CNN
—
A new hotel in Indonesia is on the verge of taking the title of “the world’s leanest” hotel. But its creator says the project isn’t just about setting world records, it’s about drawing international attention to this small town he calls home. Masu.
Ali Indra grew up in Salatiga, Central Java. He trained as an architect, and after a career in Jakarta and Singapore, he returned to his hometown of Salatiga, where he felt called to demonstrate his skills.
There, he found an unwanted piece of land that no one had wanted to develop because of its unusual size.It’s now my home base Pitu Roomsa seven-room hotel (Pitu means “seven” in Javanese) that is just 2.8 meters (9 feet) wide.
The building has five floors, and each of the seven rooms is large enough to accommodate a double bed and a small bathroom with shower and toilet. The use of local artwork and decor gives each room a different feel.
“I want people to experience Salatiga in a new way,” Indra told CNN. “I own, design and operate his PituRooms with my team. This has become my new platform to create a new type of tourism that involves the local community.”
Salatiga is 300 miles southeast of Jakarta and is largely unknown to foreigners who vacation to Yogyakarta, Surabaya, or nearby Bali instead.
Case in point: Indra told CNN that Pitu Rooms, which opened in December 2022, had “only 5%” of non-Indonesian guests.
However, Indra said Salatiga is known in Indonesia as a tolerant city with good food, good infrastructure and a high quality of life. It was a popular weekend getaway for the Dutch during colonial times.
Indra says that while most Indonesians think of Salatiga as a great place to retire, his hope is that Pitu Rooms is the first of many projects and that Salatiga is more than just a leisurely place to live. The idea is to help outsiders understand this.
“Aside from technical issues, the biggest challenge was the typical mindset surrounding the hospitality industry, which is used to superlatives like biggest, best and most luxurious. This is where we are at our thinnest.” said Indra dezaneArchitecture blog.
We worked very hard to make this limitation our biggest selling point. This is a constructed study of microspace, allowing guests to experience the possibilities of living and choreographing their movements in “enough” space. ”
The city is located at the foot of Mount Merbab, and PituRooms guests can admire the view from their hotel rooms.
In addition to hotel rooms, there will be a rooftop restaurant for locals to enjoy, and PituRooms will also host events and art exhibits.