7132 Hotel

Therme Vals, the thermal baths designed by architect Peter Zumthor, have long been regarded as a masterpiece, the sort of place where architecture and design junkies make pilgrimages to commune with the quartzite temple that houses the geothermic waters. And now, in Hotel 7132, this village has a hotel that’s worthy of sharing space with the famous spa.

It didn’t happen without some effort, and a cast of pretty eminent characters. The original mid-century modernist hotel on the site has been brought up to contemporary luxury-hotel standard, after a massive renovation that included not just Zumthor himself, but also drafted Japanese architects Tadao Ando and Kengo Kuma as well as the American Pritzker winner Thom Mayne.

Ando is known for his work in concrete, but here he pays tribute to Japan’s traditional teahouses, working in delicately wrought wood. Kuma, too, is inspired by Japanese carpentry in his oak-clad bedrooms, and Thom Mayne splits his effort between finely crafted wooden coccoons and Stone rooms in ornately figured quartzite. And Zumthor’s Stucco rooms are perhaps the most dramatic, dark and richly textured, making ultra-modern use of a centuries-old Italian technique.

Make no mistake: this is a high-end experience, and the fine-dining 7132 Silver restaurant, proud owner of a pair of Michelin stars, won’t let you forget it. But it’s also about simple, elemental pleasures, from the restorative waters of the baths — access is included in the package, naturally — to the home-style cooking in the hotel’s rustic Italian pizzeria.