“Bonapace” offers energy efficient rooms with holiday flair

Credit to: www.passivehouse-international.com

Torbole/Innsbruck. Spending holidays in a Passive House is now also possible in the small town of Torbole at the edge of Lake Garda, where just in time for the summer holidays, a family enterprise has opened a hotel built according to the extremely energy efficient Passive House Standard. As typical for Passive House buildings, the rooms can be heated and cooled via the air filtered in through the incredibly silent ventilation system. With their increased  level of sound proofing, triple-glazed windows provide for peaceful holidays and exceptional comfort.

A few weeks after the 1 May 2013 opening of the hotel, those involved in the project met in Torbole for the official awarding of the Passive House Certificate. “The building has been meticulously planned; all connections as well as the technology have been implemented in an exemplary way,” said Dr. Wolfgang Feist, Director of the Passive House Institute, after a tour through the new building.

Photo: © Passivhaus Institut: Passive House Hotel Bonapace

Located just 200 metres from the edge of Lake Garda, the “Ecohotel Bonapace” has 20 double rooms, all with balconies. The solid timber building with an exterior insulation and finish system achieved a U-value of 0.11 W/m²K. The flat roof with a composite floor of wood and concrete has a U-value of 0.08 W/m²K. The energy supply in this new build, designed by the architect Fabio Ferrario of Armalab, is supplemented by a solar heating system on the roof (vacuum tubes) and a water/water heat pump. According to the hotel owners, electricity is provided solely through renewable sources – something that is economically viable with Passive House.

While there are already similar projects in Germany and Austria, the “Bonapace” hotel is the first of its kind in Italy. Those who do not want to forego the benefits of a real Passive House while on holiday, or who wish to see what it is like to live in a Passive House, have a whole range of options to choose from: apart from the beautiful surroundings of Lake Garda, there are also the Explorer hotels in Oberstdorf and Neuschwanstein (Germany) or Montafon (Austria), the Residenz Schloss Engers in Neuwied am Rhein (Germany), the Boutiquehotel Stadthalle Wien (Austria) or the Passive House complex Sonnenplatz in Großschönau (Germany).