Virador Beach Club

The project is located at the Four Seasons Hotel in Peninsula Papagayo, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. The hotel with its 182 guestrooms, suites, villas and private residences, is considered the jewel of the peninsula. The project starts as an adequacy of the hotel done by Zurcher Architects in 2004 respecting its original architecture and essence. It is right in the middle of a beautiful dense tropical forest of the peninsula between two stunning beaches. The Project Site is at the north side beach which is designated for adults only separated from the family resort areas. The operator needed a mayor change on the adult pool and the project a new beach club / open restaurant next to it. The area designated for the project was a left-over open space limited by the property line and the public beach restriction. The importance of blending the new architecture with the original was the most important challenge for both architect and operator. Costa Rica is known for its tropical climate and dense vegetation with an average temperature of 32º C so being an open space with no air conditioning required special attention to shades and crossing winds. Part of the project was the demolition of the adult pool and deck area to create a total new experience based on a raised infinity pool and deck separated from the beach level in order to bring privacy and views to the ocean line. Both areas, the restaurant and new pool interact connecting to the beach.