The art and business of hospitality is centuries old; rooted in the idea of providing a home away from home, the ever evolving Hospitality sector being a key driver of the economy.<rt-red> The present hospitality market is a highly competitive one, and the onus on contemporary brands extends beyond the provision of services—visitors take away with them experiences and impressions, and these can only come about as a result of responsive design and careful curation.<rt-red>
As such, a designer's work in the hospitality sector must focus on setting the right stage for these experiences: enabling, through design, the seamless integration of site and services to ensure the brand ethos is reflected in every spatial element. Hospitality design in heritage spaces comes with its own unique set of opportunities and challenges.<rt-red> Design interventions in historic buildings tread the fine line between respecting heritage and superseding it; and while it is vital that we respect the context while designing, it is also important we do not resort to replication or superficial adaptation<rt-red>. Furthermore, people's relationships with their environment changes constantly-contemporary destinations must fulfil contemporary needs.
For instance, at the Baradari in City Palace, Jaipur, we remodelled the old restaurant to strengthen its contextual ties. Situated in the walled city, <rt-red>the restaurant was accessible through the Jaleb Chowk, a prominent ceremonial opening to the palace precinct through its eastern flank.<rt-red> However, a narrow opening into the admin office's courtyard connected the Chowk and the main seating area. This not only hampered the entrance and dining experiences, but also cut off the space from the rest of the city.
We faced a similar issue of suboptimal user access at the RAAS Devigarh; Located in the Aravali Hills, the project is housed within an 18th-century palace fortress. <rt-red>The restriction imposed by the impenetrable form of the fortresses translated to poor linkages between the F&B zones and service spaces<rt-red>. To segregate guest and service circulation routes and enable easy access between different levels, a crafted metal staircase connected the levels at varying points. The addition of the staircase as an alternate circulation spine as well as the modification of the facade profile helped streamline the operations of the hotel and simplified pathfinding.
