A large pergola for a hospitality establishment
Building and adding a large pergola to your café, hotel or restaurant is the ideal solution to offer your customers a new living space that is open to the exterior. What are the benefits of a pergola for a hospitality establishment? How do you choose the ideal pergola for your establishment? What administrative procedures await you? Here is everything you need to know before launching your pergola construction project.
Why install a pergola for your hospitality establishment?
Aesthetic and customisable
The style of a pergola can adapt to all types of architecture and individual tastes. For example, you can choose between an aluminium or a wrought iron structure, or choose a stylish wooden pergola. The simple and elegant lines of a garden shelter like a pergola will enhance the value of the existing building while remaining discreet. A pergola can also be customised with different colours, including anthracite grey or taupe, and equipped with garden furniture, blinds, a folding awning, curtains, canvas cover, or climbing plants to cover the pergola.
The enhancement of part of your property
By enabling you to create a covered terrace, the construction of a lean-to pergola will enable you to fully enhance part of your outdoor area and transform it into a special area that your customers will appreciate. It can also bring real added value to your hospitality establishment or property and enable you to improve your occupancy rate.
Enjoy the benefit of your terrace in any season
A lean-to pergola can be installed outdoors on a terrace or in a garden, and protected from the sun thanks to the shade of climbing plants, a canvas cover or adjustable slats. This is a big advantage in summer when customers wish to enjoy fine weather while remaining effectively protected from UV rays. It can also shelter consumers from harsh weather, wind and rain and enables you to benefit from your outdoor area later in the season, regardless of weather conditions, like a veranda or a winter garden.
Reduced maintenance
A pergola requires very little maintenance. Simply clean the posts and the roof. This will maintain the pleasant aspect of the materials while increasing their service life, especially if your pergola is made of extruded aluminium. A wooden or steel pergola will require annual maintenance with suitable products.
How do you choose a pergola for your hospitality establishment?
A classic or a bioclimatic pergola for your hospitality establishment?
There are two main types of lean-to pergolas: the classic pergola and the bioclimatic pergola. Classic pergolas usually have aluminium posts and a fixed, flat roof with transparent polycarbonate glazing that provides protection from solar rays.
This is a simple, practical and discreet terrace shelter, but one that cannot be modulated. The roof of a bioclimatic pergola is covered with adjustable treated wood or aluminium slats. These sunshade slats can be adjusted differently according to the sunshine to benefit from a maximum amount of light, or, on the other hand, for better protection against poor weather.
Bioclimatic pergolas can also be equipped with partitions consisting of mobile aluminium or wooden slats for optimal protection. This type of pergola is more complex and requires more maintenance.
What dimensions should you choose?
The size of the pergola must adapt to the dimensions of the building, but also to your own needs and wishes. A pergola can run along the entire length of a wall to optimise the available space. To create a covered terrace that can welcome your customers comfortably, you should ideally have a width of at least 3 or 4 metres. Your budget is the only limit.
Building a pergola with a height between 2.2 and 3 metres will give both the sensation of a pleasant space and effective protection. The decision to install a bespoke wide pergola is the ideal solution for hospitality establishments.
The administrative procedures to install a pergola in your hospitality establishment
A building permit or a declaration of works?
The installation of a fixed pergola with a surface area over 5 m2 requires the authorisation of the town planning authority. If your project for a lean-to pergola for your hospitality establishment is less than 20 m2, you simply need to file a prior declaration of works at the town hall of your municipality. For the construction of a lean-to pergola over 20 m2, it is necessary to obtain a building permit.
What are the taxes for a pergola?
If your pergola measures over 5 m2 and is closed on all sides, you are subject to development tax. This tax is levied by local and regional authorities and varies according to the location. You should also note that the creation of a pergola may increase the value of your property, which may impact your taxation.
What insurance is required for a pergola?
It is mandatory to insure a pergola, like a veranda or the rest of your hospitality establishment. You should contact your insurance company to request an extension to your coverage to be properly protected. You may also choose to take out a new insurance policy specifically for the pergola.
