how we care + manifesto

We are serious about sustainability, design, hospitality and the true Barcelona. Our casas, built around 1900, were renovated in 2014 respecting its history, conserving the original Catalan modernism features and according to a sustainable design criteria. You can read about our eco-renovation on our blog. However, we offer more than just an eco-friendly place to stay. Come to stay with us, we would be very happy to give you some tips about the city, recommend places to go, where to eat and share things and thoughts, and feel like a local!

Our Manifesto:

1. Reflect the real Barcelona at all times: that of its locals and never that of tourist guides. Do not practise mass tourism, foster elegant tourism.
2. Be a social hub where visitors meet locals and unusual things happen. This is a place to be, not a place to stay the night.
3. Invite guests to bring and share their culture because everyone is a local somewhere.
4. Think Slow. Co-create experiences by actively involving like-minded, independent, local brands in the business. yök cannot happen anywhere else but in Barcelona.
5. Be transparent and truly sustainable. Drastically reduce the ecological footprint of the activity through eco-innovation and sustainable design thinking.
6. Be more than an eco-project. Use embedded sustainability without sacrificing lifestyle. Do not preach, inspire.
7. Be good for People, the Planet and Profit. Create a successful business that makes the world a little bit nicer for everyone.
8. Size matters. Stay flexible and keep it personal. Guests should not feel like a room number but feel like staying at somebody’s very special house.
9. Apply good design (useful, beautiful, fun, detailed, eco-friendly, functional, affordable, long-lasting, honest, local) to everything: interiors, business model, service, activities, and shop.
10.Be social, online and offline. Be connected to guests, locals, the city, modern culture, tradition and nature.

During the eco-renovation:

– Reuse everything in the space. Leftover wooden doors were turned into headrests and old lamps were rewired.
– Restore the original features. A great effort was put into restoring and protecting the mosaic floors from 1900. New walls were put on top of the tiles so that, in case someone wants to go back to the original distribution in say, another 100 years, they can. The same goes for the decorative ceilings. All the wooden sliding balcony doors were stripped of their paint, received new railings and double glazing to save energy and reduce the noise.
– Recycled materials. Whenever possible we use recycled and recyclable materials. Our kitchens for example are made from reused pallets and an upcycled countertop by Cosentio.
– Second hand. Before buying something new, we try to find it second hand, like for example all our mirrors and bathroom sinks.
– We use only VOC-free paints and varnishes.
– We avoided PVC wherever possible. Our pipes are made from PEX (crosslinked polyethylene).
– Durability. We like things that last, both technically as well as emotionally. A good example are our light switches and plugs by Fontini and Font Barcelona.
– We chose a mix of second hand and eco-designed, locally made products and furniture by Arrels Fundació, Curro Claret, AOO,  Santa & Cole and Faro Barcelona.
– We are growing a bee-friendly plant pergola.

On an everyday basis:
– We reduce our energy consumption, by only using A+ certified appliances (thanks to rené + que electrodomèstics), AC/heating system and LED lighting. We installed a home automation system that switches off the AC/heating if a window is opened.
– We are a member of Som Energia, who provide us with 100% renewable energy.
– We save water by installing taps and shower heads with aerators and a cold-start. In our office, the w+w by Roca recycles the grey water from the sink to flush the toilet.
– We make recycling easy by providing the necessary bins and instructions.
– Our luxury beds are made locally from 100% natural materials by Astral Nature.
– We use eco-friendly cleaning products by Goccia Verde.
– We offset 1 tonne of CO2, the equivalent of the emissions of our activity during 2015, by planting trees in the Cap de Creus National Park in collaboration with Bosques Sostenibles.

What our guests can do:
– Think before switching on the AC. First, use window blinds, cross ventilation and ceiling fans.
– Use the ON/OFF switch in the entrance when leaving the house to switch everything off (except the fridge and kitchen plugs in case something needs charging).
– Use the provided basket to do your shopping to avoid plastic bags.
– Get some free filtered tap water from our office upstairs instead of buying plastic water bottles.