Low budget hotels are nothing new, neither are design hotels for that
matter, but they’ve never been combined – until now. The first Qbic® Hotel opened
in Amsterdam in July and a second is following hot on its heels in Antwerp, combining the concept of
a design hotel with self-service.
Inspired by the idea that "the
best service is self-service", the self-service check-in terminal of the hotel is situated next
to a number of vending machines. In them, you will find everything your heart desires, including the
things you may have forgotten to pack: toiletry articles, computer stuff like USB sticks, or regional
culinary specialties such as wine and candy.
But at the heart of Qbic
Hotel is the Cubi®. A cube-shaped living module with a square floor area measuring
7 m2 which sits in the center of a 25 to 30 m2
room. In this cube are fantastic solutions to everything you could ever want from a hotel room. Take
the bed for example, an extra-long luxury model, or the bathroom, complete with designer fittings, then
add a flat-screen TV, a DVD player, radio, safe, desk, free Internet access and atmospheric light for
a relaxed atmosphere.
A different designer is commissioned to create
the lobby and the rooms of each Qbic Hotel. In Antwerp, it was Ontwerpers who were allowed to run riot.
"We get our basic inspiration from daily life, other cultures, traveling a lot and weird species
in nature. On first sight things can be very strange ... " And Ontwerpers bring their keen observational
skills and travel experiences to bear in their designs for the Qbic Hotel. The Cabinet Chair, for example,
which so fits the concepts of speed and mobility that the hotel incarnates. "The Cabinet Chair
was designed for the lobby in Antwerp, it is also a shelving unit which you can sit inside and has an
Internet connection. So you can Google local points of interest in Antwerp before going into town,
and we will also fill it with all kinds of books about the town." So it’s three pieces of furniture
rolled into one.
New travel habits give rise to new furniture … to live
in.
Links:
www.cubi-furniture.com/index_en.php
www.ontwerpers.nu
www.qbichotels.com
