One of the first hotels to be built on the bay of Porto Cervo, an emblem of the major transformation organized by the Aga Khan at the start of the 1960s in Sardinia, Hotel Cala di Volpe is an institution of the Costa Smeralda. But not only for its original location. The hotel is a specimen of the modernity of the architect Jacques Couëlle and his vision, aimed at the rediscovery of the intimate, ancestral bond that connects man to nature, in a harmonious relationship to architecture. The new restoration project carried out by the duo of Bruno Moinard and Claire Bétaille (4BI Associes) reawakens the magical splendor of the facility, which is now part of Marriott’s Luxury Collection, respecting this harmony of artifice and landscape.
The renovation complies with the original concept, conserving the enclosure and the massive, irregular forms of the construction intact, which resembles a small village facing the water. Over time the hotel had been expanded into its surroundings, but now the new project reconnects it to the vegetation and the seaside environment. Keeping faith with the connection between the facilities and the panoramic views of the gulf, while conserving the structural elements, the rustic beams and the large vaulted ceilings, the architects have revitalized the historic spaces, reinterpreting them in a contemporary way, with new guestrooms, suites, lounges and restaurants, offering today’s clients an even more exclusive experience. “We wanted to reawaken the energies hidden inside this living organism, to make it breathe again and to reinvent its circulation,” they say.
In the interiors the materials call the shots. Stone, plaster, raw wood and colored glass mingle with the cotto of the floors, the skillfully reinvented fabrics, the ceilings clad in reeds. The new décor thus combines intimacy with nature and a sense of simple luxury. The furnishings have been made for the most part to measure by local artisans, along with pieces by Europe’s most outstanding manufacturers.
Among the latter, Poliform Contract has supplied the furniture for 68 of the 121 rooms, the Harrods Suite and the restaurants, while also producing custom pieces for the public areas, designed by the architects and calling for particularly fine workmanship. Moinard Bétaille emphasize: “We wanted furnishings that would be free, without artifice, comfortable, warm, in a dialogue with the walls, to fit into the irregular spaces and openings in a timeless, singular synthesis.”
The Harrods Suite is a true gem of local crafts and refined luxury. Created by the Harrods Interior Design Studio, it is composed of three bedrooms with Poliform Contract furnishings, and bathrooms clad in lively hues of ceramic tile, conveying the sensation of a spa. Above all, there is an external terrace of 250 sqm with a lounge zone and an infinity pool, offering a panoramic view of the entire bay of Cala di Volpe.
Developer: Sardegna Resort
Hotel operator: Marriott’s Luxury Collection
Architecture: Jacques Couëlle
Interior design and lighting design: Bruno Moinard & Claire Bétaille (4BI Associes), Harrods Interior Design Studio
