Four Elements Hotel is located in a unique spot on the IJmeer, where water, air, and light converge. The beautiful 10-story building is designed entirely according to sustainable principles. All 195 rooms have a view either of the harbor or the IJmeer, and thanks to the large windows, they are bathed in natural light each morning from the shimmering water or the lively marina.
On the ground floor you’ll find the spacious, stylish Restaurant FIVE, and on the 10th floor, the jewel in the crown: a panoramic Sky Bar overlooking the water. There’s also a large waterfront terrace, a perfect place to escape or just relax.
This is a Nearly Zero-Energy building: it produces as much energy as it consumes.
The Rooms - Natural Comfort with a View
Each hotel room combines sustainable design with modern comfort.
The floors are warm wood, and the walls are made of recycled concrete from demolished buildings in the Netherlands. No mass production, but conscious choices with respect for people and the environment.
There’s an innovative shower heat-recovery system (WTW): while you shower, the used water’s heat is recycled through a heat exchanger, saving up to 50% of energy per shower.
Large windows give either a view of the IJmeer or the harbor, and let in a lot of natural daylight.
The rooms are quiet and draft-free, thanks to an advanced ventilation system — no traditional air conditioning.
EWF Concept by Prof. Ben Bronsema
The hotel is built around the revolutionary EWF concept, developed by Prof. Ben Bronsema (TU Delft).
This system mimics natural airflow patterns, inspired by termite mounds in Africa, to ensure a pleasant indoor climate without conventional air conditioning. Instead we use natural ventilation and heat storage.
Key parts of the EWF system: climate cascade: a vertical “air–water” system. Outside air is disinfected, heated or cooled, and humidified through large metal mist nozzles in shafts. This acts as a natural heat exchanger; solar chimneys: located on the south-west side - glass and PV (solar) facades. They drive solar-powered ventilation and heating: warm air rises and is used for air circulation and for heating water via a heat pump and the WTW installation; ground source / thermal storage (WKO) + Heat Pump / WTW: excess thermal energy is stored in the ground (a “monobron” system), then reused efficiently for heating domestic hot water and conditioning air.
The result is a building that not only works, it “breathes,” lives and produces energy!
Energy balance & use
The building is almost entirely clad in solar panels, from the roof down to the façades. Thanks to this “power façade” and the solar roof, the hotel generates virtually all its own energy: heating, cooling, hot water and ventilation are largely self-supplied.
Green ecosystem & air quality
Four Elements Hotel Amsterdam uses a fully natural ventilation system, without traditional air-conditioning. Fresh outside air is filtered, cooled or heated via the so-called climate cascade with help of water-mist and groundwater. As a result, the indoor climate is always pleasant and fresh, without draught or noise.
Used materials & construction
FSC-certified HPL interior doors, wooden window frames, fire-resistant and sound-insulating glazing in the Sky Bar and rooms – nautically selected for air-conditioning integration and energy management (magnetic switching system for lighting/climate).
Rockfit Premium stone-wool insulation applied in cavity walls for high insulation value (Rᶜ ≈ 5.7) and fire safety, alongside integrated solar panels in the façades.
Life on the roof
On the roof of the hotel there is a large bird house, specially designed for birds of prey. With a live camera guests and visitors can follow their behaviour.
In addition to the bird house, an insect-hotel has also been placed to stimulate biodiversity. In this way we quite literally give space to nature, at the highest point of the building.
Four Elements Hotel Amsterdam is a living example of what is possible when architecture, technology and ecology go hand in hand. Every stone, every window and every shower has been designed with sustainability in mind.
