Yarlung Tzangbo River Hostel, Tibet
The hostel is situated along the slope of the Yarlung Tzangbo river near Pai town, the small town that marks the entrance of the Grand Canyon. The site is facing the river to the north, the 7782 meter Namjagbarwa to the east, the 7294 meter Gyala Peri in the north-east, and the Mount Duoxiongla to the south.
To design a 100 room hostel in such an environment poses a great challenge to us. Inspired by the “steps” strategy often seen in local villages when built on slopes, we decided to design a series of stepped single story linear buildings, each with unblocked views towards the river and mountains to the north and east. With roofs covered by earth, shrubs and rocks, the building gently imbeds itself into the sloped landscape. Looking from above, the hostel disappears like a few thin leaves floating along the river.
Site Area: 18000 sqm
Total Building Area: 7380 sqm
Building Height: 4.5 m
Architect: ZAO/standardarchitecture
Design Team: Zhang Ke, Hou Zhenghua, Zhang Hong, Guido Tesio, Sun Wei, Chen Lin, Shi Qianlan, Yang Fan
