-Design whose brief was to turn the property into a four-star design hotel.
Fusing modernity with 500 year’s of history, the development included memorabilia of the hotel’s past with all of the things guests would want from a modern hotel. New colors and materials appear in this ‘ancient building’, acting as a refreshing twist, but without compromising the buildings historic qualities.
Not only was the interior renewed, this redesign began from the outside and moved inwards.
The façade has been redressed, entrances replaced, and the terrace was completely renewed. This new flair is mirrored in the reception and the lobby area where colored accents welcome the guests. Typically-German cuckoo clocks from the black forest welcome guests, hosting international times in New York, Rio, Tokyo and Durbach.
In the lobby, modern furniture is mixed with old. Browns and cream-tones are the theme, but are broken up with a pink-colored floral sofa – reminiscent of something you’d see in your grandma’s house. Throughout the lobby, the creams are broken up with multiple-coloured cushions, which add color and link-in with the pink sofa. A Knight in armour guards the way to the new lobby bar. He also presides over the new restaurant, the “Wilden Ritter” (wild knight). The most impressive material, which was chosen besides the apple wood veneer with its high gear wood grain, is the wallpaper, which was made especially for this project. This wallpaper, with its grape-motif plays with accentuated colors like mauve and green. Little details like a picture of a belling deer and the row of little antlers on the wall complete the design.
In the guest rooms, the combination of traditional design and modernity are most apparent. The motifs are carried through from the public areas, as is the apple wood veneer. In the bathroom, JOI-Design chose special tiles in leather optic to provide the room with high-class elegance, whilst maintaining its warm feeling. Overall, the number of rooms was almost doubled by the refurbishment, which added three spa suites, each with their own sauna, fireplace and a whirlpool tub.
This spa area is now over 800 sqm large and leaves nothing to be desired. Together with pool, saunas and fitness area, there are several ‘chill out’ zones for a longer stay. No matter which room, be it on the sun terrace or in the fitness area, the view over Durbach’s vineyards is splendid. Obviously the hotel isn’t all about relaxation, and so conference rooms have been incorporated into the design for those wishing to conduct business in the hotel.