The 2025 edition of interihotel will highlight the transforming value of the encounters in hospitality design. The showroom WEcontract BCN hosted the presentation of the new features of the most relevant hotel and restaurant design event, at a press conference attended by Joaquim Solana (Cluster Manager at AMBIT), Pepa Casado d'Amato (creative director of interihotel) and Toni Zaragoza (director of interihotel), who were responsible for announcing the details of this eagerly awaited edition to the accredited media during the event.
Jordi Bosch (Trade marketing manager at Roca, Global sponsor of this edition) has also participated in the presentation, as well as representatives for the other sponsors confirmed so far: Niessen, Ikea, Jung and Tarkett. Bosch has declared that “interihotel is a key event for all of us who work in the design and creation of spaces that generate memorable experiences. For Roca, being here means reinforcing our commitment to the hospitality industry, an area in which we bring our experience, innovation and global vision”. He has also commented that participating in interihotel allows Roca to show its vision of the bathroom in the hospitality industry: a functional and aesthetically pleasing space, but also a space that takes care of the wellness of the people and the environment.
interihotel, which this year will celebrate its 15th edition, is the only international event for hotel and restaurant design professionals held in Spain. In fact, the event organized by AMBIT Living Spaces Cluster has become the most important in Europe in the hospitality design industry, an unmissable event that brings together hotel companies, restaurant groups, real estate investors and interior design and architecture studios specialized in hotel and restaurant design looking for the latest trends and innovative solutions for the sector.
Its value proposition, focused on design, is what makes it unique and singular: it materializes in a perfect mix of an international event with more than 10,000 professionals, a congress with more than 180 speakers, an innovation and trends hub in the form of talks, Concept Rooms and laboratories of ideas, awards and business.
Interihotel is a fundamental event in the hospitality industry that incorporates in its DNA the importance of design as a generator of bridges between cultures, innovation in business models and the need to adopt sustainable and regenerative practices. To quote its director, Toni Zaragoza: "At interihotel we create relationship environments for specifiers, hospitality project developers, investors and brands. It is the event where innovations and new trends in hotel and restaurant design are presented and where professionals meet to get inspired and learn about new solutions for their projects. It is, without a doubt, the event to be at". The director also took the opportunity to thank the sponsors, the participants in the session, the media and the media partners of the edition.
The Power of Encounters: the connections that shape the industry
This year's edition revolves around “The Power of Encounters”, an idea that vindicates the transformative value of encounters in the design of the hospitality industry.
Hotel and restaurant design is not built alone: it requires dialogue, collaboration and a shared will to go further. Hospitality design takes shape when ideas intersect, when creativity meets experience and vision transforms materials into meaningful spaces. It is in those connections that something new is born. interihotel celebrates those moments of exchange that inspire change, the conversations that set a course, because it is at interihotel where connections happen.
“The Power of Encounters” will focus on three key topics that reflect the major challenges and opportunities of the industry:
- October 21: Cultural encounters - Every hospitality project is an opportunity to tell a local story in a global language. This thematic line will explore how design can preserve the identity of a destination, reinterpreting traditions and connecting with the visitor from the authentic.
- October 22: Sustainable encounters - Design that not only welcomes, but also cares. This topic will address how design, materials and business strategies can generate positive environmental and social impact, driving a more conscious and responsible industry.
- October 23: The business of encounters - Design is also strategy. This topic will analyze how collaborations between designers, hoteliers and investors are redefining business models, generating new standards and unlocking unprecedented opportunities in the sector.
First confirmations
Seven months before the event, interihotel BCN25 has already confirmed the participation of prominent studios such as Space Copenhagen, Javier Plazas, Estudio B720, Mesura, Ricard Trenchs, Astet Studio, Núria Moliner or MRGO, among the more than 180 speakers who will participate in the congress.
Concept Rooms with leading international design studios
Isabel López Vilalta + Asociados will be one of the architecture and interior design studios participating in the Concept Rooms project of this edition. ILV+Asociados is a studio with offices in Barcelona, Mallorca and Madrid founded in 1992 by Isabel López Vilalta, a renowned Spanish interior designer with more than 35 years of professional experience and winner of the Award for outstanding professional career in interior design at interihotel BCN21.
The interior designer, who personally attended the presentation, spoke briefly to thank the organization for choosing her studio. She spoke of the collaborative work involved in this type of project, stressing the importance of having a good team and a good network of suppliers. She ended her speech with the following reflection: "[...] I think that this globalized world makes everything very homogeneous, and that, perhaps, hotels end up looking more and more alike [...] And I would like, precisely, to find, maybe, that different way of doing things, or of trying to stop being homogeneous. I would like to think that this is going to be a good opportunity to achieve it".
PhiBa Architecture is the other studio that has accepted the challenge of designing one of interihotel's Concept Rooms. Founded in 2011, it has offices in both Philadelphia and Barcelona, which allows them to tackle projects in regions with very different cultural and environmental contexts.
The session was attended by Luis Balaguer, Design Director of the firm, who also expressed his gratitude for having been chosen for the project. He explained how the studio plans to tackle the project, eliminating preconceived ideas, restrictions and focusing on the most important thing: the guests. In his own words: “It comes to our minds how hotels could try to be living organisms that can adapt to how guests feel [...] Thank you very much for thinking of us, because we believe it is a great opportunity to try to find these innovative, technological spaces that can adapt to the guests”.
Forecasts for 2025
Interihotel BCN25 expects more than 300 exhibiting brands, which would be the highest number in its history. At the time of this presentation, the participation of more than 200 has already been confirmed. In terms of visitors, the organization expects more than 10,000 professionals from more than 50 countries to attend, which would again exceed the figures of the previous edition.
