Uvita

Year2023

CategoryCivic Amenities, Competition

LocationCosta Rica

StatusDesign

The Uvita resort in Costa Rica is designed as an ensemble of buildings that connects the guests’ stay as intensively as possible with the tropical landscape, the views and the atmosphere of the place.

At the heart of the complex is the main building with shared facilities – a restaurant, reception, coworking space, panoramic terrace and cascading pools – whose upper level is dedicated to tranquillity, meditation and views of the Pacific Ocean, the jungle and the surrounding mountains. The main building is complemented by eight villas set on the hillside, smaller guest cabins and a residence for the owners.

The individual parts of the resort work with the terrain, privacy and shared outdoor spaces so as to offer varying degrees of contact with nature while creating a coherent whole based on an exceptional experience of the landscape.

Design team	Martin Krupauer Pavel Kvintus

The Main Building as the Heart of the Resort

At the heart of the whole complex is the main building, which brings together the shared functions of the resort. It houses a panoramic terrace with outdoor seating and views of the Uvita river, a restaurant, reception, coworking space and cascading pools.

The upper floor is dedicated to silence and meditation and offers extraordinary views of the Pacific Ocean, the tropical jungle and the surrounding mountains.

The main building is complemented by eight corner villas with terraces set on the hill. Besides private accommodation, the villas are designed to offer a shared outdoor space for meeting, yoga classes or tasting tropical fruit, which guests can pick themselves from large planters in the garden.

Cabins and Owners’ Residence

Further parts of the design are the guest cabins and the owners’ residence. Nine small cabins are set into a steep slope whose main asset is a magnificent view. Each of them also gives guests privacy on their own terrace. The cabins are designed in two variants and are accessible from the main building.

The resort owners’ residence comprises four units on two storeys. Each includes a living area, a bedroom and a terrace through which a fruit tree grows. As this building is considerably larger than the other structures, its volume has been deliberately minimised and partly set into the slope.