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CONSTRUCTION
Gran Meliá Villa Le Blanc: a white stone retreat in the most authentic mediterranean destination
Sestel Builders participates in the renovation of a location worthy of its idyllic setting
Photographs: Meliá Hotels International
If the Balearic Islands are a paradise, then Menorca is their VIP area. An exceptional raw material that has been preserved for years enables the easternmost of our islands to maintain the purest essence of its identity.
Within this setting, the picture painted by the ASAH studio, led by Álvaro Sans and Adriana Sans, shines spectacularly. David Domínguez and his Architectural Project Design team led the executive project and the processing and construction management. The TALAT office developed all the technical facilities that provided support for this largescale project.
From imagination to reality
The transformation of the old Hotel Sol Beach House Menorca into Gran Meliá Villa Le Blanc is much more than just a refurbishment or a makeover. It is a look to the future worthy of the best Hollywood screenwriter. Once we had come up with the idea and designed the project, all that was left was to find the arm to execute it, the hand to rock the cradle. This is Sestel Builders, the construction company that has made the illusion reflected in the architect’s plans and in the portfolio of those who commission them a reality.
We began with the most obvious: the name change. To convert the Hotel Sol into a Gran Meliá Hotel, we needed to substantially rework every element of the entire property. The hotel’s incredible location, on the extraordinary Santo Tomás beach, deserved the excellence that Gran Meliá Villa Le Blanc now offers it today, with the first luxury five-star hotel in Menorca.
Much more than a refurbishment
The hotel was transformed from top to bottom and the process involved renovating and expanding all its spaces. We converted a 70s hotel into a modern and contemporary establishment, while constantly maintaining our solid commitment to preserve the essence and character of the island’s traditional identity. The original design offered many small rooms with no views, based on the old standard of double or single rooms.
The new hotel offers 114 junior suites, all with terraces, plus 45 seafront suites and suites with private pools.
We also added a new pool and a sun terrace on the rooftop, where guests can enjoy incredible views of the Menorcan coast. Mediterranean in all its splendour.
The renovation project, led by SESTEL, also opened up new culinary spaces so that Gran Meliá Villa Le Blanc can offer premium cuisine to satisfy the most demanding palates.

The refurbishment involved expanding numerous spaces to create an envelope around the entire hotel, which not only helps with thermal regulation, to optimise energy resources, but also turns the old-fashioned rooms into a modern and up-to-date offer.
The ideas were clear in the ASAH plans and the Architectural Project Design executive project: arches, wood, ceramics, light, the colour white and the sea were all essential and defining elements.
Efficiency and sustainability
The new paradigms of modern construction also needed to be accounted for: zero carbon footprint and zero net emissions.
This sustainable hotel model is possible thanks to the decarbonisation process, using renewable energy and taking advantage of the resulting energy efficiency.
Just some of the elements that contributed towards the building’s decarbonisation included the addition of biomass boilers, the use of geothermal energy and the collection of heat and photovoltaic energy, in addition to the recycling of clean and grey water, using the most cutting-edge digital technology that enables us to measure and manage our water footprint and consumption of water and electricity.
All of this has been a challenge for the construction company SESTEL, which has been able to make Meliá’s idea, ASAH’s plans and the contribution of Concepto Proyectos de Arquitectura a reality to ensure that the transformation of the Hotel Sol Beach House Menorca into Gran Meliá Villa Le Blanc is an unquestionable success for each and every one of them. One more success to add to Menorca’s portfolio, as the VIP area of the paradise that is the Balearic Islands.