A Refined Retreat – McLaren Vale Escapod by Das Studio

Combining an elevated and immersive hotel experience with a rural dislocation, McLaren Vale Escapod allows guests to stay comfortably amongst the vines, without compromising on amenity. Das Studio draws from a sense of place and opens to the surrounding landscape as an open conversation with nature and the elements.

Nestled into an existing and established vineyard in Adelaide’s south, McLaren Vale Escapod sits subtle and recessive amongst its natural setting, deliberately quiet and compact. Providing an opportunity for guests to stay in such a removed locale, the crisply conceived and considered functionality of the pod ensures all contemporary conveniences have been integrated, while allowing an immersion within nature. As a partnering between Das Studio and Escapod, the insertion in place is built upon minimising impact to the site both through construction and time, while leveraging the already in place prefabricated construction capabilities of the team. In its location, the private retreat combines intimate and more open moments, as a viewing box of the surrounds.

Composed as a linear form, the design integrates the expected inclusions of a luxury hotel accommodation offering, while embedding materiality that connects the architecture to place.

Composed as a linear form, the design integrates the expected inclusions of a luxury hotel accommodation offering, while embedding materiality that connects the architecture to place. Natural and darker finishes clad the frame externally, which are then brought inward to create a cohesive approach. The darkened form allows its presence to sit as a retreating insertion, while the lush natural landscape becomes the focus. In its place, and through the inclusion of large glazing elements and a generous outdoor deck, guests are able to watch the landscape change across the seasons, with uninterrupted visual access.

As no other accommodation or rural buildings block the surrounding views, the sightlines outward further create a feeling of disconnect. The self-sufficient retreat is imagined as a destination in its own right, needing only to arrive and depart when done, integrating all amenity needed for the short stay. At just 40 square metres, the pod integrates a full-sized kitchen, bedroom, laundry, lounge, dining and three separate terraces. Storage and other amenity are concealed amongst the joinery, while key comforts such as underfoot heating provide a consistent comfort throughout the year. The wood burning fireplace adds a more nostalgic element, providing warmth but also reminding visitors of their rural location.

The darkened form allows its presence to sit as a retreating insertion, while the lush natural landscape becomes the focus.

Through a focus on experience and a heralding of the wine region it sits within, Das Studio’s McLaren Vale Escapod creates an opportunity to appreciate the uniqueness of the landscape and to become involved in a small part of the winemaking process.