10 facts you might not know about the construction of Bota Bota, spa-sur-l’eau.

1- The boat, then known as L’Escale, was purchased before the owners even knew where it would be anchored.

2- When we told people about our project, nine persons out of ten thought it was completely unrealizable and that we had gone crazy… they were maybe right about that second thing!

3- Jean Pelland (Sid Lee Architecture), the architect who conceptualized Bota Bota, burst out laughing when he first saw the abandoned boat… then he set his creativity in motion!

4- To take L’Escale from the Richelieu river to the Saint-Laurent river, we had to go through the Saint-Ours lock. To do so, we had to take down all the quays and ladders of the lock, because the boat was too large.

5- The Bota Bota shell is 90% new: it was almost entirely redone and enlarged to increase the stability of the boat, and therefore the comfort of its passengers.

6- The conversion of the boat into a spa on the water required 30 months of work, involving a team of architects, designers and graphic designers, naval architects, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, upholsterers, and many more. More than 100 people participated in the conversion of the boat.

7- The whirlpool baths were custom-built by a company specializing in plane fuselage fabrication from the Québec city region. They are adapted to resist to the specific conditions to which they are exposed: heat, cold, wind, and waves.

8- The energy required for climate control indoors and for heating the small bodies of water is entirely green and renewable. It is extracted directly from the Saint-Lawrence river, thanks to an energy exchange similar to geothermics.

9- The changing rooms are located where the engine room used to be, and is partially under water. In the main staircase, a red line indicates the waterline.

10- The admin offices have moved at least six times, and they’re still not finished because we prefer focusing on client spaces! In fact, there is no ceiling in the management’s office…