Brief
A journey feeds primarily on architecture.
Whether they are stilts overhanging crystal-clear atolls or simple tents clinging to breathtaking landscapes, it is the architecture that provides the backdrop for one of humankind's most cherished and fascinating experiences.
Besides any poetry, tourism represents one of the most significant sectors of the global economy, and every year billions of individuals attend accommodation facilities for study, leisure, or work.
Designing accommodation facilities is therefore not only an opportunity to confront the dimension of the dream - of the home away from home, the escape from the ordinary - but also to place oneself in a sector rich in resources and growing opportunities.
For a similar reason, the course in "Architecture for Hospitality" was created to prepare young designers for a deeply demanding sector with high degrees of complexity, but also extraordinary growth prospects.
Through an understanding of the different types of accommodations and analysis of the related functional programs, designers will gain expertise in translating the most diverse receptive concepts into as many architectural designs, capable of generating the right atmosphere and ensuring the best experience for the related users. The course will consist of 74 hours of face-to-face teaching, 32 hours of workshops, and numerous lectures by renowned professionals.
At the end of the training course, the Yacademy placement office will guarantee each student an internship/collaboration proposal within the partner firms.
Course info
15 In person
5 Online
Bologna
8.9.2025 - 14.11.2025
3 days/weekNovember 2025 - February 2026
€ 2,900 + VAT
Online€ 7,900 + VAT
In person*3
Full coverage of the enrollment fee for the most outstanding candidatesTeaching modules & Workshops
Types of accommodation
Characteristics, services and organizational models of different hotel categoriesLayout of a hotel
Space organization and functional patternsFurnishings in interior design
Designing the soul of a hotelGreening design
Greenery inside and outside the hotelRestaurants and food spaces
Food at the heart of the projectBudget control and project management
The connection between economy and architectureStudent hotel
Collective space as the driving feature behind the projectNew trends and typologies
The 1000 possible nuances of hospitality businessVoices from hospitality
Testimonies of companies and industry professionalsWellness spaces
Spa, gyms and swimming pools: spaces for the spirit and the bodyThe design of light
Light as a physical and perceptual phenomenon behind the concept of atmosphere of an environmentThe production of furniture
From raw materials to the finished productBranding through architecture
Understanding the identity of a hotel to design its spacesSite Visits
NOA Tour
Moglia, Cesare Roversi Arredamenti
Gelso lighthouse
Special lectures and critiques
From the Beverly Hills Hotel to the Cipriani Hotel in Venice: 50 years of luxury hotel business
Hotels and the natural environment: from Alps to deserts
Morpheus Hotel: global design from architecture to the logo
Santa Caterina Market in Barcelona
1Hotel: wood and eco-luxury
Under, the first underwater restaurant
From Louis Vuitton to Four Season: designing for brands
High tech & human-centred design: hospitality according to Foster + Partners' vision
Wine tourism and historical memory: the project of Ribera del Duero
Beyond shelter: emotional architecture for the contemporary host
Inhabiting abandoned lighthouses
Design workshop
Anteo Taro Boschi Sanada / Kengo Kuma & Associates
The workshop is conducted in collaboration with the Italian Public Property Agency, the institution managing the historical heritage of the Italian State, and will deal with the transformation of the lighthouse tower in the Vulcano island into a receptive structure. Nestled between the cliffs of the Lipari group - one of the most fascinating archipelagos in Sicily with its magmatic formations and boiling and sulfur sands - the Gelso lighthouse is a gem of late-nineteenth-century architecture, with traits in common with numerous solitary Bourbon lighthouses that dot the coasts of Sicily. Like its twins, the advent of modern navigation technologies has confined the structure to a state of obsolescence. Nonetheless, in relation to the naturalistic prestige of the area where it stands, today the lighthouse lends itself to becoming an exclusive receptive destination for a type of refined tourism fascinated by the sea and remote and unspoiled natural destinations. Whether you choose a design that is confined to the existing architecture or you use the lighthouse as the backdrop where to install a series of cabines or diffused architectural elements following the model of the landscape hotel, the transformation of a signal tower into a luxury receptive structure is one of the most fascinating and suggestive opportunities for architects oriented toward the hotel industry. Through the workshop, architects will have the chance to determine their own favourite receptive model, designing unique experiences and testing architectural languages and solutions capable of becoming formats of international relevance to support the requalification of the lighthouse, that is, of one of the most iconic and defined historical and artistic legacies in the collective imagery.
Construction workshop
Construction is a fundamental step in architecture. For this reason, YACademy offers its students the opportunity to participate in the process of producing their own ideas. Thus, the students will gain practical experience on construction sites and, above all, the authorship of projects built for excellent commissions, destined for a major media echo and capable of defining a turning point in their professional career.
Placement
At the end of teaching modules and workshop, YACademy’s Placement office will guarantee every student an internship or collaboration proposal in one of our partner studios.
Teachers
Admission
Requirements
Students or graduates in Architecture/Design can apply to the course. The commission, based on the assessment of the application, may admit students with different qualifications.
Registration
To apply, it is necessary to register online and submit a Curriculum Vitae, a Portfolio, and a Motivational Letter. Moreover, it is necessary to pay the application fee (€60 + VAT). The best 20 candidates will be admitted to the course according to the rules.
Scholarship
By applying for the course, the students automatically become eligible to obtain a scholarship: one will be granted to each of the best 3 applicants for each course, consistently with the Selection Committee's evaluation. Therefore, it is not necessary to make specific actions to apply for a scholarship. The scholarship covers the entire enrollment fee - regardless of the type of attendance chosen -, but does not cover the application fee (€60 + VAT) that has to be paid in order to complete the application process successfully.
Timeline
Complying with deadlines is a fundamental requirement to take part in the course. All students are encouraged to pay the utmost attention to the timeline and to complete each phase in advance.
Applications opening
Applications deadline
Publication of the provisional ranking
Beginning of second-round admissions
Enrollment fee payment deadline for students admitted according to the provisional ranking
Publication of the official ranking (including second-round admitted students)
Lessons start
Download
Make sure you have downloaded the course brochure, from which you will be able to obtain any information about YACademy, as well as every single detail on how to access and enrol in the courses.
Brochure IT
Brochure EN
Download the 2023/24 internships report
Find out all the statistics and placement methodology for the year 2023/24: 39% of students entered Pritzker studios.
Partners
To each one of them, many thanks from YACademy staff and students.