Holiday inn Sant Cugat del Vallés

The Holiday Inn Sant Cugat is situated within the Parque de Actividades Económicas Can Sant Joan, a peripheral business district characterized by infrastructure, office developments, and proximity to major transport routes such as the AP-7. The project responds to this context by adopting a discreet urban presence, carefully integrating with the sloping topography of the site. The access strategy minimizes visual impact from the street while aligning with the functional logic of the surrounding industrial fabric. At the same time, the building mediates between two contrasting conditions: a more urban frontage facing the activity park and a more open, infrastructural landscape toward the highway, where noise, views, and solar exposure shape the architectural response. Architecturally, the hotel is conceived as a compact five-story parallelepiped volume, organizing 208 guest rooms along a clear and efficient double-loaded corridor running north–south. This rational layout optimizes circulation and orientation, with rooms distributed along the east and west façades. The base comprising the ground floor and two basement levels accommodates shared functions such as reception, lounge, dining, and services, anchoring the building both functionally and spatially. The façades express a dual character, adapting to environmental conditions and context, while the north and south elevations act as transitional hinges, housing emergency stair cores that reconcile the contrasting identities of each side.

Programme : Hospitality
Location : Sant Cugat del Vallés, Barcelona, Spain  
Client : Europa Center  
Architect : Jaime Batlle, Diana Carbonell, Davide Lorenzato, Ignacio Arizu, Lluís Dilmé, Xavier Fabré
Dates : 2012
Surface : 11.000 m²  
Status : Built