A great look: the stove on the wooden bench
The "Alphotel Tyrol" in Ratschings has one more leading actor: The LOOK wood-burning stove delights guests at the South Tyrolean luxury hotel with its romantic dancing flames. The cosy wooden bench not only invites you to sit by the fire and enjoy the warmth but also serves as storage space for the logs – functional and stylish.
"RIKA stoves fit perfectly into our ambience, which is as close to nature as it is luxurious," say the hoteliers. "We deliberately chose RIKA stoves to furnish the hunting and forest chalets because we were convinced by their design and functionality." The Eisendle family is the second generation to run the "Alphotel Tyrol" and its new chalets. They were built in traditional South Tyrolean timber construction and equipped with large panoramic windows. The interior is characterised by natural materials such as wood, stone, clay and glass.
Ratschings: Alpine romance and wellness for the soul
Joie de vivre and hospitality are seamlessly combined with culture and tradition in this incomparable holiday region between the Stubai and Sarntal Alps. Ratschingstal is surrounded by nostalgic mountain roads, free of traffic. A deeply relaxed atmosphere hangs over this retreat – perfect for just unwinding and chilling out. Culinary specialities, wellness and spa as well as sporting activities in the fresh mountain air also ensure an all-round feeling of well-being.
Master of metamorphosis LOOK puts fire in the limelight
RIKA LOOK is extremely versatile thanks to its many different feet and base versions and is therefore extremely popular. The stove's simple design can be adapted to any living space. Whether it's steel feet, cast iron feet, concrete base or wooden bench, the LOOK effortlessly combines modern and traditional interiors. The large viewing window puts the fire in the limelight and always creates a warm, cosy atmosphere.
In conversation with hotelier Nadja Eisendle and architect Kurt Eisendle
RIKA: Ms Eisendle, what makes the region and your hotel so unique?
Nadja Eisendle: Well, Ratschings Valley is known to be very unspoilt, very quiet. There is no transit traffic and this in particular is what our guests are looking for when hiking and biking in summer. Ratschings is a very nice place for skiing in winter too. Sustainability is very important to us at our hotel: we use regional products, have a heat recovery system, photovoltaics, and just try to do our bit for the beautiful nature around us.
RIKA: How did you come up with the idea of adding the special room category "chalet" to your hotel?
Nadja Eisendle: One thing was certain when planning our Mons Silva luxury chalets: it is very important to us to offer 100% privacy to our guests, with all the hotel’s all-round services in a unique location at the sunniest spot in the valley.
RIKA: Your “Jagd” and “Tirol” chalets each have a RIKA LOOK stove. Why did you choose the brand RIKA and our stove model LOOK?
Nadja Eisendle: RIKA’s stoves accurately reflect our sustainability philosophy. RIKA is located in Austria, not far from us, and everything is produced there. That was very important to us. The design, of course, played a major role, as did the quality, so we can be sure that the guest enjoys a beautiful but also functional stove that is easy to operate.
RIKA: Do you get any feedback from your guests about the RIKA LOOK?
Nadja Eisendle: Yes, the guests are totally impressed. Some guests are also going to purchase the RIKA LOOK for their homes. So we are completely satisfied and can highly recommend the product.
RIKA: Mr Eisendle, what amenities and special features do these chalets have?
Kurt Eisendle: The special feature of this chalet complex is certainly the hillside location, I would say. This means that each chalet has an unobstructed view of nature. We have only added the luxury of giving each chalet large spacious terraces so that beautiful sunbathing areas could be created in front of the saunas and hot tubs. Inside, the room layout is designed so that each chalet has a separate breakfast area with cooking facilities, which was important to the owners so that breakfast could be delivered to the chalet. There is a Finnish sauna, there is a whirlpool, a hot tub on the terrace. There is a living area with a wood-burning stove, but also a wine cabinet and any luxury or comfort that the guest might wish for.
RIKA: What did you attach particular importance to?
Kurt Eisendle: In addition to the room layout, I also attached particular importance to the arrangement of the furniture and fixtures, so that the seating and beds are designed with nature in mind. And besides that, it was also very important to use natural, authentic materials such as wood, loden fabric and glass, stone, metal, but nevertheless to bring cosiness and a corresponding ambience into the chalets with their straight lines. And fabrics, upholstered furniture, but also a wood-burning stove naturally play an important role here.
RIKA: You just mentioned the wood-burning stove. What aspects were here important to you as an architect and what does the element fire mean to you personally?
Kurt Eisendle: We are in an adventure hotel here, in an active hotel, which means the guests are outdoors enjoying physical activity and then they retreat to the chalet for relaxation, for rest, for recuperation. That is why it was also important to me to introduce elements where they can let their mind and body unwind, where there is relaxing furniture, but where there is also a fireplace, which then lets me take it easy and just lean back in the rocking chair or on the sofa.
RIKA: And why did you choose the stove LOOK from the brand RIKA?
Kurt Eisendle: We chose this wood-burning stove because, as with other amenity products in the chalet, we focus on the highest quality. So we wanted to have a product that meets the highest standards for not only the quality, but also the aesthetics, the design, the clear design language, also a timeless design, which I think fits very well into this chalet. But it was also important to us to have a product that is regional and sustainable, and so the product was an excellent fit for us. But of course it was also important to us that the stove itself simply provides a beautiful picture for the customer through its function, through the beautiful flames and the clean combustion.
RIKA: Thank you very much for the interview and all the best for the future!
The interview was recorded and broadcast as part of the RIKA Keynote. This version has been slightly shortened.
