Rotation, rotation, rotation

As hotels and resorts come up with ever more creative ways to lure in that sought after tourist dollar, the little-known island of solta in Crotia has bypassed the location, location, location spiel and gone straight for rotation, rotation, rotation, with plans to open Europe's first revolving hotel...

A rotating hotel is to form the centrepiece of a new resort near Split in Croatia. The tiny island of solta will soon have a major tourist attraction which will bring much needed foreign money into Croatia's economy, which has been hit hard by the credit crunch.

A team of award-winning British architects from Studio RHE have designed the groundbreaking hotel, which will allow guests to enjoy views from every angle and an ever changing scene outside.

The luxury hotel will have 50 suites and the slow nature of the revolutions means that guests won't feel the building turning atall, let alone get motion sickness.

The Šolta Island Resort will use the expertise of shipyard engineers from the nearby Croatian city of Split to build a turn-table that will slowly rotate the hotel. It is £70 million project and completion is slated for 2012.

Architect Richard Hywel Evans from Studio RHE said, "The building is entered from below at Lower Ground Level which does not rotate.

"The 22-metre diameter Centre hub of the building is also static and this contains the Reception, circulation stairs and lifts."

The hotel will be built in the middle of a man-made swimming lake set into the hillside with olive groves nearby. The suites will be built on three levels and will spin 1.3 times daily, offering different views of the Adriatic. There will also be a luxury Marina, spa and private villas.

"We believe this is a stunning example of how creative, exciting and bold design can and should be," said Mr Evans.

"In the case of Šolta Island the need was simple - every guest should be able to enjoy the breathtaking view and our rotating design provides just that," he added.