The first thing that crosses your mind when you walk through the grand front entrance into the lobby is: “wow, this must have been a palace for royals”, and you wouldn’t have been wrong.
Built in 1934 as a home for the Duhau family, a prestigious and wealthy family of Argentina’s elite, the hotel covers 4,400 square meters with it’s gardens covering more than half of that space. It is a hotel that embodies Park Hyatt comfort mixed with belle-époque elegance and a touch of tech-savvy modernity. Detailed iron and bronze work coupled with natural light and neutral colors identify the glamour of a Parisian mansion. The hotel is located in the fashionable district of Recoleta, surrounded by some of Buenos Aires’ best shopping and architecture in the city.
Walking into the first lobby the first thing you see is this larger-than-life chandelier. It sheds light all over the travertine marble floors and the famous artwork that adorns the walls such as, “La Ronda”, by Guillermo Roux (1993) and “Torso” by Guerrero Medina. The Alvear lobby then leads you into the Vinoteca and unique Cheese Room, so you can sample some fine cheese with a fantastic wine pairing to start your afternoon. * If you are sensitive to smell stay out of that room.
If you’re in need of some fresh air, head to Los Salones del Piano Nobile, where you can enjoy some High Tea and biscuits. If you’re looking for dinner with fine Argentine cuisine, head to the Duhau Restaurant & Vinoteca, which is where all of society’s most prestigious go to dine. You can choose to eat in the restaurant or in the garden but wherever you go, order the Filet de lomo, Argentina is known for its meats, so do as the Romans do and get yourself a prime cut!
The Palace has 165 guestrooms, including 39 stunning suites. The grandest of these suites is the 1,800 square foot Duhau Suite, which comes with a wrap-around terrace and the most spectacular views in all of Buenos Aires. It is beautiful decorated with dark wood furniture, chandeliers, and silk. It is a maximum-security room with bulletproof windows and special key access to the floor. However, even the lowest category room has equal elegance to the suites. The rooms are richly decorated with antique Persian carpets over wooden floors and the walls are adorned with black-and-white photos of Buenos Aires. Don’t forget to check out the hotel’s spa, Ahín Wellness & Spa. Your stay wouldn’t quite as relaxing without one of their extraordinary traditional massages.
However, the scene-stealer of this hotel would be the Gardens. The Park Hyatt offers a “Paradise Found” among the hustle and bustle of the city; it is your own Parisian garden in a forest full of skyscrapers. Elegant staircases lead down to the Posadas lined with red roses in the spring, water lilies in the summer, gilded ginkgos in the autumn, and fuchsia azaleas in the winter. Whatever your reason for traveling to Buenos Aires, Park Hyatt is the place you have to stay. It embodies the city of Buenos Aires in the way that it has luxury, modernity, and the spice of Paris mixed into the hotel’s own historic grandeur. It is a place that needs to be experienced, much like Buenos Aires.
Photographs courtesy of the property.