The coastal village of Egmond aan Zee has become home to the Netherlands’ first fully accessible holiday apartment complex. Architects’ bureau Swan Art & Build constructed "De Egmonden" on a 2500-square metre plot, creating a facility with 25 holiday apartments on behalf of the Groot family and construction firm Tervoort Egmond.
One of the main focuses during the planning phase was on ensuring that the complex could be incorporated into the surrounding nature reserve. As a result, Holland’s largest dune landscape extends undisturbed right up to the building itself, the natural shape and colours of which in turn reflect the countryside around them.
De Egmonden also serves as a perfect example of how architecture and design can be adapted to cater to changes in requirements. The project makes holidaying more convenient and comfortable for all the facility’s guests – and ensures that the apartments can also be enjoyed by people with mobility issues. This also includes the large and ever-growing group of older citizens who are used to having control over their own lives and actions.
Ingenious architectural concepts reflect the expectations of senior citizens in terms of their particular needs and wants, the conditions they are used to living in, and their increasing awareness of their own health. Ensuring access to daylight and fresh air plays a key role in the development of multi-faceted concepts.
