What makes a place unforgettable? Why do we feel immediately welcome in some hotels, whilst others leave no lasting impression despite their perfect design? For this series of interviews, we’re speaking to people from the hospitality industry, amongst others. We kick things off with Christiane Lösch from the Hotel Kloster Hornbach. A conversation about atmosphere, hospitality, lasting quality – and why, today, traveling should leave behind one thing above all else: memories.
Anyone who steps through the gates of the Hotel Kloster Hornbach near Zweibrücken quickly realises that this place does not try to make an impression. It doesn’t need to. The historic walls of the former Benedictine monastery, dating back to 742, possess something that many hotels have long since lost: tranquillity. This is not the staged tranquillity of a spa concept. You’ll search in vain for a 2,000-square-metre wellness area here. What is meant is the kind of tranquillity that arises when a place has evolved over centuries and no one has ever tried to impose a new, ill-fitting identity upon it.
Perhaps it is precisely this that has become so rare today: places with substance and depth. Places that do not seek attention, but strive for character. Places that preserve the old, cherish it and are underpinned by genuine hospitality. “You can physically sense whether a house has atmosphere,” says Christiane Lösch. “It’s a feeling. And not everyone is receptive to it.”
The owner of Kloster Hornbach talks a lot about feelings. About materials. About people. About things that are allowed to remain. And she talks remarkably often about something that seems almost old-fashioned in today’s hotel industry: authenticity.
Because, as she is convinced, there are now plenty of beautiful places. But those that linger in the memory are far fewer.
THE PEOPLE ARE THE REAL ARCHITECTURE
When you talk to Christiane Lösch about hotels, the conversation turns to the staff surprisingly quickly. To the question of how much people shape the character of a place. Or, indeed, how little.
It’s a statement that sticks in the mind because it extends far beyond the hotel industry. After all, true quality isn’t just characterised by beautiful architecture, good materials or perfect design. It arises where people imbue a hotel with personality, warmth and authenticity.
At Kloster Hornbach, this is exactly what you can sense. The staff treat guests with attention, warmth and as equals. You quickly realise that the people working here enjoy being hosts and work harmoniously as a team. “When staff laugh and joke amongst themselves despite the stress, it works wonders,” says Christiane Lösch. Guests are very keenly aware of the atmosphere in a hotel – even behind the scenes. And this often rubs off faster than you might think. Where people enjoy working together, guests usually feel immediately welcome too.
A hotel steeped in history and with the courage to take that history further
The hotel’s unique atmosphere is undoubtedly linked to its history. When Christiane and Edelbert Lösch first walked through what was then the monastery in the late 1990s, parts of the listed complex resembled a ruin. At first, it was almost impossible to imagine how it could ever be turned into a hotel. Walls had to be uncovered, rooms reimagined and the historic fabric carefully restored.
Even back then, the Lösch family were determined that this should not be just another run-of-the-mill hotel, but a place with personality and its own distinctive character.
Even today, Christiane Lösch insists on designing almost every detail of the hotel herself. Her passion for interior design and, as she puts it, ‘beautiful things’, began at an early age. Even as a young woman, she would wander through designer furniture shops, collect pictures from interior design magazines and develop a keen sense for spaces and atmospheres. Even during the most recent extensive renovation work, which was completed in 2023, she left nothing to chance. She pasted her mood boards – in the old-fashioned way – into large ring binders, constantly rearranging combinations of fabrics, colours, lighting and materials until everything felt just right.
A philosophy that is reflected throughout the hotel. Nothing feels arbitrary or bound by the spirit of the times. Instead, Kloster Hornbach still follows its own rhythm. It is precisely for this reason that the hotel today seems almost like a counterpoint to many places that, whilst perfectly designed, leave hardly any lasting memories.
Travelling has probably never been easier than it is today. At the same time, so much seems to have become more interchangeable: the same materials, concepts and interior design ideas. You often know the atmosphere before you’ve even checked in.
Why many hotels today leave no lasting impression
“If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. This hotel concept no longer works today,” says Christiane Lösch. Even large hotel chains have now realised that standardisation alone no longer wins over guests – and, above all, doesn’t make them come back. So they’re turning to storytelling. Some, she feels, are now doing this rather well. But atmosphere isn’t something you can simply create through décor.
At Hornbach Abbey, history has never been merely a backdrop. The ancient walls speak for themselves. Ever since its foundation in 742, the monastery has been a place of refuge for monks and the people who lived here. The walls, the architecture and the exposed location above the small town of Hornbach continue to lend the building a special sense of tranquillity and seclusion to this day.
The fact that this effect has been preserved is also down to the care taken when the monastery was renovated and reimagined in the late 1990s. The rooms feel neither like a museum nor as though they have been haphazardly refurbished.
That said, she’s not at all interested in disparaging certain trends. “It would probably look brilliant somewhere else. But here in the monastery, it simply doesn’t fit,” she adds. In her view, design and furnishings must always be considered in conjunction with the place and its history. Although the monastery has long since ceased to be a monastery, it has nevertheless remained a place of refuge to this day.
Respect for the place and the consistency that stems from it are of enormous importance to Christiane Lösch. “Uniformity is the opposite of excitement,” she says. Spaces should be allowed to have contrasts. So old furniture stands alongside modern pieces, mementos are scattered about, and things do not have to match perfectly. That is precisely what creates atmosphere. She is happy to accept that not everyone likes this.
Atmosphere is not created out of a desire to please
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Christiane Lösch knows that not all guests automatically like every change at Kloster Hornbach. When new furniture is brought in or familiar pieces disappear, critical questions sometimes arise. Why ‘those lovely old sofas’ have been replaced. Or why modern designs suddenly stand alongside historic walls. Yet change – provided the monastery retains its original character – is, for Christiane Lösch, always part of a building’s ongoing development. “I have to stand by what I do and the changes I make,” she says. “If I can explain it, then it’s authentic.”
Standard is no longer in demand. Many guests today are looking for something ‘special’. At the same time, this ‘special’ means something completely different to each person. It is precisely these personal ideas that define us as individuals. So, of course, there are also guests who would prefer black leather and chrome. A feel-good atmosphere is never an objective thing. She realises just how differently people perceive spaces when she reads architecture and interior design magazines:
For them, therefore, the real art lies not in pleasing as many people as possible, but in creating an atmosphere that they themselves truly believe in. This also involves the courage to ruffle feathers – to do things differently from what is expected and to make decisions that do not please everyone.
This approach is evident at Kloster Hornbach not only in major design decisions, but often in small details. In materials that gain character over the years. In furniture that stands the test of time. And in the conviction that some things become more beautiful rather than more mundane as time goes by.
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Quality begins where things are allowed to stay
At Hornbach Monastery, leather armchairs take on a patina, whilst old cupboards and chests tell stories. Not everything has to be flawless. But it must be harmonious.
This is often evident in aspects that guests tend to notice subconsciously. In fabrics, lighting ambience and materials. In furniture that is refurbished rather than replaced. For instance, during the extensive renovation work carried out between 2020 and 2023, all the high-quality solid wood fittings in the ‘Shaker’ room category in the hotel’s main building were preserved and meticulously refurbished. Even the office furniture, also made of solid wood, which was purchased around 20 years ago, is still in use today rather than being replaced – a conscious decision in favour of quality at the time, even though it was significantly more expensive. The timeless Weishäupl garden furniture in the beer garden and the monastery’s inner courtyard also remains in place to this day. It has never been replaced. It can be repaired, refurbished and reused for decades to come. For Christiane Lösch, they are among those things that tend to gain rather than lose value over the years.
For Christiane Lösch, the profound impact of enduring quality is particularly evident at one moment: arrival. Even before guests consciously realise why a place feels so good, the materials, texture and craftsmanship are already working in harmony to create an immediate sense of well-being.
Just how important this effect is to her was already evident during the conversion of the former monastery into a hotel more than 25 years ago. At the time, synthetic carpet had originally been planned for some of the rooms. Christiane Lösch insisted instead on an alternative containing 80 per cent wool. “Everyone said: You can’t feel the difference”, she recalls. “But you can feel it!”
WHY GENUINE HOSPITALITY WILL NEVER GO DIGITAL
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Christiane Lösch keeps a close eye on many developments in the hotel industry. Digitalisation is, of course, an integral part of it today. At Kloster Hornbach, too, processes are increasingly supported by digital systems behind the scenes, particularly where this can ease the workload on staff and streamline procedures. For guests, however, all of this should remain as invisible as possible.
Whilst many hotels now rely on self-check-in, self-check-out or service robots, Kloster Hornbach deliberately sticks to a different understanding of hospitality. Here, guests are still welcomed, looked after and seen off by people. A robot, says Christiane Lösch with a laugh, would probably get stuck on the historic cobblestones or the many steps leading up to the building.
However, something else is far more important.
“Nowadays, almost everyone knows how to use smartphones and apps,” she observes. “But that’s not what it’s about. People want to be seen, heard and smiled at. That’s exactly what creates the feeling of being welcome.” Digital solutions are therefore developed at the monastery primarily where they relieve staff of administrative burdens and free up more time for guests. The younger generation in particular – led by her daughter Franziska – is driving these developments forward. For guests, however, very little has changed on site. While wedding and conference bookings may now be organised more digitally than in the past, the personal service remains the same.
The fact that the monastery does not follow every passing trend is in keeping with the establishment’s ethos. Further development is expressly encouraged, but not at the expense of atmosphere, personal attention and genuine closeness.
It’s not about travelling as much as possible. It’s about travelling as authentically as possible.
For Christiane Lösch, increasing digitalisation also explains why places with character, tranquillity and genuine attention are regaining importance today. The more digital and fast-paced the world becomes, the greater the longing seems to be for authentic moments that cannot be automated. For establishments that don’t feel interchangeable. For memories that last.
In the past, says Christiane Lösch, travelling was often just a matter of ‘ticking things off’ for her too. The aim was to see as much as possible in a short space of time. Today, however, she seeks out memorable moments.
She talks about New Zealand. About Cornwall. About places she’d love to return to, this time at a slower pace. With more time. Fewer plans. More attention to the moments in between. “These days, I want to experience places more intensely,” she says.
She’s been observing younger people in particular very closely. Awareness of sustainability is growing noticeably. Trips, whether near or far, are planned much more thoughtfully than they were a few years ago. Not because curiosity about other countries and cultures is disappearing, but because younger people in particular are questioning more deeply how and why they travel.
This is another reason why she believes that authentic places – which don’t feel contrived and to which one is happy to return – will continue to grow in importance in the future.
Christiane Lösch isn’t interested in random choices anyway. Simply going somewhere just because it’s cheap or trendy at the moment isn’t her style. Instead, she chooses her destinations, hotels and accommodation very carefully. When she’s away for a longer period, she often prefers holiday homes or self-catering flats. “I’ve had enough of hotels,” she says, laughing.
When travelling to Mallorca, for example, the family has been returning to the same place year after year. Not out of habit, but because of the feeling of arriving straight away. They know the area, know where to go shopping and don’t have to find their bearings all over again every time. She also much prefers to simply go with the flow whilst travelling these days, rather than she used to. First, have a coffee and soak up the atmosphere, rather than planning the whole day out in advance.
Finally, there’s one last question. What does travelling mean to Christiane Lösch today?
She pauses briefly and concludes: “Memories. Of time spent together and special experiences.”
