Adagio launches fresh ‘lighter’ communal design in new Edinburgh site

By Hannah Thompson

- Last updated on GMT

Adagio launches fresh ‘lighter’ communal design in new Edinburgh site

Related tags Edinburgh

Adagio, the aparthotels group, is to open the first of its newly-designed hotel spaces in Edinburgh, with a new ‘lighter’ communal space design.

The new 146-apartment Adagio Edinburgh Royal Mile is set to open on 19 December in the £150m New Waverley development. It will aim to create a more homely, cosy feel in the communal areas and encourage guests to feel as if they are in a large and warm domestic living room.

The design will also take influences from traditional members’ clubs, with ‘practical yet stylish’ touches aimed to provide an appropriate setting for both leisure and corporate visitors.

The individual apartments ‒ which feature fitted kitchens, LCD televisions, smartphone docking stations and lounge areas ‒ will also benefit from a brighter look and more dynamic, flexible living space.

The hotel design will also take influence from their surrounding areas, such as local heritage, landscapes, or monuments. The Edinburgh site, for example, will be inspired by the city’s mixture of architectural history and its proximity to nature.  

Adagio plans to roll the new design out across all future properties, including one expected for London in 2017.

Jose Gómez, general manager of Aparthotels Adagio, said: “[This] is an important milestone in the global development of Adagio. The first new look aparthotel to open anywhere in the world, the Edinburgh launch demonstrates our continued commitment to bringing an exceptional product to our guests around the world. It is an exciting time for the brand.”

Edinburgh will be the group’s third UK opening overall, after Liverpool in 2013 and Birmingham in 2015. Adagio also operates over 100 properties in more than 10 countries worldwide, and has expansion plans for global cities in countries such as Qatar and Brazil, with an aim to open 15,000 apartments in 150 aparthotels by 2020.

Recent openings include Paris, Frankfurt, and Moscow.  

Hotel trend: Blending flexibility and function

kitchen-room-610

Adagio’s new design strategy comes amid the current trend in hotels focusing on making their foyers and public spaces as flexible, functional, and attractive as possible, in response to new ways that customers are looking to use public areas.

This year’s Annual Hotel Conference addressed the subject in detail, with speakers agreeing that flexible lobby space should now be a key consideration for hotels, as visitors’ working and socialising habits change.

They said considerable thought should be given to factors such as lighting, comfortable chairs, and acoustic ceilings to dampen noise and promote privacy, along with staples such as free, fast Wi-Fi throughout, and USB charging ports.

In a session on hotel design, designer Sara Cosgrove said: “Overall, it’s the ‘local living room’ idea. People now need more flexibility when it comes to work, and it’s really about creating design that adds value to the building and to the community.”

Related news

Follow us

Hospitality Guides

View more

Generation Next