The Solan Hotel occupies a commanding position atop the Solan Mountain on the ski slopes of picturesque Wallachia, Czech Republic. It has recently been acquired by a new independent owner, who's refurbished and re-launched the venue as a top notch leisure, conference and business destination for the area.
The idea is to offer the highest standard of services for commercial clients, and fabulous relaxation facilities including a spa and well-being centre for all visitors - from the travel weary to skiing enthusiasts and conference delegates.
Owner, local entrepreneur Josef Valchar, is acutely aware that good lighting is a key to setting the right scene and mood for any environment and for making guests feel at home and as comfortable as possible during their stay. He has chosen Anolis LED fixtures to light many areas of the hotel in a phased installation, with the first areas completed including the swimming pool.
Valchar also intends the Solan to be as environmentally friendly as possible - which is another reason for choosing LED fixtures. "Anolis are among the best available on the market - so the brand was an obvious choice," he confirms.
He is working closely with architect and interior designer Peter Vinklarek on the re-fit, the idea being to preserve elements of local traditional design, blended seamlessly with new, fresh contemporary twists.
The indoor pool area on the lower of the hotel's 6 storeys features large windows along one end showing off the stunning views. The room has Anolis ArcLine Outdoor Optic 36 strips embedded in the ceiling in a continuous line along one edge of the pool. These can be selected to colour change or be in static colours, bathing the whole space in rich saturates or subtle pastels. They also illuminate the reliefs of an eye-catching 3D ceramic wall sculpture running down the same side of the pool. This in turn casts attractive coloured shadows that are reflected in the water.
For white light, 6 Anolis ArcLine Outdoor Optic 18 Warm White are concealed in the ceiling along the far side of the pool above the lounging area. These bathe the area in an inviting ambient glow, while 6 Anolis ArcPad 3●48 Integrals mounted in the walls boost the lux levels with a diffused calming quality of light, enhancing the chilled atmosphere.
The pool area also has three large discharge 'practical' lights, but they are not used most of the time as the LEDs are proving so popular, whether in white, different saturated colours or on a slow fade colour chase.
"It is vital that the pool looks 'beautiful'," explains Valchar, "I wanted to bring a vitality to the space with the lighting and a feature totally unique to the hotel. Different colouration can really enhance and chance people's moods, and I want to make a visit to the pool the ultimately relaxing and meditative experience".
He has already had amazing feedback from swimmers and guests using the pool about the lighting, "It definitely seems to work by adding another layer and dimension of atmosphere to a peaceful place," affirms Valchar.
By the time the lighting scheme is completed, LED lighting will be installed throughout the entire hotel.
Other areas currently benefitting from Phase 1 lighting are the atrium at the top of the main staircase, lit with 8 Anolis ArcLine 18 RGBs. It is an open staircase, so you can see right from top to bottom on all levels going up or down.
The window spaces of the fourth floor corridors are lit with ArcLine 36 WarmWhites to highlight the quirky collection of artefacts and ornaments arranged on their sills.
Each of the four bedroom floors features wide corridors, which will be used as gallery spaces highlighting the work of local artists. Already hundreds of art works are in place, and Phase 2 of the LED installation will see these lit with ArcSource 3 Warm White fixtures. The same units will also be used to illuminate the numbers on all the bedroom doors.
Phase 3 of the installation will see an RGB LED design fitted into all 42 rooms and suites, complete with a control system allowing guests to choose a colour scheme to suit their mood by pressing a number of pre-set options.
Providing good, appropriate and conformable hotel lighting is a massive growth area for LED products, and Anolis is ideally placed to offer a wide variety of fixtures developed to suit these applications. Another recent very successful scheme was installed at the Figis Hotel and Conference Centre in Zeist, The Netherlands.