Dezeen Magazine

Swiss chocolate influences Marcel Wanders' Kameha Grand Zurich hotel

Chocolate-patterned wall panelling and sofas shaped like Toblerones feature in Dutch designer Marcel Wanders' Swiss-inspired hotel in Zurich (+ slideshow).

Kameha Grand Zurich hotel by Marcel Wanders

The interior design studio of Marcel Wanders, who co-founded design brand Moooi, used items typically associated with Switzerland to inform the interiors of the 245-bedroom Kameha Grand Zurich hotel.

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Alongside the chocolate references, the rooms have mini-bars modelled on bank vaults – a nod to the country's renowned finance industry – and lamps that resemble oversized cowbells, also traditional in Switzerland.

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"Others deliver an interior design, but we offer a reason for a visit, we create a destination," said Wanders. "A hotel should entertain, inspire and stimulate. We want the guest to have a lifestyle experience, by creating a place full of surprises and beauty."

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Communal spaces for guests draw from a range of other influences. They include a bar, two lounges and two restaurants – serving Italian and Japanese food, and both designed to reflect their cuisine.

Walls in the bar are designed to resemble panels of gold bullions, while a rug is shaped like a giant coin.

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Dark surfaces and furniture were chosen to create an intimate atmosphere in the Smoker's Lounge, where photographs of people smoking are mounted on the walls and different liquors are illuminated in individual niches.

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In contrast, the Shisha Lounge is intended to showcase a contemporary Arabic aesthetic – and is named after the traditional tobacco smoking technique using a bowl and hose that is popular in the Middle East.

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The hotel houses 224 Premium and Deluxe bedrooms, as well as two Executive suites and six Business suites.

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Eleven individually designed Theme suites include the Poker Face suite, which features a roulette table and the walls that look like chocolate squares, and the Serenity suite that comes with yoga accessories and scented candles. Others carry titles including Ghostwriter, Fair Play, Watchmaker, and Diva Suite.

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The 701-square-metre Kameha Dome event space has red fabric draped from the ceiling, which contrasts with the black and white tiled flooring.

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Alongside the many custom-developed lighting and furniture solutions, Moooi furniture is used throughout the hotel, including the Love and Nest seating collections designed by Wanders. The brand also launched a range of hotel bath and shower products earlier this year.

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Wanders has previously designed the interiors for the Kameha Grand in Bonn, Germany, as well as hotels including the Mondrian South Beach in Miami and the Andaz Hotel in Amsterdam.