How Renovation Breathed New Life into a Hotel in Kamchatka

The Laguna is one of the oldest family holiday retreats in Kamchatka—a beloved destination for locals during the Soviet era.

Decades later, its infrastructure had fallen into disrepair, rendering the property unusable. A renovation project by FANTALIS Architects has restored the Laguna to life, transforming it into a major draw for both tourists and residents.

The predecessor of today’s Laguna SPA Hotel was a Soviet-era resort in the village of Paratunka. It featured 52 guest rooms and an aqua center popular with locals and visitors alike.

Despite its prime location—directly on the route to Kamchatka’s volcanoes—the region remains a seasonal travel destination. Tourist flow fluctuates significantly throughout the year. The project team faced a critical challenge: to create a multifunctional complex capable of attracting local visitors from nearby Yelizovo and Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky even during the low season.

The hotel is well positioned for access to Kamchatka’s major natural attractions—guests come primarily for the landscape, and they spend relatively little time on the property. Still, the design capitalizes on the site’s natural assets. Panoramic views of a mountain lake and volcano have become destination features in their own right.

The aqua center, with its large outdoor thermal pool, is the hotel’s main attraction—for both tourists and locals. Originally built during the Soviet era by Icelandic specialists, the complex has been redeveloped by FANTALIS into a modern, user-friendly facility.

The relaunch of the SPA Hotel required a comprehensive overhaul: a complete renovation of the aqua center and two existing hotel buildings, the addition of a restaurant, the installation of glamping units, the implementation of modern management systems, a full rebranding, and extensive landscaping.

Since the renovation, guests are spending more time at the aqua center. In addition to the pool, visitors now have access to a full-service restaurant with a 100-seat terrace. Work on the aqua center continues—final updates and finishing touches are scheduled for completion this autumn.

The Laguna grounds now feature covered barbecue areas where guests can gather, cook, and socialize. The shoreline has been upgraded, on-site navigation has been improved, and parking capacity has been expanded.

Laguna SPA Hotel is part of a larger development initiative aimed at boosting tourism in the Kamchatka region, and one of the flagship projects delivered by FANTALIS Group.

In addition to the main buildings, the property includes a collection of distinctive guest house typologies: Forest, Glazastik, Gray House, and Idealny Kub. Each was designed to appeal to a specific guest profile:

• Forest: Defined by a window framing a birch grove, these houses are positioned at the edge of the property. They are especially popular with younger guests, who don’t mind the short distance from the main restaurant.
• Glazastik: A studio with a double bed and an extra sleeping area—well suited for families with young children.
• Gray House: A two-bedroom layout with a shared living space. The house can be rented as a whole or by the room; each bedroom has its own bathroom and balcony.

• Idealny Kub: Named for its cubic form, this guest house is flooded with natural light through a panoramic window that frames the surrounding landscape. Designed for guests seeking solitude, it features a private terrace, a lakeside pier, and a traditional Russian kupel bath fed by the region’s thermal springs.

Today, Laguna is one of Kamchatka’s most sought-after resorts—distinct for its high standard of both environment and service. Since reopening, the hotel has welcomed more than 122,000 visitors.

Thanks to FANTALIS, this historic retreat has been restored to viability. It is now profitable and economically resilient—even in the off-season. Tourists continue to arrive in large numbers, and local residents have made Laguna a year-round destination.

Source: https://welcometimes.ru/news/kak-renovaciya-vernula-k-zhizni-otel-na-kamchatke