Thrilling Cliff Concept Hotel Clings to a Famous Tourist Spot in Norway

Architecture that clings to cliff faces may not be the most practical or environmentally sensitive, but it sure is visually striking. A new proposal from Turkish designer and architect Hayri Atak takes the drama up a few notches with a vertigo-inducing cantilevered platform that juts out from the rock, complete with a glass-bottomed infinity pool.

The Cliff Concept Hotel is designed with Norways’ famous cliff Preikestolen in mind, overlooking the beautiful Lysefjorden body of water below. The lookout point itself resembles a pulpit, hence its name, and is the most popular tourist attraction in the Ryfylke area. Atak imagines the rock transforming into a boutique hotel with oval balconies, the rooms presumably carved into the rock beneath the plateau.

It would certainly offer a unique tourist experience, especially for those brave enough to venture out into the tip of the swimming pool, and the design itself is an intriguing one. However, it’s probably safe to say that people who like to visit the rock wouldn’t exactly appreciate it being taken over as a for-profit venture exclusively catering to deep-pocketed travelers, and would prefer to leave it as it is.

As fantasy architecture, or perhaps a project for another location, it’s pretty cool, and a great way for a young architect to call global attention to himself and his work. Hayri Atak is a graduate of Istanbul Technical University, Auburn University and the Nuova Academia di Belle Arti in Milan, and his projects include parametric pavilions and facades, retail and restaurant interiors and other hotel designs.