The USA has its first net-zero hotel – and it looks stylish AF

Even if the Hotel Marcel wasn’t the first net-zero energy hotel in the US, it’d still be worthy of note. I mean, just look at it. A top-heavy monolith that looks like it’s floating above pretty, leafy New Haven, Connecticut, it’s an absolutely gorgeous structure and an oddball masterpiece.

But it also just so happens that, when it opens in April 2022, the Hotel Marcel will be the first net-zero hotel in the entire US of A. And not just that: it’ll be the first ‘Passive-House-certified’ hotel in the US, too, meaning it's the crème de la crème of energy efficiency.

So what exactly does all that mean? Well, the Hotel Marcel will generate an astonishing 100 percent of its own energy. That’s right. All lights, all heating and all hot water will be powered by rooftop solar panels. Impressive stuff, huh?

The building itself, in case you hadn’t guessed, is also upcycled. The Pirelli Tire Building was bought by architecture firm Becker + Becker in 2020, and the hotel has been designed with the help of NYC-based firm Dutch East Design. It’ll be part of Hilton’s ‘Tapestry’ group, a collection of some of the brand’s most distinctive hotels.

Of course, architecture lovers may already be aware of New Haven's Pirelli Tire Building. Designed by modernist architect Marcel Breuer (hence ‘Marcel Hotel'), it was completed in 1970 and remains an icon of Brutalist architecture. In 2021, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a building worthy of preservation. It’s really not hard to see why the developers of the Marcel wanted to give the Pirelli Building a new lease on life.

The hotel itself will have 165 rooms and suites, as well as a restaurant, bar and lounge. It’ll also contain 7,000 square feet of event space for meetings, conventions and exhibitions. All of it will be fitted with special low-energy LED bulbs and high-spec thermal insulation, and it is all built using either local or recycled construction materials.

Fancy staying in an architectural marvel rebooted with pioneering, first-of-its-kind sustainable tech? You can check availability or book a room on the Hotel Marcel website. Rates start from $229.

Did you see... that there's a place in the USA where mobile phones, TV and wi-fi are banned?