Four Seasons Hotel Buenos Aires
Encyclopedia
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
-based Four Seasons chain of luxury hotels and resorts. It is located in the city's culturally-rich Recoleta
Recoleta
Recoleta is a downtown residential neighborhood in the city of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina; it is an area of great historical and architectural interest, due, particularly to the Recoleta Cemetery located there...
District.
History
Constructed in 1992 as a Park Hyatt Hotel and renovated following its 2002 transfer, the Buenos Aires Four Seasons Hotel is a 13-floor main marble tower that combines contemporary and French styles. The main tower was built overlooking a French RenaissanceFrench Renaissance architecture
French Renaissance architecture is the style of architecture which was imported to France from Italy during the early 16th century and developed in the light of local architectural traditions....
-styled mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
, which houses the suites; the hotel currently houses 138 guest rooms, including 27 suites. The Mansion was a wedding gift from Mr. Felix Alzaga Unzué to his wife Elena Peña in 1920, and remains one of the most architecturally significant mansions in the Recoleta
Recoleta
Recoleta is a downtown residential neighborhood in the city of Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina; it is an area of great historical and architectural interest, due, particularly to the Recoleta Cemetery located there...
area.
The mansion adds a Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
ian atmosphere to the hotel, with its stone façade and Belle Époque style
Belle Époque
The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque was a period in European social history that began during the late 19th century and lasted until World War I. Occurring during the era of the French Third Republic and the German Empire, it was a period characterised by optimism and new technological and medical...
. The Four Seasons Hotel Buenos Aires is South America’s
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
only “World’s Best Hotel” recognized by Institutional Investor and rated in the Top 100 International Hotels, Resorts and Spas by Zagat in 2006.
Hotel Restoration
Francisco López Bustos is an ArgentineArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
architect who has worked on several 5 star hotels and embassies including the Irish and New Zealand embassies and business offices. His partner, Marcela Carvajal, is an expert in textiles. The restoration consultant for the mansion also worked on the restoration of the Colón Theatre Opera House.
Suites on the first floor (101, 102 and 103) have been restored to reflect classical French and Italian Styles. Suite 101 has a French Neoclassical
Neoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
style, but with contemporary accents. Its decor features woven and printed silks, lacquered wood, and fine marbles. The bedroom has a Louis XV and Louis XVI style. The dining room presents a more eclectical French style of the 20th Century. This room contains an armoire with Boulle marquetry, in a Napoleon III style. The living room contains two small cupboards in Chinese lacquer with Coromandel panels. All of these pieces were made in Paris during the 19th Century. An exact replica of Louis XVI's library has been made for the living room. This room also contains a Louis XV desk.
Suite 102 has a more eclectic style, yet keeping a classic-contemporary French spirit. Its living-room is decorated in a Pompeian style.
Suite 103 is closer to an Italian Belle Epoque
Belle Époque
The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque was a period in European social history that began during the late 19th century and lasted until World War I. Occurring during the era of the French Third Republic and the German Empire, it was a period characterised by optimism and new technological and medical...
style, and presents a livelier shade of colors. The sitting room contains a restored Persian carpet from the late 19th Century. The dresser in the bedroom is of the Belle Epoque Style, though French.
Suites on the second floor are decorated in a more intimate style, closer to English townhouses or French provincial, with period upholstery such as Toile de Jouy wall panels and draperies.
Notable visitors
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