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Loma de Vida Spa & Wellness at La Cantera Resort Perched atop San Antonio’s Hill Country, This Resort Offers Hushed Luxury
San Antonio, Texas, USA
The Challenge
Located on the skirts of the existing resort, the layout of the spa became an opportunity to address a difficult sloping site constrained on three sides by the natural and existing conditions of the site. On the backside, a 30-foot-tall boulder wall created a natural visual barrier but a challenging construction site. On the down hillside, the Hole No.1 tee boxes from the golf course created interesting relationships with the future spa guests and the players at the golf course. With a name that means “Hill of Life,” this urban resort sought to bring a sense of rejuvenation and serenity just beyond the attractions of San Antonio.
The Design Solution
To avoid creating heavy structures that would create more harm to the site than good, the design team decided to break the mold of the existing architecture style and proposed an alternative modern design approach to the project. This allowed the team to create a modern and contemporary steel building that could cantilever and span across the rugged terrain while creating dramatic volumetric shapes and vistas to the guests through large windows and open-air decks. Glass, steel and wood became the initial design palette. Lifting the structures also allowed the spa guests to have enough separation from more active areas of the resort such as the golf players and vehicular noise from the porte cochere above. Using vernacular traditions, local materials, spa treatments, and a sense of openness, Loma de Vida spa creates a destination in stark contrast to the traditional resort setting. Complete with sky lofts, private soaking pools, and private decks, the spa’s clean lines, glass walls and steel frames offer a contemporary setting for relaxation overlooking the expansive landscape.
The Design Impact
The partee of the project, which was unveiled in 2015, allowed the resort to reposition itself as one of the leading destinations in the Texas Hill Country region. It offers visitors some of the best views of San Antonio, while enjoying one of the most serene spa offerings in the Lone Star State.
Project Features
- 25,000 square feet (2,322 sm)
- 15 treatment rooms
- Fitness center, retail and quenche juicery
- Infinity edge pool and co-ed grotto saline pool
- Private garden cabañas
- Sky Lofts treatment rooms with lock off and overnight stay option
At Loma de Vida, we encourage you to breathe deeply, see clearly, and smile from the inside out. Go wherever you want. We’ll find you. Director, Loma de Vida Spa & Wellness
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Yunomori Onsen and Spa | Sathorn / Sixseven Studio
- Curated by Hana Abdel
- Architects: Sixseven Studio
- Area Area of this architecture project Area: 3500 m²
- Year Completion year of this architecture project Year: 2020
- Photographs Photographs: W-Workspace
- Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers: APK Brick , COTTO , L-Thai
- Lead Architect: Pakorn Rattanasuteeranon
- Lighting Design : Atelier AT
- Landscape Architect : Tossapon Arunsuraponmatee
- Design Team: Kornkanok Meksilp, Pitiwat Jungaekkwit, Narumon Pandung, Paradorn Rukskul
- City: Khet Bang Rak
- Country: Thailand
- Did you collaborate on this project?
Text description provided by the architects. Bangkok-based design Sixseven Studio(67s)has completed a new urban retreat; Yunomori Onsen and Spa | Sathorn that offers authentic experiences for both Japanese onsen and Thai massage. Located in the middle of Bangkok city in Sathorn area, the building consists of 2 parts, which are the renovated old apartment building and the new building, separating the functions of the onsen and spa treatment facilities.
The concept of bridging the old building with the new one is inspired by Kintsugi, a Japanese art of repairing broken pottery. The attempt to reflect the concept results in sublime material selections, fusing Japanese minimalist aesthetic with local materials.
The major challenge of this project is the narrow plot in the heart of Bangkok’s CBD. Despite being surrounded by dense tall buildings,67soffers a design solution by creating a courtyard that allows natural light. Guests who enter the lobby on the 2ndfloor are greeted with the bamboo-formed concrete wall that runs through the whole atrium. The interior design intends to cut off the chaotic outside world.
The hallway’s atmosphere fosters peace and relaxation, thanks to the wood veneer flooring and illuminated with concealed light. The designer intentionally puts the lobby next to the lush garden courtyard to create a little surprise for the guests. The courtyard also acts as a buffer area between the two buildings, a common space for both onsen and massage facilities.
On the 1st floor, a restaurant “Happy Rice” sits next to the garden with a seating area surrounded by greenery. An open bar counter which serves light meals and “kakigori” dessert for customers is cladded with Japanese-style chiseled wood texture.
The interior design of the onsen on the 3rdand 4thfloor is more simplified, using lighter shades of materials, the uniform rhythm of surfaces, along with natural slate stone and indirect light source. The idea is to gradually change the visitor’s perception of the space, from rough to relaxing, as the guests walk through the space. The treatment rooms offer more intimate sensibility. An intricate wooden screen with a diffusing acrylic sheet resembles an illuminated sho-ji screen. To ensure the harmony of the atmosphere,67suses only light tone wood furniture with neutral color soft finishing, from beige to ivory and gray.
As the guests are approaching the rooftop bar, the bamboo element reappears again. This time it was used to cover the entire ceiling, casting a pleasant effect of dancing light and shadow. The white marble mosaic floor, inspired by the broken ceramic, is the exemplary element that the designer uses to remind us of the Kintsugi art.
Project gallery
Project location
Address: 54 ซอย khwaeng silom, khet bang rak, krung thep maha nakhon 10500, thailand.
Materials and Tags
- Sustainability
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汤之森温泉水疗沙吞店 / Sixseven Studio
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8 Stunning Spas Designed by Famous Architects
By Laura Ratliff
If you’re a design-minded traveler, you’ve likely selected your hotel based on its architect or designer. But have you ever given a thought to who designed your hotel’s spa? A lot of work goes into creating a truly serene environment, so it’s no surprise that big-name architects and designers from around the world have taken their talents from restaurants and room design to spa treatment rooms and swimming pools (for example, who knew Frank Gehry designed a spa in a Spanish resort?). And the results are stunning, to say the least. Whether you’re taken with Philippe Starck’s audacious designs or prefer the sleek, minimal lines of Japanese architect Rie Azuma, here are eight hotel spas with a world-class infusion of style.
Tschuggen Grand Hotel (Arosa, Switzerland)
Mario Botta designed the cathedral-like Tschuggen Bergoase spa in the Swiss resort town of Arosa. The 54,000-square-foot complex has become well known for its trademark steel-and-glass sails that allow the interior to be permeated with light and mountain views. Carlo Rampazzi created the delicate interiors that combine light, water, and stone.
Hotel Marqués de Riscal (Elciego, Spain)
The inimitable Frank Gehry, along with Yves Collet, designed the Caudalie spa at this Spanish resort. While the exterior of the building features the undulating forms that Gehry is well known for, the spa’s interior takes a more refined approach, housing a minimalist-chic pool and treatment rooms with expansive views of the property’s vineyards.
La Réserve Paris
Situated in a breathtaking Parisian hôtel particulier , La Réserve has become a favorite of fashion’s movers and shakers since its opening in 2015. Designer Jacques Garcia’s rich interiors carry over into the spa, which features a 50-foot indoor pool—a rarity in Paris—lined with crimson banquettes and billowing draperies.
Mii amo (Sedona, Arizona)
Few spas have a sense of place like Sedona’s Mii amo . New York–based Gluckman Tang Architects (the team behind the original Whitney Museum’s New York expansion) designed the 24,000-square-foot sybaritic retreat using influences from the region’s Anasazi culture and the surrounding environment. The spa’s focal point is a 172-foot-long horizontal spine featuring five brick towers inspired by Anasazi cliff dwellings.
By Sydney Wingfield
By Katie Schultz
By Michelle Duncan
Le Royal Monceau (Paris)
Philippe Starck’s intense style comes full circle in the intimate spa at Le Royal Monceau in Paris. The centerpiece of the spa is an indoor pool bathed in natural light thanks to a skylight and Starck’s trademark mirrors on the wall. Women’s treatments rooms are decorated in pure white with touches of feminine pink, whereas men walk through a showy stainless steel hallway.
Huvafen Fushi (Maldives)
Underwater experiences—from hotel rooms to dining experiences—are all the rage, so why not have an underwater spa treatment too? Huvafen Fushi is home to the world’s first underwater spa, originally designed to mimic the resort’s 43 thatched-roof bungalows. Studio RHE refreshed the spa at Huvafen Fushi in 2007, creating a futuristic space with an LED-illuminated recessed ceiling and blue-and-white terrazzo flooring.
Dolder Grand Hotel (Zurich, Switzerland)
When Norman Foster revamped Zurich’s historic Dolder Grand just over a decade ago, he also added a truly remarkable spa. The 43,000-square foot ground-level space includes an aqua zone, 18 treatment rooms, 2 spa suites, a meditation room, and a salon. (Foster’s affinity for Switzerland is well known—he’s worked on countless projects throughout the country.)
Hoshinoya Tokyo
Japanese architect Rie Azuma reinvented the traditional Japanese ryokan when she created Tokyo’s Hoshinoya property in the city’s buzzy Otemachi neighborhood. For spa-goers, the main attraction is a breathtaking hot-spring bath, situated on the hotel’s 17th floor. The baths are filled with healing waters and offer full exposure to the sky, creating a truly sensual experience.
By Christina Liao
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By John Wogan
By Mayer Rus
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