The Fontenay Hamburg | New 5* hotel architectural landmark
The beautiful waterfront city of Hamburg will gain a new architectural landmark later this year when the 131‐room luxury hotel, The Fontenay, opens its doors to guests on October 15, 2017. Considered to be Germany’s most anticipated luxury hotel opening this year, The Fontenay will be located directly on the banks of Lake Alster, with an unique sculptural design resembling three interlocking circles, creating views of the lake and the downtown cityscape from most of the hotel’s rooms and suites, as well as its rooftop bar & terrace, gourmet restaurant, swimming pool and spa.
The Fontenay Hamburg
The Fontenay occupies a rarely acquired and substantial 14,000m2 plot of prime waterfront real estate on the shore of Lake Alster at the heart of central Hamburg. The hotel has been designed as a luxury urban resort by Hamburg born architect, Jan Störmer of Störmer Murphy and Partners, who has created a brave and visionary organic building, covered with thousands of white porcelain tiles that mirror the shimmering waters of the lake and the fluid lines of the parkland that surrounds the hotel.
The circular, flowing shape of the building’s architecture repeats itself throughout the hotel: aside from the partitions dividing each guest room, there are no straight walls within The Fontenay and no wall is parallel to another. Corridors curve around two 27m high open spaces at the heart of the hotel and guest rooms and balconies follow the circular flow of the building’s exterior. This design created a challenge when it came to furnishing rooms and public areas, meaning each piece of furniture had to be custom‐made to reflect the unique architecture. Corridor carpets had to be woven to order in Hong Kong to follow the exact geometry of the hotel.
Restaurant
The Fontenay will have a rooftop gourmet restaurant, which will be under the direction of the hotel’s recently appointed Michelin star awarded executive chef, Cornelius Speinle. The yet to be named restaurant will accommodate 40 guests, with a private dining room for an additional 10 diners, as well as a spacious wrap‐ around al fresco terrace, with spectacular views over Lake Alster and Hamburg city. Cornelius is one of Europe’s top culinary talents, having had his own restaurant, dreizehn sinne, in Switzerland, and prior experience working in many Michelin star restaurants in Europe and further afield, including Heston Blumenthal’s three‐star Michelin restaurant, The Fat Duck, in Bray, England. One floor below the hotel’s gourmet restaurant will be a rooftop bar with spectacular 320° views by day and night across the lake over the whole city. Completing The Fontenay’s appeal as Germany’s ultimate urban luxury resort will be an exclusive 1,000m2 rooftop spa, including a 20m indoor/outdoor pool. Member of ‘The Leading Hotels of the World’.
Website: The Fontenay
