ADLER Lodge Alpe | Alpe di Siusi

"An enchanting plateau, surrounded by the majestic peaks of the Dolomites. There, where nature is still nature, every season reveals its fascination, full of colour and light." The ADLER Lodge Alpe stands on the Alpe di Siusi, the largest high-altitude Alpine meadow in Europe and a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site since 2009, at 1,800 metres above sea level. Directly on the ski slopes of the Dolomiti Superski area, accessible only by cable car, authorised private road or snowcat, it is a place where luxury does not flaunt itself, but merges with nature and silence

The Lodge was born in 2014 on the foundations of a historic building: the Hotel Mezdì of 1939, built by the Hoglinger family of Ortisei and once the film set for Roman Polanski’s “I Vampiri”. Demolished and completely rebuilt in just twelve months, the new structure was designed by Val Gardena brothers Dr. Arch. Hugo Demetz and Hanspeter Demetz together with Dr. Arch. Rudolf Perathoner. Hugo Demetz, the regular reference architect of the ADLER brand and subsequently the designer of the Adler Lodge Ritten, conceived a structure built entirely of larch and spruce with beams hand-planed exclusively by Val Gardena craftsmen. Only regional, untreated materials were used, in full coherence with the CasaClima Class A eco-compatible certification.

The project introduces numerous distinctive and original elements: the printed wood is a true invention of Hugo Demetz, executed here for the first time with South Tyrolean artisanal mastery. In the gables and common spaces appear wooden sculptures by Markus Delago, a young Val Gardena artist, and a narrative totem by Adolf Vallazza, a world-famous artist born in 1924. The floors are inlaid with mountain hay, marigolds and Alpine lichen. The aesthetic influence of African safari lodges gives the interiors a warm, enveloping and unexpectedly contemporary character that engages in dialogue with the Nordic materials of the structure.

The complex is articulated across a main lodge and 12 independent chalets inspired by ancient Tyrolean mountain huts, each different in layout and view. The panoramic spa occupies the top floor and features a heated outdoor pool, three saunas (Finnish, bio-sauna and mountain-hay sauna), and a “starlit” relaxation room with open fireplace. The cuisine offers an all-inclusive arrangement using local km-zero products from Val Gardena. The Lodge welcomes guests aged 8 and above. Photography is by Florian Andergassen and Harald Wisthaler.

Year
2014

Architecture studio
Dr. Arch. Hugo Demetz, Hanspeter Demetz + Dr. Arch. Rudolf Perathoner

Art
Markus Delago (wooden sculptures); Adolf Vallazza (totem)

Photographers
Florian Andergassen; Harald Wisthaler