The need for short-term accommodations is a logical result of digitalisation and globalisation. Boarding houses like the Black F in Freiburg have responded to this trend and provide their guests with the perfect mix of hotel service and charming individual flats that visitors can call home for a limited period of time.

More and more “job nomads” are working on a project- or limited-contract basis in the widest array of locations in the world. It makes little sense for such individuals to rent their own flats. Nonetheless, many of these travelling employees prefer to have their own little hideaway as opposed to an impersonal hotel room. The answer to these desires is called a boarding house, a place that offers medium- and long-term furnished flats that come with optional services. 

This concept has been perfectly carried out by the “Black Forest House” (Black F) in the southwestern German city of Freiburg. The chic flats have all the amenities that a long-term traveller needs, including a mini-kitchen. The Black F also offers spacious rooms where guests can work and unwind. They can also talk with fellow guests in the large lobby. Guests can use an external fitness studio and enjoy a range of dining choices in the same building as well. Optional features for guests include a laundry service, delivery of convenience meals, rented bikes and, of course, long-term parking in the underground car park of the building complex.

Designers of boarding houses like the Black F have to pay very careful attention to the flooring they select: It has to be chic, extremely tough, low maintenance and comfortable. The interior designers of the Black F selected the HARO laminate flooring Gran Via 4V Oak Italica Smoked, Authentic with a sound-absorbing underlay of Silent Comfortec. Both the appearance of the flats and the boarding house’s public areas is enhanced by the powerful brown tones of this chic style that have been combined with the large format Gran Via with bevelled edges on four sides. This lively style symbolises the Black Forest and creates a lavish, cosy atmosphere.