#2 Yakitori Restaurant and Bar at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru (Vabbinfaru Island, Maldives)

LIV HOSPITALITY DESIGN AWARDS 2023– 4th EDITION

RECOGNIZE EXCELLENCE IN HOSPITALITY ARCHITECTURE, INTERIOR DESIGN, AND GUEST EXPERIENCES ON A GLOBAL SCALE.

Nomadic Resorts is proud to receive the LIV Hospitality Design Award 2023 in the Restaurant Theme category with our design for Madi Hiya, the overwater bamboo restaurant at Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru, Maldives. The project has also been selected as the Jury’s Top Pick.

The mission of the LIV Hospitality Design Awards is to celebrate the quality and diversity of architectural ventures and interior design projects shaping the worldwide hospitality industry today. The program was launched in 2020 and is an inclusive platform, that pursues and rewards exceptional projects within LIVING and EATING spaces.

The jury panel, comprising experienced architects, designers, and developers in the hospitality sector, reviewed over 540 applications from 43 countries to select the most outstanding projects in each category.

Buildings shaped like animals serve as an important reminder: Even with something as important as our built environment, it’s acceptable to shake off expectations every now and then and have a little fun. While the planet would start to look like a zoo if every structure resembled the pets and creatures of the world, one here and there brings whimsy and humor to the cities in which they exist. After all, who wouldn’t find joy in spending the night in a bed and breakfast designed like an oversized beagle? Or perhaps dining at an overwater bungalow in the Maldives shaped like an enormous stingray? While often designed for pleasure, these buildings can also serve as sources of local pride, cementing the structures in a specific place while highlighting the wildlife that makes each area unique. Here, AD visits 12 cheeky buildings shaped like animals.

#8 Madi Hiyaa (Vabbinfaru, Maldives)

While stingrays may have a negative reputation, they’re generally not dangerous and are among the most graceful aquatic animals. Madi Hiyaa, an overwater restaurant in the Maldives, captures stingray’s unfussy and supple motion. The building was designed by Nomadic Resorts and the canopy roof is made from bamboo.

Hovering over the water of a tropical lagoon in the Maldives, the Yakitori Restaurant and Bar plays with the imagery of the sea monsters that populate the ocean depths from centuries of explorers’ and sailors’ tales.
The structure, designed by Dutch studio Atelier Nomadic and located by the Banyan Tree Vabinfaru resort, uses bamboo as its main material and seems to float above the ocean surface, ready to head out in open water. The architecture, named Madi Hiyaa, also takes its cue from the Dhivehi language, where Madi is “ray” and Hiyaa “shelter”, in a reference to the graceful stingrays migrating across the Indian Ocean.

The undulating shapes of the “tail” lead guests to the centre, towards the “belly” of the architecture, in which a luxury Japanese restaurant is located. It is a bioclimatic structure, the renovation of an existing pier, with natural ventilation, a saltwater infinity pool and several catamaran nets on which guests can lie.

Central to the project is the use of bamboo, which shapes the sequence of columns and the hyperbolic paraboloid roof trusses. A renewable building material, bamboo is, in the words of the architects, “an extremely effective carbon reservoir, useful in steering us towards a future where buildings actually sequester carbon instead of expelling it”.

Dendrocalamus Asper bamboo was chosen for the primary structure and Gigantochloa Apus for the grid filling, while wooden tiles were used for the undulating roof, evoking sea waves.

We are honoured with the DNA Paris Design Awards 2023 in the Green Architecture category for our design of the Bamboo Treehouses at Playa Viva.

The DNA is a platform to showcase the best and brightest with our annual design contest and award.
Their mission: to discover and celebrate fresh and creative designs from all around the world in Architecture, Interior, Landscape, Product, and Graphic Design.

The Awards Ceremony was held at Espace Niemeyer in Paris on Friday October 6th, where our Creative Director Olav Bruin received the award.

Olav Bruin, our Creative Director, has received the honour of being named a Global Bamboo Ambassador by the World Bamboo Organization.
Olav has been at the forefront of contemporary bamboo architecture for more than 15 years. The Den at Soneva Kiri in Thailand, the Restaurant at Wild Coast Tented Lodge in Sri Lanka, The Playa Viva treehouses and the forthcoming Stingray bar in Maldives all bear witness to his incredible talent. Congratulations on behalf of all of the team for this well-deserved recognition.
Many thanks to Susanne Lucas and the World Bamboo Organization for their ongoing support.

https://worldbamboo.net/about/ambassadors

Our Bamboo Treehouse Village project has been selected among the eleven finalists for the 2023 Stephen R. Kellert Biophilic Design Award. Since 2017, the award has recognized achievements in the built environment—including buildings, interiors, and communities—that demonstrate the principles and benefits of biophilic design.

Playa Viva Bamboo Tree Houses, Mexico

United by a shared commitment to regenerative development and a passion for natural building, the team was inspired by the flattened, prismatic bodies of the Mobula Rays that migrate past the site when designing six bamboo tree houses offering guests a deep connection with nature.

The 2023 award recipients have been announced at the Living Future 2023 Conference May 3-5, 2023 in Washington DC.

Congratulations to the winners:

De Verwondering primary school, The Netherlands. Designed by Orga Architects.

As the first of a new generation of biophilic school buildings in the Netherlands, the team had a clear aim of reconnecting the school’s pupils with nature. Nature wasn’t simply the theme for visual design, it was the core principle behind the design: the school is nature.

Marion Fire Station , USA. Designed by OPN Architects.

The design of this project responded to a challenge from the fire chief to design a station that would be a national benchmark for how biophilic design can reduce PTSD in firefighters. The team implemented a range of biophilic design strategies to support firefighters’ physical and mental health.

Thank you Createurs Design Award for the wonderful event.  Creative leaders from around the world gathered in Paris to celebrate extraordinary accomplishments in architecture, design, interior design, art and culture.

It was an honour to be among the nominees for the Beste Hospitality Project:

• Bamboo Treehouse Village by Atelier Nomadic
• Banyan Tree AlUla by AW² architecture & interiors
• Hotel Casa TO by Ludwig Godefroy Architecture
• Hôtel des Horlogers by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group
• Terrestre Hotel by Grupo Habita (Winner)

Hope we will win next time!

AHEAD has unveiled the winners of AHEAD Global 2022.

The Awards for Hospitality Experience and Design is an annual celebration of the most compelling hospitality projects around the globe. The series is divided into four regions – the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa (MEA), and Europe – with the regional winners then going head-to-head at Global to establish an ultimate winner in each category.

After receiving over 630 global entries spanning 60 countries, AHEAD’s judging panel of leading hoteliers, architects, interior designers and industry commentators narrowed-down their winners in 18 categories. The winners were announced over the course of a digital broadcast aired on AHEAD’s website on 18 January.

Winner in the category Lodges, Cabins & Tented Camps: Playa Viva, Juluchuca, Mexico

Inspired by the mobula rays often spotted flying out of the resort’s shores, Playa Viva’s unique treehouses are the newest offering of this off-grid eco-resort, described by the judges as “a place where ocean speaks to land”. Supported by coconut palms transplanted into predetermined locations, the treehouses are built using the property’s own bamboo and palm leaves, harvested on-site from a nursery run by local women. The judges described the treehouses as “cool, whimsical and filled with an implied kinetic energy; a true escape from everyday life”.

We are honoured to have won the 2022 AHEAD Americas Awards in two categories: Cabins, Lodges & Tented Camps and Landscaping & Outdoor Spaces.

Nomadic Resorts’ CEO Louis Thompson attended the event ceremony at Weylin in Brooklyn New York on 6 October to receive both the awards in person.

Organised by industry-leading publication Sleeper, AHEAD (the Awards for Hospitality Experience and Design), the annual awards programmes celebrates the achievements of those shaping the hospitality industry across Asia, the Americas, MEA and Europe, before the regional winners go head-to-head at AHEAD Global to establish an ultimate winner in each category.

Dezeen has announced the sustainability longlist for Dezeen Awards 2022, which features over 80 of the world’s best recently completed sustainable buildings, interiors and designs. From over 5,400 entries from 90 countries to Dezeen Awards this year, the Bamboo Treehouse Village project is one of the 25 projects that are in the running to win an award  in the Sustainable Building category.

The longlisted sustainability projects in this year’s three categories feature designs from studios in 29 different countries including Uganda, Mexico, Vietnam, Finland, and Australia.

Bamboo Treehouse Village at Playa Viva by Atelier Nomadic is longlisted in the sustainable building category.

Atelier Nomadic has designed the Bamboo Treehouse Village at Playa Viva in Mexico.
This project is scattered along the Mexican coastline overlooking the South Pacific, where six bamboo treehouses are perched on coconut palms overlooking the surf.

The treehouses are the latest extension of Playa Viva; an environmentally-conscious resort dedicated to sustainability and regenerative practices which runs entirely off-grid and generates 100% of its energy from solar power. The holistic design was intended to align with the expected post-COVID travellers’ desire to stay in exciting, healthy accommodation, immersed in the natural environment.

“After months of isolation and lockdowns, here, guests can be submerged and reconnect with the natural environment,” added architects Atelier Nomadic. “Listen to the sound of the waves, bath in the warm sunset tones, feel the breeze sway through the palm leaves and taste the salt air, unmasked, as they lounge on the hammock suspended over the beach, staring at the stars.”

La expectativa de hallar bienestar en la naturaleza es una sed humana ante entornos urbanos cada vez más degradados.

Mujeres y hombres aprovechan las posibilidades de trabajar de manera remota para aventurarse a descubrir el mundo y encontrarse a sí mismos en el trayecto. La pandemia les enseñó el valor de la libertad y de cada instante vivido. Son viajeros perpetuos que exhiben un apetito creciente por gozar de experiencias alternativas de alojamiento.

Para Olav Bruin, director creativo de Nomadic Resorts, la expectativa de hallar bienestar en la naturaleza, además de una perspectiva enriquecedora de la vida, es una sed humana ante entornos urbanos cada vez más degradados. El ánimo de crear refugios sustentables, apegados al hábitat, surge de esa necesidad.

A través de dos proyectos representativos del galardonado estudio de diseño, Olav desvela los elementos que confluyen en la concepción y desarrollo de cómodos espacios que permitan a los perpetual travelers sentirse uno con los entornos primigenios.

PLAYA VIVA

El cuerpo de una mantarraya Mobula aterrizando en la duna de arena blanca se quedó plasmado en la memoria del arquitecto y también en el primer boceto de las casas en el árbol, que habría de convertirse en emblema de este eco-longe situado en el Pacífico Sur de México.

El proyecto surgió a iniciativa de David Leventhal, pionero del movimiento Regenerative Travel. “Fue una oportunidad para ignorar algunas reglas escritas de la industria de la hospitalidad. El objetivo fue crear una experiencia holística, sin aire acondicionado, sin televisores…” El principal desafío, reconoce Olav, fue realizarlo en un tiempo récord de seis meses. La asociación con el enigmático maestro del bambú, Jörg Stamm, y su equipo de artesanos locales resultó clave.

Las habitaciones elevadas brindan seguridad y comodidad, manteniendo las fachadas relativamente abiertas para conceder a los invitados el privilegio de escuchar el sonido de las olas, sentir la brisa a través de las hojas de palma y degustar el aire salado, mientras descansan en la hamaca suspendida sobre la playa, mirando las estrellas.

Además de Playa Viva en México, Nomadic Resorts ha realizado proyectos en Sri Lanka, India, Mauricio y Suiza. Actualmente, trabaja en otros desarrollos en Estados Unidos, República Dominicana y Taiwán

WILD COAST TENTED LODGE

La flora, la fauna y el carácter del sitio desempeñan un papel esencial en los principios del diseño biofílico que conecta al ser humano con el medio ambiente y rige la labor de Nomadic Resorts. Fueron las enormes rocas dispersas a lo largo de la escarpada costa del Océano Índico las que inspiraron las formas de Wild Coast, un campamento safari de cinco estrellas.

Su integración al denso bosque de tierras secas constituyó, para Olav y todo el equipo involucrado, una labor conmovedora que hoy permite contemplar elefantes, jabalíes y leopardos que deambulan serenamente por los alrededores de este conjunto de 36 tiendas de campaña con spa, ubicado en la cercanía del Parque Nacional Yala, en el extremo sur de Sri Lanka.

¡Descubre más entornos naturales!

“Trabajamos con total dedicación en todos nuestros proyectos, y cada uno de ellos posee elementos que nos emocionan”, acentúa Olav, sin dejar de lado que cada uno de ellos surgió de alguna colaboración con clientes visionarios. Para él, la arquitectura orgánica, integrada a la perfección en el sitio, es un aspecto decisivo en el presente y en el futuro de los viajes, “porque ofrece una oportunidad fantástica para desarrollar conceptos innovadores y respetuosos con el ecosistema”.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS….MAY 18, 2022.

The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies jointly announce the winning buildings and product designs from a special GREEN edition of the GOOD DESIGN® Awards program for 2022.

Atelier Nomadic has won the Green Good Design award in the Green Architecture category with the Bamboo Treehouse Village at Playa Viva.

For 2022, hundreds of product designs, graphics, architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning projects, together with visionary leaders, were submitted for GREEN GOOD DESIGN from over 40 nations. Under the banner, “Build A Better World Now,” designs for buildings and products that emphasize the most advanced “Green Approach” and the most sophisticated methods and technology to make the most positive impact on the environment were cited and awarded.

Founded in Chicago in 1950 by Eero Saarinen and Charles and Ray Eames, GOOD DESIGN remains the oldest and most established awards program for the most innovative and visionary new product design worldwide. For over 70 years now, the Award has been given to everything and anything from a NASA space ship to a paper clip. In 2021, over 1,100 new product designs and graphics from over 50 nations were recognized with the distinguished GOOD DESIGN Award. The world’s most prominent FORTUNE 500 companies use the GOOD DESIGN logo in the branding of their products, which has become a strong and effective mark of public recognition of Design Excellence globally.

Now, 71 years after the founding of GOOD DESIGN, The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies continues a special edition of GREEN GOOD DESIGN to focus on the most important new international products and buildings and construction and planning projects that are leading the global way to a design that is fully sustainable and compatible with the highest standards of good environment.

サステナブル建材「竹」の汎用性の高さを示す〈バンブー・ツリーハウス・ビレッジ〉

サステナビリティとリジェネラティブ（環境再生）に取り組み、エコラグジュアリーを追求するメキシコの環境配慮型リゾート「プラヤビバ（Playa Viva）」に竹製ツリーハウス〈バンブー・ツリーハウス・ビレッジ〉が誕生しました。

さまざまなエコリゾートをマスタープランから建築、ランドスケープ、インテリアデザインまで手がけるノマディックリゾーツのデザインスタジオ、アトリエノマディックが設計。

環境再生を進めるリゾート「プラヤビバ」

プラヤビバはエネルギーの100%を太陽光発電でまかなっており、完全にオフグリッドで運営されている。また、地域社会と連携し、健康と教育を支援するとともに、土地の回復と活性化に取り組んでいるリゾートである。

そのプラヤビバに新しく施設を建築するにあたり、環境へのポジティブなインパクトが不可欠であった。

汎用性の高いエコ建材「竹」

〈バンブー・ツリーハウス・ビレッジ〉の大部分は、急速に成長する再生可能な建築材料である地元の竹でつくられており、さまざまな用途に使用できる汎用性の高さを表している。

竹のリゾート施設がつくる「エコラグジュアリー」

プラヤビバの最新施設〈バンブー・ツリーハウス・ビレッジ〉はヤシの木の上に建っており、近くの海岸を回遊するイトマキエイの平らな体からインスピレーションを得ている。

建物を覆う屋根は大きな傘のように強い日差しをさえぎり、雨からも内部を守る。また、ルーバーで構成されたファサードにより、自然換気を可能にしている。

主構造と屋根構造には丈夫な南米の竹「グアドゥア」を用い、ファサードのルーバーには短冊状のもの、天井には平らに成形した竹パネルが使用されている。

別棟の壁とファサードパネルには、中国を原産とする「ホテイチク」を使用し、床材には持続可能な方法で栽培された地元のクマル材を使用している。

〈バンブー・ツリーハウス・ビレッジ〉の全体的なデザインは、パンデミックを経て高まっている、「自然環境に囲まれた刺激的で健康的な宿泊施設に滞在したい」という旅行者の願望に沿うよう意図している。

波の音を聞き、暖かい夕焼けを浴び、ヤシの葉を揺らす風を感じ、ビーチに吊るされたハンモックで星空を眺めながら潮風を味わうことができるリゾート施設である。

Atelier Nomadic, the design studio at Nomadic Resorts, has designed a series of bamboo treehouses at Playa Viva, an environmentally conscious resort dedicated to sustainability and regenerative practices. Positive impact is integral to the Playa Viva experience, which is run entirely off-grid and generating 100% of its energy from solar power. The resort works extensively with the local community to support health and education and works year-round to restore and revitalize the surrounding land. The resort is the founding member of the Regenerative Travel organization and founded and supports the La Tortuga Viva turtle sanctuary.

The resorts latest extension includes 6 bamboo treehouses inspired by the flattened, prismatic bodies of the Mobula Rays that migrate past the properties shore. Scattered along the Mexican coastline, the treehouses are perched on coconut palms overlooking the surf. Each treehouse is composed from a master bedroom at the front and an annex treehouse at the rear that contains the bathroom downstairs and a second bedroom/lounge upstairs.

The treehouses are developed using bioclimatic design principles to suit the natural environment: the large eaves of the roof act like a big umbrella, providing shade for the strong heat of the sun and protection from heavy rains. The façade louvers allow for natural cross ventilation.
The structures are mostly built from local bamboo, one of the fastest growing renewable building materials in the world, and showcase the wide variety in which this versatile materials can be used. Strong Guadua bamboo poles were used for the main structure and roof structure, section strips were used in the façade louvers and flattened bamboo panels form the ceiling. Phyllostachis Aurea bamboo poles and dowels were used for the wall and façade panels in the annex building. Flooring is made of sustainably grown local Cumaru timber.
The holistic design was intended to align with the expected post COVID travelers’ desire to stay in exciting, healthy accommodation, immersed in the natural environment. After months of isolation and lock downs, here, guests can be submerged and re-connect with the natural environment: listen to the sound of the waves, bath in the warm sunset tones, feel the breeze sway through the palm leaves and taste the salt air, unmasked, as they lounge on the hammock suspended over the beach, staring at the stars.

Atelier Nomadic, the design studio at Nomadic Resorts, has designed a series of bamboo treehouses at Playa Viva, an environmentally conscious resort dedicated to sustainability and regenerative practices. Positive impact is integral to the Playa Viva experience, which is run entirely off-grid and generating 100% of its energy from solar power. The resort works extensively with the local community to support health and education and works year-round to restore and revitalize the surrounding land. The resort is the founding member of the Regenerative Travel organization and founded and supports the La Tortuga Viva turtle sanctuary.

The resorts latest extension includes 6 bamboo treehouses inspired by the flattened, prismatic bodies of the Mobula Rays that migrate past the properties shore. Scattered along the Mexican coastline, the treehouses are perched on coconut palms overlooking the surf. Each treehouse is composed from a master bedroom at the front and an annex treehouse at the rear that contains the bathroom downstairs and a second bedroom/lounge upstairs.

The treehouses are developed using bioclimatic design principles to suit the natural environment: the large eaves of the roof act like a big umbrella, providing shade for the strong heat of the sun and protection from heavy rains. The façade louvers allow for natural cross ventilation.

The structures are mostly built from local bamboo, one of the fastest growing renewable building materials in the world, and showcase the wide variety in which this versatile materials can be used. Strong Guadua bamboo poles were used for the main structure and roof structure, section strips were used in the façade louvers and flattened bamboo panels form the ceiling. Phyllostachis Aurea bamboo poles and dowels were used for the wall and façade panels in the annex building. Flooring is made of sustainably grown local Cumaru timber.

The holistic design was intended to align with the expected post COVID travelers’ desire to stay in exciting, healthy accommodation, immersed in the natural environment. After months of isolation and lock downs, here, guests can be submerged and re-connect with the natural environment: listen to the sound of the waves, bath in the warm sunset tones, feel the breeze sway through the palm leaves and taste the salt air, unmasked, as they lounge on the hammock suspended over the beach, staring at the stars.

The Dutch studio has added six treehouses to Playa Viva resort, blurring the boundaries between indoors and outdoors and offering guests the opportunity to be one with nature.

Atelier Nomadic has conceptualised bamboo treehouses that integrate with nature, for Playa Viva resort in Playa Icacos, Mexico, an environmentally conscious hotel dedicated to sustainability and regenerative practices. The retreat’s newest addition by the architecture and landscape design studio includes six bamboo treehouses inspired by the flattened, prismatic bodies of mobula rays that migrate past the property’s shore. Offering unobstructed views of a tranquil beach and surrounded by palm trees and verdant greenery, these treehouses are suspended mid-air and accompany the original treehouses designed by the Regenesis Group.

Atelier Nomadic is a design studio with offices in Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Mauritius. It specialises in biophilic architecture and regenerative landscape design. Atelier Nomadic developed the construction strategy of these new treehouses in collaboration with bamboo expert, Jorg Stamm, who supervised the construction and brought a diverse team of bamboo craftsmen on board. The Playa Viva treehouses are a great example of environmentally sustainable architecture. They exhibit limitless possibilities in design and construction materials, and question the status quo.  

Each new treehouse comprises a master bedroom at the front and an annex treehouse at the back. The master bedroom features a hammock balcony suspended out towards the sea and the annex treehouse comprises a lounge with daybeds, a study area with a desk, and a bathroom. While these treehouses are built of bamboo, they are well appointed with wooden furniture and luxurious amenities. The structures offer panoramic views of the surroundings. Moreover, the form of the treehouses is inspired by local mobula rays that are found in abundance in the region. With these structures, the resort and the architects wanted to celebrate the surrounding natural landscape and its inhabitants.

“The concept for the bamboo treehouse village at Playa Viva evolved from a unique online collaboration between the client and us. Under normal circumstances, we develop our concepts following an immersive workshop onsite with the client, consultants and stakeholders, during which we draw our inspiration from the natural surroundings, and experience and analyse the local environmental conditions. However, for Playa Viva, the COVID travel ban made this impossible. We adapted our approach to overcome the challenge, and for this project, it was the client who provided the required inspiration and site information. He envisioned a concept inspired by a drone video of a squadron of mobula rays migrating in the ocean right in front of the property. We collaborated closely with the developers via a series of video conference calls to propose a vision of a village of ray inspired treehouses, to complement the existing treehouse structures,” mentions Olav Bruin, Creative Director, Atelier Nomadic.

The design of the bamboo treehouses offered Atelier Nomadic an opportunity to develop a cutting edge structure in a surreal location without compromising their environmental ethos. The resort wants to set an example of how luxury tourism should develop in the future. Positive environmental and social impact is integral to the Playa Viva experience. It is run 100 per cent off grid and is completely solar powered. The property is entirely built from natural local materials. In addition, the resort supports healthcare and educational programs for the local community, and works on the regeneration of degraded land in the surroundings.

hese mobula ray treehouses were built using bioclimatic design principles to suit the natural environment. For instance, the eaves of the roof function like a large umbrella, offering shade from the sun and protection from heavy rains. The façade louvres allow for natural cross ventilation. Furthermore, the structures were primarily constructed using local bamboo, which is one of the fastest growing renewable building materials in the world. The treehouses exhibit the versatility and adaptability of bamboo in construction. The main structures and the roofs are made of sturdy Guadua bamboo poles, the façade louvres comprise section strips of bamboo and the ceilings feature flattened bamboo panels. The wall and façade panels in the annex treehouse comprise Phyllostachys aurea bamboo poles and the flooring features sustainably grown local Cumaru timber.

“Playa Viva offers the rugged, unspoiled beauty of Mexico in the guilt-free luxury of an environmentally conscious resort dedicated to sustainability and regenerative practices. The resort also founded and supports the La Tortuga Viva turtle sanctuary. Playa Viva provides a vacation experience that is in integrity with the highest aspirational values for how life should be lived,” adds Bruin.

The aim of the design of the Playa Viva treehouses was to align with the expected post COVID travellers’ desire to stay in one-of-a-kind accommodation immersed in the natural environment. These structures blur the boundaries between indoors and outdoors and offer guests a chance to be one with nature. “Sleeping in the mobula ray treehouse is a liberating personal experience,” adds Louis Thompson, CEO of Nomadic Resorts (Atelier Nomadic’s sister company). “After months of isolation and lockdowns, guests can connect with their environment once more. They can listen to the sound of the waves, feel the breeze sway through the palm leaves and taste the salt air, unmasked, as they lounge on the hammock suspended over the beach, staring at the stars. This is beyond wellness, its catharsis.”

Nomadic Resorts is at it again, designing a bamboo treehouse resort called Playa Viva in Mexico for an off-grid eco-vacation adventure. Inspired by the Mobula Rays that migrate off the shore of the resort, the project employed local construction workers and used sustainable bamboo and site-sourced materials.

The result is these gorgeous bamboo buildings with open windows. They were designed in partnership with David Leventhal, pioneer of the regenerative travel movement. Leventhal reached out to Nomadic Resorts, an eco-resort design studio, to develop six extra “rooms” for his eco-lodge Playa Viva.

The buildings are naturally ventilated and surrounded by nature.
“The design of the bamboo treehouses offered us a unique opportunity to develop a cutting-edge bamboo structure in an incredible location without compromising our environmental ethos. It was an enriching experience to work with a client like David, as he is completely in tune with our design
philosophy,” said Olav Bruin, Atelier Nomadic’s creative director.

Each pod looks out over gorgeous views of the beach and includes unique lattice structure walls and angled roofs. Coconut palms were also transplanted to be used to support the buildings. Hyperbolic paraboloid roofs were fixed to the trunks before the prefab panels were put into place to support them.

The beach huts look unique from every angle. Even better, they are well suited to the warm environment and still offer privacy for guests. The design was intended to serve the post-COVID traveler’s preference to stay in exciting but healthy accommodations, immersed in the natural environment.

Inside, the huts fit a dining area, bed and a couple of chairs, with a retractable curtain across the doorway for added privacy at night. “This is beyond wellness, it’s catharsis,” said Nomadic Resorts CEO Louis Thompson.

Nomadic Resorts specializes in creating eco-friendly stays, from tented pods to treehouses. Working out of offices in the Netherlands and Mauritius, the Nomadic Resorts design team focuses on sustainable projects.

perched on coconut palms overlooking the surf, these six bamboo treehouses are the latest accommodation offerings from playa viva, a luxury eco-resort in juluchuca, mexico. designed by rotterdam based atelier nomadic, the angular roof profile of the huts takes inspiration from the wing-like fins of mobula rays.

as well as taking inspiration from nature, the treehouses are also shaped by bioclimatic design principles. the large eaves provide ample shade from the hot sun and shelter from heavy rains while the façade louvers allow for natural cross ventilation.

each treehouse is composed of two staggered structures over three levels. the annexed structure at the rear contains a bathroom on level one and a second bedroom or lounge upstairs. the master bedroom is contained within the front treehouse and boasts a large opening that frames beach views from bed.

the structures are built mostly from local bamboo, one of the fastest-growing renewable building materials in the world. strong guadua bamboo poles were used for the main structure and roof structure, section strips were used in the façade louvers, and flattened bamboo panels form the ceiling. phyllostachis aurea bamboo poles and dowels were utilized for the wall and façade panels in the annex building. the flooring is made from sustainably grown local cumaru timber. (see the construction unfold in the video below).

as part of playa viva’s environmentally conscious and regenerative ethos, the treehouses are all completely off-grid, powered 100% by the sun. playa viva is also working to support the health and education of the local community, and restore and revitalize the surrounding land. the resort is the founding member of the regenerative travel organization and founded and supports the la tortuga viva turtle sanctuary.

architect atelier nomadic says, ‘the holistic design was intended to align with the expected post COVID travelers’ desire to stay in exciting, healthy accommodation, immersed in the natural environment. after months of isolation and lockdowns, here, guests can be submerged and re-connect with the natural environment: listen to the sound of the waves, bath in the warm sunset tones, feel the breeze sway through the palm leaves and taste the salt air, unmasked, as they lounge on the hammock suspended over the beach, staring at the stars.’

BHN speaks to Louis Thompson, CEO at Nomadic Resorts, about experiential travel and how luxury is changing.

Filmed at GIOHIS, the Gulf and Indian Ocean Hotel Investors’ Summit.

“Cities have been isolating and expensive for a long time, but because of their strong economies, they have been hard to leave,” said Colin O’Donnell, the founder of Kibbo. The company blends van life and community with a membership model to create an on-the-road collective of digital nomads across the country. “Now, after a year of quarantine and with the opportunity to work from anywhere, people want to travel and live in beautiful natural locations with a tight-knit community, without giving up their job,” he said.

Many of the most fascinating nomadic designs come from around the world, inspirational architects and designers who foresee a need for future shelter and community. These designs are some of the most outrageous and yet oddly practical.

Nomadic Resorts  

Nomadic Resorts is a design company that uses an integrated approach to architecture, landscape, and interior design to create sustainable projects that fit organically into their natural surroundings and serve as a bridge to connect nature, culture, and people. The Looper is an eco-suite that can easily be installed in jungles, mountains, deserts, or beaches.

The pre-fabricated pods are made from a lightweight tensile fabric stretched over a modular steel frame, a thick layer of recycled PET (plastic water bottles) insulation, and anti-viral internal liner fabric. The envelope is typically fitted out with sustainable bamboo flooring, porthole windows, and double-glazed facades, providing panoramic views and plenty of natural lights. The caterpillar cocoon-like interior can be equipped with a generous bathroom, an air-conditioned sleeping area, a lounge, a small office space with wifi, and a generous outdoor deck.

Louis Thompson, CEO of Nomadic, explains, “The Looper is the ideal environment for digital nomads in the new normal –combined with the appropriate sustainable technology, it can harness natural energy sources and harvest rainwater to offer an off-grid tiny home without compromising comfort, security or lifestyle.”

Tourism is opening up once again in countries all over the world, with companies and travellers alike seeking ways to adapt to the changing situation while ensuring safe measures are also in place. Design company Nomadic Resorts recently unveiled their newest creation – Seedpods designed for sleeping and dining that allow travellers to escape from the city and offer a unique opportunity to sleep outdoors and reconnect with Mother Nature in a comfortable way.

With the company’s first dining pods just installed at the Heritage Nature Reserve in Mauritius, plans are in place for more to be rolled out and used in different locations by different resorts in the future. The concept corresponds with social distancing regulations, and the Seedpod is made from easily cleaned, hygienic materials that can be quickly and easily disinfected compared to hotel rooms.

“The psychological and economic impacts of the coronavirus and subsequent lockdown will be far-reaching: people will obviously re-evaluate their notions of personal space, work, family and hygiene; but they will also reconsider food security, travel, wellbeing and their relationship with nature. A new form of travel will arise,” Nomadic Resorts said.

The pod can also resist wind speeds of 120km per hour, and can be installed in remote locations without the use of heavy machinery or power tools. The pod can be either hung from trees or erected on its own tripod and equipped with lighting, a ceiling fan, a cool box and a charging station for devices making it an ideal option for hiking trails, surf camps or silent safaris.

“The Seedpod has been developed as a low-impact, sustainable hospitality model , to accommodate the rise of experiential travel, eco-tourism, wellness retreats and alternative lodging trends. The idea is that sleeping in the pod, is a transformative experience in its own right – a chance to spend a night in a human nest where you can see the movement of the wildlife around you and hear the sounds of the forest,’’ the company said.

if you’re fed up with social distancing in the city and looking to reconnect with nature, nomadic resorts’ ‘seedpod‘ initiative could be a dream come true. with its low impact structure and soothing cocoon-like shape, this latest project from the hospitality design company offers travelers the opportunity to sleep in the great outdoors without compromising on comfort.

after years of research, the first working pod prototypes were installed at bel ombre nature reserve in mauritius in 2019. louis thompson, CEO of nomadic resorts explains: ‘our goal was to take inspiration from the humble seed, to create a floating hotel room that was both ephemeral and robust – comfortable but exciting to sleep in. the idea is that sleeping in the pod, is a transformative experience in its own right – a chance to spend a night in a human nest where you can see the movement of the wildlife around you and hear the sounds of the forest’.

the pop-up resort concept caters for a new form of travel, which focuses on more sustainable and authentic experiences. as COVID-19 has made many people re-evaluate their lifestyles, the seedpod presents a low impact, sustainable model to accommodate the rise of experiential travel, eco-tourism, wellness retreats and alternative lodging trends. at nomadic resorts, they want to create a hospitality revolution by designing a new generation of tented camps that can be quickly and cheaply set up in remote locations under their new operating brand nomadic escapes.

louis thompson adds ‘the recent crisis has changed the whole notion of hospitality. our team has been striving to find a symbiotic, harmonious relationship between the sites we develop and the comfort of our guests. to achieve that we needed to find a compromise between durability and sustainability, environmental integrity, personal hygiene and guest comfort – size was an important consideration, as we needed to create a concept that corresponds with the new low-touch economy and social distancing regulations – the seedpod is made from easily cleaned, hygienic materials and can be quickly and easily disinfected compared to a traditional hotel room’.

the pod can be either hung from trees or erected on its own tripod and equipped with lighting, a ceiling fan, a cool box and a charging station for devices, making it an ideal option for hiking trails, surf camps or silent safaris. the form of the structure was a critical consideration for the team – the natural shape of a seed is inherently aerodynamic: when their team of membrane engineers introduced the structure into their computer wind model it showed that using a small number of structural rings, combined with a new generation architectural fabric, the pod can resist windspeeds of 120kmh, so guests are safe even if a big storm hits.

the other critical consideration was installation – the team wanted to be able to quickly and quietly install the pods in remote locations without using heavy machinery or power tools, therefore reducing costs. having worked in remote wilderness camps throughout africa, nomadic resort COO neil hendrikz explains: ‘our idea was to create a structural system that could be installed using manpower only on virtually any terrain, anywhere on the planet within a day that could last at least for a decade’.

‘Seeds, by their very nature, are full of potential’ claims creative director olav bruin ‘so we created a multifunctional interior that can easily be converted from a seating arrangement during the day into a sleeping arrangement during the night. this way we are utilizing the full potential of the relatively compact space. the seedpods can be accompanied by a fully equipped pop-up bathroom with shower, toilet, washbasin and wardrobe to complete the ultimate back to nature camping experience in style. over the coming years we hope to see our seedpod family adapt, expand and evolve.’ you can find out more information and purchase the pods directly from nomadic resorts’ website here.

We were honoured with winning the prestigious Architecture Master Prize for the design of Wild Coast Tented Lodge. The project’s Interior Designers from Bo Reudler Studio attended the ceremony in the famous Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao to collect the award on our behalf.

Dezeen promotion: a historic hotel in China and a cocoon-like guest lodge in Sri Lanka are among the hospitality projects commended in this year’s AHEAD Asia Awards.

Celebrating design-focused hospitality projects from across the globe that provide exceptional guest experiences, submissions to the AHEAD Awards programme are divided into four regions: Asia, Americas, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa.

Entries were reviewed by a judging panel made up of leading hoteliers, architects, interior designers and industry commentators.

The 2019 Asia winners were announced in a ceremony at Singapore’s Andaz Hotel, all praised by AHEAD Awards founder Matt Turner for “reflecting the region’s rich cultural history and dynamic modernity”.

Sri Lanka’s Wild Coast Tented Lodge designed by Nomadic Resorts scooped the Resort Hotel award. Surrounded by dryland forests, the hotel comprises of a series of round, cocoon-style tents that are meant to resemble the boulders seen in the surrounding landscape.

The Wild Coast Tented Lodge won the Resort Hotel category

The Seed Pod by Nomadic Resorts floating above the endemic forest in Mauritius. The pod is suspended on steel cables from the surrounding trees without causing any damage to the landscape.

It is with a great deal of gratitude that Nomadic Resorts received the Ahead Award Asia for best resort design 2019 in Singapore for our Sri Lankan project Wild Coast Tented Lodge. We have been blessed with several major awards over the last 18 months; but we are particularly proud of the Ahead Award – firstly because the judging panel included seasoned hospitality professionals such as Guy Heywood, Jinou Park, Billie Khoo and Dhamali Kusumadi, who understand the operational and commercial challenges of this kind of project; secondly due to the extraordinarily high calibre of the other finalists:
the exquisite Capella Ubud by the legendary Bill Bensley, the incredible Amanyangun by Kerry Hill Architects and the elegant Tsingpu by Neri & Hu; and finally because the resort was built by our in-house construction team in collaboration with the local fishing community of Kirinda – all of whom showed extraordinary commitment to the project.
To win such a prestigious award in such esteemed company is an honour for our entire team. The Interior Design is made by Bo Reudler Studio.

We are delighted that our Wild Coast Tented Lodge project has been among the winners of the International Architecture Awards 2018.

Since 2004, The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design, together with The European Center for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies and Metropolitan Arts Press, Ltd. have organized The International Architecture Awards as a way in which to honor the best, significant new buildings, landscape architecture, and planning projects designed and/or built around the world’s leading architects, landscape architects, and urban planners practicing nationally and internationally. The International Architecture Awards give an important global overview of the current aesthetic direction of today’s commercial, corporate, institutional, and residential work to the real estate, banking, business, and corporate community, as well as to the press and general public worldwide.

The program is one of the Museum’s most important public education outreach initiatives produced throughout the year-to the Museum’s international audience.

The International Architecture Awards are dedicated to the recognition of excellence in architecture and urbanism from a global point-of-view.

The program pays tribute to new developments in design and underscores the directions and understanding of current cutting-edge processes consistent with today’s design thinking.

The award ceremony was held on 28 September 2018 at the foot of the Parthenon in Athens, Greece and included an exhibition and book publication of the winning projects.

Culture and commercial architecture: two domains that are often depicted as contradictory. Indeed, commerce is associated with utilitarian functionalism, immediacy, playing it safe, and an impoverished style. Whilst culture is associated with beauty, creativity and a disinterested ideal. Naturally, this opposition is not systematic, and there are many high quality examples of their coexistence. However, such examples remain a rarity. The end goal of the Prix Versailles is to alter this state of affairs by merging these opposites together.

This perceived contradiction is emblematic of a stage in the modern era that is on the brink of becoming outdated. The new period into which we are entering demands quality in all things: culture needs to break out of its ivory tower, without overlooking commercial aspects. Conversely, commerce must progressively adopt the goals of environmentalism, quality, creativity and innovation. Where we saw disjunction before, today’s era calls for conjunction.

The Prix recognizes the most remarkable structures, in terms of both interior and exterior architecture.
Because the Prix is associated with Versailles, we want that world renowned symbol of beauty and elegance to serve not as a model but as a beacon or impetus for quality commercial architecture, today and tomorrow.

The Prix Versailles is an original programme with the very clear aim of fostering better interaction between the economy and culture. It underlines the role economic agents can play, in all sectors, to enhance, embellish and improve living environments.

This everyday architecture can be a lever for sustainable development where ecological (green economy), social and cultural (purple economy) dimensions intersect.

Our Creative Director Olav Bruin and Interior Designer Bo Reudler attended the award ceremony in the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Our Creative Director Olav Bruin attended the award ceremony in Hong Kong to receive the Gold and the Grand Award Sustainability.

The DFA Awards are the flagship program of the Hong Kong Design Centre, celebrating impactful and outstanding designs with Asian perspectives.