THE DRISCO
ROLE
LEAD UI/UX DESIGNER
FOCUS
BOUTIQUE HOTEL WEBSITE · UI/UX
CLIENT
THE DRISCO · RELAIS & CHÂTEAUX
YEAR
2024
( TEl aviv )
OVERVIEW
One of Tel Aviv's most storied properties — carrying a reputation its old website couldn't hold.
One of Tel Aviv's most storied properties — carrying a reputation its old website couldn't hold.
SOLUTION
A digital experience sequenced to sell atmosphere first and convert second — unhurried, mobile-first, true to the building.
A digital experience sequenced to sell atmosphere first and convert second — unhurried, mobile-first, true to the building.
THE HOUSE.
OVERVIEW
A landmark carrying more reputation than its site could hold
The Drisco is one of Tel Aviv's most storied properties — a 5-star Relais & Châteaux hotel established in 1866, home to George & John restaurant (ranked among the Middle East & North Africa's 50 Best), set in the historic American-German Colony. With that provenance, the digital experience was carrying a weight it was never built to handle.
A landmark carrying more reputation than its site could hold
The Drisco is one of Tel Aviv's most storied properties — a 5-star Relais & Châteaux hotel established in 1866, home to George & John restaurant (ranked among the Middle East & North Africa's 50 Best), set in the historic American-German Colony. With that provenance, the digital experience was carrying a weight it was never built to handle.
A landmark carrying more reputation than its site could hold
The Drisco is one of Tel Aviv's most storied properties — a 5-star Relais & Châteaux hotel established in 1866, home to George & John restaurant (ranked among the Middle East & North Africa's 50 Best), set in the historic American-German Colony. With that provenance, the digital experience was carrying a weight it was never built to handle.
CHALLENGE
A luxury property let down by its own website
The previous site was visually outdated, cluttered, and not mobile-optimised — and for a property competing internationally, that matters: guests judge on the digital first impression. The layout lacked hierarchy, mobile collapsed, and the brand's emotional resonance simply wasn't coming through. The result was low engagement and a booking rate that didn't reflect the quality of the house.
A luxury property let down by its own website
The previous site was visually outdated, cluttered, and not mobile-optimised — and for a property competing internationally, that matters: guests judge on the digital first impression. The layout lacked hierarchy, mobile collapsed, and the brand's emotional resonance simply wasn't coming through. The result was low engagement and a booking rate that didn't reflect the quality of the house.
A luxury property let down by its own website
The previous site was visually outdated, cluttered, and not mobile-optimised — and for a property competing internationally, that matters: guests judge on the digital first impression. The layout lacked hierarchy, mobile collapsed, and the brand's emotional resonance simply wasn't coming through. The result was low engagement and a booking rate that didn't reflect the quality of the house.
THE
CALM.
PROCESS
Leading with what actually makes The Drisco different
I audited the existing site against The Drisco's competitive set — comparable Relais & Châteaux properties and Tel Aviv's leading boutique hotels. The gap was obvious: every competitor led with amenities and room specs, while The Drisco's real differentiators were atmosphere, provenance, and a very specific guest — adults seeking calm over spectacle, drawn to a residential neighbourhood with 160 years of history behind it. None of that was visible on the old site. I mapped the guest journey from first search to booking intent and found three points where it lost people — each became a design brief.
Leading with what actually makes The Drisco different
I audited the existing site against The Drisco's competitive set — comparable Relais & Châteaux properties and Tel Aviv's leading boutique hotels. The gap was obvious: every competitor led with amenities and room specs, while The Drisco's real differentiators were atmosphere, provenance, and a very specific guest — adults seeking calm over spectacle, drawn to a residential neighbourhood with 160 years of history behind it. None of that was visible on the old site. I mapped the guest journey from first search to booking intent and found three points where it lost people — each became a design brief.
THE
ORDER.
DESIGN DECISIONS
Unhurried by design
The core tension in luxury hospitality is inspiration vs. conversion — lean too editorial and no one finds the booking button; lean too functional and the brand disappears. My answer was sequencing: photography earns attention first, then the adults-only positioning and heritage, then rooms and restaurant, then the booking entry point — in that order, never competing at once. The adults-only policy is surfaced early and framed as a feature, not a footnote: a signal to exactly the guests The Drisco wants, and a filter for those it doesn't. The palette was pulled from the building's warm stone facade rather than generic luxury black-and-gold, and the typography and spacing are deliberately unhurried — the pace of the interface matching the pace of the stay. Built mobile-first across every breakpoint.
Unhurried by design
The core tension in luxury hospitality is inspiration vs. conversion — lean too editorial and no one finds the booking button; lean too functional and the brand disappears. My answer was sequencing: photography earns attention first, then the adults-only positioning and heritage, then rooms and restaurant, then the booking entry point — in that order, never competing at once. The adults-only policy is surfaced early and framed as a feature, not a footnote: a signal to exactly the guests The Drisco wants, and a filter for those it doesn't. The palette was pulled from the building's warm stone facade rather than generic luxury black-and-gold, and the typography and spacing are deliberately unhurried — the pace of the interface matching the pace of the stay. Built mobile-first across every breakpoint.
THE
PROOF.
IMPACT
A 30% lift in bookings — and a site the brand is proud of
A 30% increase in booking rate, faster load times, and improved mobile engagement. The structural decisions made early — sequencing, differentiation, leading with positioning over amenities — were what moved the number. The site now tells the story the building already lives.
A 30% lift in bookings — and a site the brand is proud of
A 30% increase in booking rate, faster load times, and improved mobile engagement. The structural decisions made early — sequencing, differentiation, leading with positioning over amenities — were what moved the number. The site now tells the story the building already lives.
Figma · UX Research · Wireframing · UI Design · Responsive Design · ELEMENTOR
Figma · UX Research · Wireframing · UI Design · Responsive Design · ELEMENTOR
The Drisco HotelDesign & Digital — Dor HershCreated FOr David Haliva Studio
The Drisco HotelDesign & Digital — Dor HershCreated FOr David Haliva Studio
