Feasibility + programming
Early study of the property, planning framework, access, yield, guest mix, amenities, phasing, constraints, and development priorities.
Resorts + hotels
A stay can become
a world of its own.
Site planning, architecture, interiors, landscape, water, and hospitality experience composed as one continuous journey: from the first approach to the most private room.
The Moment Hotel · Hollywood, completedDestination as design
A guest remembers the whole.
A resort is not experienced as a collection of separate disciplines. It is remembered as an arrival, a path, a view, a room, a pool, a meal, a material, and a feeling that continues from one moment to the next.
Our role is to give that complete experience a clear architectural idea, and then resolve the planning, technical, and operational decisions that allow it to endure.
The Moment Hotel
A bold hotel on Sunset Boulevard.
Guest rooms, public spaces and the street presence of a hotel we designed and delivered in Hollywood. It has been reviewed by Travel Weekly, Fodor’s and Oyster as a place to actually stay, not only as a design.
Reviewed by the hospitality press
All press and recognition
Travel Weekly
The Moment Hotel, First Class, Los Angeles
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Fodor's Travel
The Moment Hotel, Los Angeles, review
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Oyster.com
The Moment Hotel Review: What To REALLY Expect If You Stay
Read
Hollywood Estates
Modern Stays Redefined: The Moment Hotel on Sunset Boulevard
Read
Curbed LA
Hollywood's Sunset Inn Motel becoming Moment Hotel
ReadArchitizer
The Moment Hotel
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ArchiScene
The Moment Hotel by Amit Apel Design
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LA Business Journal
Commercial Real Estate Silver Award, Best Hospitality Project
ReadRelevant work
Built experience.
Design vision.
Completed hospitality work · Hollywood
The Moment Hotel
Exterior identity, arrival, lobby, guest-room interiors, color, furniture, lighting, and rooftop experience developed as one recognizable property.
View the project ↗
Concept design + visualization · Tulum and Bacalar
Resort studies
Destination-scale studies connecting land planning, guest villas, shared amenities, pools, bars, interiors, landscape, privacy, and movement.
Explore the studies ↓Master planning
Plan the land, then the buildings.
A resort is a piece of land before it is a set of buildings. Grades, water, wind, sun path, views and the routes between them are settled first. Get that wrong and no amount of architecture recovers it.
Arrival + approach
The first hundred metres set the tone.
Approach, gate, planting and the handover from vehicle to foot are the part every guest experiences and remembers. They are designed before the rooms behind them.
Water + landscape
Water is a planning tool, not a feature.
In a warm climate water cools, separates, directs movement and carries sound. Pools, courts and channels are laid out as circulation and privacy devices first, and as amenities second.
Rooms + villas
A guest judges the resort from one room.
However good the masterplan, a guest experiences it mostly from a single suite. Ceiling height, bed orientation, the view from the pillow, bathroom daylight and acoustic separation decide whether the property is remembered well.
Social + wellness
Two atmospheres, planned apart.
Bars and terraces need enclosure, shade and noise. Spa and bathing need the opposite: quiet, controlled light and a discreet route in and out. Planning them as one zone is the most common mistake in resort design.
Knowledge + experience
What we can bring to the table.
Land use + entitlements
Planning strategy, applications, exhibits, consultant coordination, agency communication, approvals, and practical response to conditions.
Architecture
Master planning, programming, massing, arrival, guest rooms, villas, common spaces, service functions, envelope, and architectural character.
Hospitality interiors
Interior architecture, material, color, lighting, furniture, art, custom objects, guest rooms, lobbies, lounges, restaurants, bars, and spas.
Pools + outdoor experience
Pool placement, outdoor rooms, paths, shade, hardscape, planting coordination, lighting, privacy, views, and amenity relationships.
Food + beverage environments
Guest experience, atmosphere, seating, service relationships, kitchens, storage, deliveries, lighting, acoustics, and outdoor connections.
Technical coordination
Structure, civil, MEP, fire protection, energy, accessibility, waterproofing, acoustics, kitchen consultants, lighting, landscape, and specialty systems.
Documents + project continuity
Construction documents, permitting, consultant integration, cost and constructability review, procurement coordination, and field decision support.
Connected from the beginning
One idea, carried across every scale.
Position
Define the guest, place, business priorities, program, constraints, and central idea.
Plan
Organize land, access, rooms, villas, amenities, service, views, privacy, and phasing.
Compose
Develop architecture, landscape relationships, interiors, material, light, furniture, and art.
Resolve
Coordinate approvals, consultants, code, systems, documents, budget, and constructability.
Carry through
Protect continuity through procurement, review, field decisions, installation, and completion.
Before we begin
Useful questions.
What types of resort and hotel projects can Apel Design support?
The studio can support boutique hotels, destination resorts, private retreats, guest villas, hospitality renovations and repositioning, restaurants and bars, shared amenities, pools, and outdoor guest environments.
Can one team coordinate the site plan, architecture, and interiors?
Yes. Apel Design can connect early site planning and feasibility with architecture, interior architecture, material, lighting, furniture, art, pools, and landscape coordination so the guest experience develops as one whole.
Are all images on this page completed projects?
No. The Moment Hotel is identified as completed hospitality work. The Tulum and Bacalar imagery is clearly identified as concept design and visualization work so completed experience and forward-looking design studies remain distinct.
When should resort design begin?
Early involvement is valuable because access, topography, views, privacy, circulation, service, utilities, guest-room mix, amenity placement, and approval strategy can influence both the experience and the development plan.
What does luxury residential experience contribute to resort design?
It brings close attention to privacy, comfort, proportion, indoor-outdoor living, materials, lighting, furniture, art, and the emotional character of individual rooms, while hospitality planning connects those moments across an entire property.
Featured in
New York PostDwellRobb ReportMansion GlobalLos Angeles TimesKTLA 5Design MilkArchitizerArchitect MagazineCurbed LA
71 features and awards