The Zero Suite is no ordinary hotel room. Located in the main entrance of Paradiso Hotel, Ibiza, the fully furnished and functioning room’s central location isn’t the only unique feature that sets it apart from the rest. What does? The room’s walls are entirely made of glass.
Paradiso is part of the Concept Hotel Group, which has six other locations across Ibiza. The chain prides itself on each of its hotels having a unique ‘wow’ factor, purposefully designed to create experiences for guests that they will remember long after they check out.
The Zero Suite, in particular, was born on the premise of providing guests with the opportunity to participate in an immersive and interactive sleep experience, one that they would struggle to find in any other hotel anywhere in the world.
Margaret and Corey Biernet, the American duo behind popular social media account ‘A Pretty Cool Hotel Tour’ stayed in the Zero Suite back in 2018, the same year it opened to the public.
“It was one of the wildest hotel rooms I’ve ever come across and one of the weirdest nights of my life,” hotel review fanatic Margaret told Doze.
The couple’s content about their experience garnered mass attention on social media, with their videos about the Zero Suite receiving up to 5.4M views, a stark increase in comparison to their usual content’s average of around 40 thousand views.
“I thought it was such a funny and exciting idea so I really wanted to give it a go, but when I realised that the lights don’t turn off it sharply set in that we were essentially just going to be on display to everyone who came into the lobby all night,” she said.
Borja Ibáñez, Marketing Manager for the Concept Hotel Group, told Doze: “The inspiration behind the Zero Suite was to create a unique and immersive art and hospitality experience that breaks the boundaries between artist, audience and space.
“We invite guests to sleep in the glass-walled room visible to the public to spark conversations around vulnerability and transparency, challenging conventional notions of privacy and turning the act of staying in a hotel into an artistic statement.” Ibáñez told Doze.
However, Margaret revealed she hadn’t done any prior research into the fact that Paradiso was an art hotel. Therefore the idea that “whoever was sleeping in the suite for the night is part of the art” came as quite the shock to both her and her husband, amplified by the fact that guests are allowed to touch the glass as and when they please.
“We did manage to get a tiny bit of sleep, but people woke us up so many times by banging on the glass and taking pictures”, she told Doze.
Sleep Expert James Wilson, professionally known as ‘The Sleep Geek’, told Doze, “I went through a whole plethora of thoughts and feelings about the Zero Suite.”
As a lifelong advocate for the importance of a good night’s sleep, he said: “On one hand I am a little horrified that the hotel values its guests’ sleep so poorly that they’re happy to ruin it for a marketing stunt, but on the other hand I understand that the focus has probably got nothing to do with getting a good night’s sleep and is more about creating unique experiences and opportunities for content.”
Romeo’s, another of the Concept Hotel Group’s locations situated in San Antonio Bay, comes with its very own wedding chapel. It offers both official and unofficial ceremonies for any guest of the hotel throughout the duration of their stay.
Romeo’s also hosts a secret ‘playroom’, that comes complete with a pole dance bar, leopard print sofas, a fully stocked bar and a DJ booth, with the room being dedicated for ‘getting up to no good’.
Their Grand Paradiso location, also situated along Ibiza’s San Antonio Bay, is home to the world’s one and only ‘Caduzzi’, a vintage pink Cadillac Eldorado that has been converted into a fully functioning hot tub.
Despite the creativity at the core of the media-friendly hotel chain’s designs, Margaret’s husband Corey shared The Sleep Geek’s concerns about the Zero Suite: “It was terrible,” he said “I had so much anxiety associated with being watched by others that I just didn’t feel comfortable at all.”
Alongside Margaret, Corey has accumulated over 1.4M followers on TikTok through their hotel reviews and lifestyle and design content.
Margaret added: “A lot of people asked me why we would stay there, but this is our job, we do hotel reviews, we stay in unique places so I kind of felt like I had to do it for my followers.
“Plus it was free, although that does feel like a necessary element as I don’t think I would pay for that experience and I don’t know anyone who would.”
Marketing Manager Mr Ibánez explained to Doze that: “The Zero Suite is free because it’s not just a place to stay, it’s a participatory art installation in which guests become part of the artwork. It turns the act of sleeping into a performance observed by others.
“By removing the price tag, we shift the value of the experience away from monetary exchange in favour of creative contribution, curiosity and social dialogue.”
Despite not being the biggest fan of the experience, Corey admitted that the Zero Suite is doing its job as a piece of live art: “Our content has got everyone talking, people are wondering why we did it, what it was like. That’s what art is supposed to do, get people talking and divide opinion.”
The Zero Suite is also available for artistic performances, having previously hosted a whole host of sessions, including DJ sets, brand presentations and even tie dye classes.
However, the room does not come without its own list of rules and regulations. A maximum of two guests can stay for free in the room for one night only. Due to the immense popularity of the experience, you are not able to repeat your stay in the suite in the same calendar year.
All participants must sign a waiver that allows people to film and photograph them at all times whilst they are in the room.
Although all guests of the hotel are able to touch and bang on the glass, there are security regulations in place; the room has secure access for those allocated to it for the night, there is 24/7 surveillance and staff presence, and the bathroom for the Zero Suite has complete privacy.
You can register your interest in the Zero Suite experience directly on the Paradiso Hotel’s webpage.
All that’s left to ask is, would you try it?
If people in the public eye takes your fancy:
