Architecture firm Etea has designed Estancia Lago, a small boutique hotel in Mexico made up of three cabins set around a lake. Raised on concrete columns, the cabins appear to float on the water. The firm is at etea.mx.
Part of the Amalia complex
The hotel belongs to Amalia, a complex that combines forestry and agriculture in an organic, sustainable and socially minded system. The cabins give guests a quiet way to stay within this landscape.
Concrete boxes with Mayan-style walls
Each room is a polished grey concrete box. The side walls are bajareque wood, finished with a mix of kancab (red earth) and grass, much like the finish of a traditional Mayan home. The cabins are grouped around the lake and stand on concrete columns, which gives them their floating look.
After dark, uplighting picks out the timber detailing on the outside of the cabins.
Rooms that open to the water
Inside, the same timber detailing forms an accent wall. Sliding doors open each room to the lake and to the local plants and wildlife around it. The bathroom has warm wood accents, a skylight, plants and a backlit mirror above the vanity.
Project credits
- Project: Estancia Lago, Amalia complex, Mexico
- Architecture firm: Etea
- Lead architects: Jessica Cetina Falla, Adriana Ancona Bouza
- Design team: Monscerrat Campos, Asiria Uribia, Sebastián Olivera, Omar Koh
- Construction: Sucovisa
- Photography: Manolo R. Solís
- Source: Contemporist