W Barcelona Hotel

Barcelona, Spain

Architects: Ricardo Bofill Taller de Arquitectura

Location: Plaça de la Rosa del Vents, 1, 08039 Barcelona, Spain
Year: 2009

Barcelona harbour, will rise like a modern icon above the Mediterranean sea and become a landmark for an area slated to be redeveloped with upmarket office and entertainment facilities. A sail-shaped building on a 10-hectare plot reclaimed from the sea is part of an ambitious urban renewal plan for Barcelona’s coastline. The five-star Barcelona Port Hotel comprises 476 rooms, 67 suites, a rooftop bar, large spa, indoor and outdoor pools, several food and beverage concepts and a retail store. The closest volume to the sea is a slender, 24-storey building set perpendicular to the dock. The reflecting facade of silvered glass blends with sky colours and sea sparkles. This volume is inserted in the low-slung atrium building, the lobby of which affords views of the sea and enjoys natural zenithal light. Public activities are housed beneath a platform designed in the form of two huge terraces. The sizeable volume of the conference hall with its large glass frontage overlooking the sea breaks the horizontal lines of the podium.