Café Coureur is Flanders' cycling hotspot

Total hotel solution entirely dedicated to cycling

Café Coureur opened its doors late last year in Kerniel, Limburg, as the first cycling hotspot in Flanders. Duravit was responsible for the complete plumbing and decoration of the bathrooms in the hotel and was involved in the plans from the start of the project. For this project, Duravit was able to draw on its full range of products, from bathroom furniture and urinals, through taps and shower trays, to accessories and suspension systems. Thus, the leading designer bathroom supplier demonstrates how its portfolio offers solutions for the most demanding projects.

Café Coureur in Kerniel in Limburg, a borough of Borgloon, is Flanders' first cycling hotspot. The former village school was saved from abandonment, completely renovated and extended with a modern extension. Since the beginning of October, cycling tourists and flandriens of all calibres can eat, drink and sleep here in a 360-degree experience concept that breathes the race.

The entrance hall is a replica of the Kuipke in Ghent. The hotel rooms do not have standard numbering, but bear the numbers of frame plates of (former) professional cyclists from Limburg. And from their hotel rooms, guests can see their bikes in the bike locker via camera images. There is also a massage room and a wellness area, whose jacuzzi offers a breathtaking panoramic view over Haspengouw. A long straight line including a cobbled slope was built to reach the terrace of the cycling café. Here you can pick up great race stories while recuperating over a refreshing race beer.

Café Coureur is the brainchild of Bart Gregoor, Peter Lantmeeters and his son Thomas. For them, the experience and comfort of the guests are absolutely central. That is why interior designer Patrick Janssen involved suppliers from the very beginning to think along with them about the most suitable solutions. Duravit soon turned out to be the right partner for all sanitary and bathroom facilities: from the urinals, toilets, showers and washbasins, to the partition walls, toilet suspension systems and pressure plates for the sinks, to all taps, all accessories and even mirrors with LED lighting and sensor controls.

"The Duravit portfolio covers the full spectrum of sanitary products: from the technology behind the wall to all the technical and design elements to furnish the bathroom. We started from the cyclist's needs and chose the right solutions on this basis," says Duravit marketing manager Steve Souverijns. "Steve completely relieved us from minute one," says Peter Lantmeeters. "He listened to our vision and time and again came up with concrete proposals that fit within the concept we had in mind. It was a pleasure to simply withhold every suggestion and make rapid progress."

For example, tall faucets were installed everywhere so that guests can easily fill their water bottles at the sink. Anyone using the public toilets will immediately recognise the gravel theme, a cycling discipline that is very popular at the moment. The floor consists of cobblestones and matt anthracite-coloured toilets, white top tables from the Happy D.2 Plus range and matt black accessories designed by the famous designer Philippe Starck were chosen. The dark colours fit the theme perfectly and make the toilets easier to maintain. For the accessories in the bathrooms, chrome models from the latest Starck-T series were chosen.

Passers-by taking a shower at Café Coureur imagine themselves in the catacombs of the Roubaix cycling track. In both the men's and women's showers, the iconic concrete corner elements were recreated identically. The showers are equipped with rain shower heads and the metal chains to activate the hot water were replaced by electronic sensors. All this for maximum comfort.

"It is not easy to extend the nod to cycling into the sanitary facilities as well. That's why we chose to let comfort take precedence over playfulness here. The Duravit range enabled us to do this perfectly. While the Roubaix showers give guests the best of both worlds, comfort is the first thing that will stand out in the hotel's bathrooms," says Peter. Both the Roubaix showers and the showers in the hotel rooms presented a structural challenge. "The shower trays had to be incorporated into the floor as low as possible, especially in the room for people with disabilities. But because the hotel is located in the old school building, it was impossible to raise the floors structurally. We therefore opted for Tempano shower trays, a model launched only this year and supplied for Café Coureur as a first. This model in acrylic is completely self-supporting and can be installed without legs with a low built-in depth. So we were still able to achieve a barrier-free result," says Steve Souverijns.

The Tempano range is also a prime example of the flexibility and versatility of the Duravit portfolio. "The model is available in no less than 27 different sizes," Steve continues. "This illustrates how the Duravit range always allows us to adapt very easily to the specific needs of the project without having to switch to special production. And then, if a format does not fit, we always look for the best solution in consultation with the installer and architect."

The project was successfully delivered by Duravit at the end of September after four different phases from structural work to finishing. The result is impressive. Peter Lantmeeters: "The opening of the brasserie was planned even before the works were completed and the hotel rooms were also completed in several phases. We didn't make things easy for Duravit. Nevertheless, the installation went perfectly, without having to compromise on the guest experience or a predetermined deadline," says Peter. "Duravit proves that it is not only a manufacturer of ceramics, but also a supplier for all our plumbing and bathroom facilities and a partner who thinks proactively with us."■