Four Buenos Aires 5 Star Hotels…
…and how to experience them on the cheap!
Even if your cash flow doesn’t allow you a 5 star splurge while visiting Buenos Aires, it is still tempting to see what luxury, design, or boutique hotels the city has to offer.
To catch a glimpse over the other side of the fence, there is no need to have a room key. Below you will find a list of four Buenos Aires hotels and opportunities to take advantage of what they offer, even if you aren’t staying there. This will give you a taste for the good stuff and even allow you to finish your trip under budget.
A Top Four List of Hotels in Buenos Aires
4. Sofitel, Recoleta
A solid luxury hotel in Recoleta, with fantastic interior design, service and location (right across from the upmarket Patio Bullrich mall).
So, how to experience this hotel without paying a dime? Just walk in the lobby and do your most confident impression of a paying hotel guest. Take the elevator up to the 17th floor, and take in the wonderful view of the Rio de la Plata, seeing right the way over to Uruguay on a good day – a definite 5 star view. Exit soon after, before security come and give you the privilege of a personal escort out of the building.
3. The Hotel Alvear, Recoleta
If you are a head of state, diplomat or just plain rolling in old money, this is the place to stay in Buenos Aires. Faultless old world style and service, the most desirable location on the most upscale avenue in the city (they even share the same name), and quite frankly, effortlessly the most classically beautiful hotel lobby, bar, cafe and restaurant in town.
For the rest of us, the Alvear offers an alternative – and something of an institution for in the know visitors to Buenos Aires. Well, at least those that are in to tea and cake. Indulge in an afternoon high tea at the Alvear’s beautifully appointed L’Orangerie cafe, and for a few sweet, sweet moments (accompanied by a few sweet, sweet cakes and pastries) you are a flesh-and-blood Alvear guest. Just make sure you dress the part.
2. The Faena Hotel, Puerto Madero
The most fantastical 5 star hotel in Buenos Aires, fresh from the warped mind of designer Phillipe Starck, and the straining ego of Argentine entrepreneur Alan Faena. A potent combination, heightened by your own personal ‘experience manager’, there to respond to your every whim, as you create your own mini-universe within the swish former docklands of Puerto Madero.
Though the cost may be high, fret not, for there is another way to experience this hotel. Cocktails at the Faena’s “Library Lounge” (down the corridor on the right, just after the outdoor pool), complete with film set surroundings and kitsch mounted deer heads on the walls is an excellent taste of this alternate ‘universe.’ Just make sure you check out the enchanting entrance corridor and toilets while you’re there (yes, even the toilets are out of this world at the Faena).
1. The Four Seasons ‘La Mansion’, Recoleta
This cute little mansion in the grounds of the Four Seasons hotel is so expensive that only world famous rock and pop stars like U2, the Rolling Stones and Madonna can afford to stay there. Even from the outside, its easy to see that the building certainly is a cut above most hotels – a wonderful turn of the 20th century French mansion house that looks plucked from the Loire valley.
Let’s not even mention a nightly price for this place, and go straight to the alternative 5 star option. Sunday brunch downstairs at the Four Season’s La Mansion is a great chance to take in the full mansion house experience, while gorging yourself on the best breakfast in BA. The brunch isn’t cheap, but you’ll feel like a rock star throughout, and for a good while afterwards.
Locations of these 5 Star Hotels in Buenos Aires:
Sofitel Recoleta
Posadas 1232, corner Libertad, Recoleta
Tel: 4819 1100
Alvear Palace Hotel
Avenida Alvear 1891, corner Ayacucho, Recolta
Tel: 4808 2100
Faena Hotel
Martha Salotti 445, near Juana Manso, Puerto Madero
Tel: 4010 9000
The Four Seasons Hotel
Posadas 1086/88, near Cerrito, Recoleta
Tel: 4321-1200
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22 Replies to “Four Buenos Aires 5 Star Hotels…”
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[…] Five Hotels in Buenos Aires I wish I could afford to stay in… by Alan Patrick […]
Great article, I hope you win the contest, or at least the offer of a nights accommodation. If you get a choice then for sure go for The Alvear, it is considered as you know, one of the best in the world.
Wow what an experience that would be !! Good luck Robert
Alan,
Thanks for this post! It’s always fun to saunter through a swank hotel lobby or dine in a ritzy restaurant for a reasonable price. Really appreciate the suggestions for experiencing these hotels in a next-best way!
Good luck in the contest, and I fully expect that you will be posting soon about a night at the one of these places–gratis!
Besos,
Maya
Hi Robert and Maya,
Thanks for the nice comments about this post, I’m glad people are enjoying it (and I hope they enjoy these hotels too, on the cheap!)
Unfortunately, no contest win for me. The winner was selected randomly, so out of 800+ entries, there wasn’t much of a chance in the end. But congratulations to Nancy for winning the US$1001 for her post http://www.nancy.cc/2007/05/08/baby-names-from-video-games/ – enjoy the cash!
And expensive / five star hotels in Buenos Aires – my offer still stands – one night’s stay in exchange for a full (of course neutral!) review on this blog. I’m waiting… 🙂
Alan
Your choices seem strange. The hottest hotel in the city, the new Dhuau Park Hyatt, is not even mentioned. Bobo is preferable? I can’t make sense of this
Hi Keith,
Thanks for reading and commenting.
How exactly do my choices seem strange? If I left out the Park Hyatt, you may have noticed I included the Four Seasons’ La Mansion, the Ceasar Park, and the Alvear, all within very close range of the Park Hyatt.
I wanted to spread things around the city a little more than that, and the boutique hotel trend is very hot in the city right now, so the Bo Bo (with it’s great restaurant), seemed like an excellent choice.
Also, what would you have suggested for the Park Hyatt as a budget activity to do there. I would love to get a suggestion so I can try it out 🙂
Take care and keep reading,
Alan
Alan go try the cheese/wine bar in the Dhuau Park Hyatt, now that’s a experience and can be done on a budget.
Thanks Robert. I’d heard good things about that at the Duhau, but had also heard that it was very expensive. Anyway, I’ll give it a try sometime 🙂
Thanks for the tips… we’ll definitely give a couple of them a try in June. What are your top five for $20 (your aforementioned budget)?
I highly recomend the sunday brunch in the Hyatt-Ricoleta. Sitting in the garden, drinking champagne… it s the most romantic place in Buenos Aires.
And for me … the most amazing and surprising hotel in Buenos Aires is the Youkali Boutique Hotel. A realy trendy cool edge art hotel! Check out: http://www.youkali.com.ar
Hi Mark,
Thanks for your comment, I hope you have fun trying out a couple of these hotels on the cheap in June 🙂
As for the 20 USD per night budget, I would say the best way to use it in Buenos Aires would be to get a short term apartment rental, which I talked a little bit more about in this post recently:
http://www.buenostours.com/buenos-aires-short-term-apartment-rental
Apart from that, 20 USD will probably have you looking at hostels and low end guesthouses. Not that this is a bad thing… in fact, I will work on recommending some of these budget accommodations in a blog post very soon 🙂
Hello Sushikiller,
Thanks for the recommendations. I will be sure to try these out in due course.
All the best,
Alan
[…] Alan Patrick presents Five Hotels in Buenos Aires I wish I could afford to stay in… posted at Buenos Aires Argentina Guide. […]
Hi,
Just popped in from the Carnival of Cities. Good roundup of the hotels, all sound great and expensive. I was almost going to visit Argentina this summer, but the $1000 air ticket from Puerto Rico put a stop to that.
Thanks for info
Fantastic, I loved your comments about the top 5. As a World Traveller, I routinely look up the Top 5 design hotels in major cities and in this case constantly stumble upon THE HOTEL BOBO. You very “real” account of EZE’s top 5 were an informative and enjoyable read. Keep on… If I had anything to do with the hotels you mentioned I would certainly invite to spend a night for sharing your esteemed rating here. Ill mention it to Hotel Bobo if I visit in August. Now planning the trip. Thank you.
Hola,
Visited BA early May and had the opportunity to stay at the Alvear Palace for a couple of nights. For value, i think it is hands down one of the most luxurious hotels in the world and its reputation as BA’s grandest is unquestionnable. The high tea was indeed a treat and you know, if you must splurge on holiday, you might as well go all the way.
Thank you, Buenos Aires, for a most pleasant experience.
Thank you so far – we got a link from your site to Grand Hotel de la Paix. For us it seems to be situated right in the centre of the city.
We will arrive in the evening Dec 1 and stay for 4 nights.
Then a round trip – Foz de Iguazu – and Montevideo – may be also to Santiago/Mendoza before going back to B A around Dec 13. Leaving Dec 15.
We found your blog very useful. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks to all the last few commenters for reading, commenting, and your nice words. I hope you all had/have (as applicable) the best of times in Buenos Aires, whatever hotel it is that you stay in 🙂
I would argue the Four Seasons is not noteworthy. It is an old Hyatt and the main lobby and the rooms in the tower look like it. This is probably the worst 4seasons I have stayed in. The Mansion part is charming but difficult to get rooms in. Ceasar Park is in a good location but also not special. If you want a special high end experience stay at the Alvear otherwise there are a ton of cute boutiques in Palermo Viejo/Hollywood.
Hi Alan,
Enjoyed your reading. I was in BA long time ago – to be exact, 1980 was the year. Now, I am planning a trip with family(2 adults and 2 children age 5 and 3) for a South America and visit BA on March 16 to March 19. Do you recommend hotel or apt around Recoleta area? Due to traveling with young children, apt is always preferable, budget is around $100 USD.
Also, do you provide aiport transfer and guided tour.
Cheers,
Jerry
Alan:
After having stayed at the Four Seasons, I have to disagree with the comment earlier. I stayed there back in the 90s when it was the Park Hyatt. It was nice then and it was nice now. I have had the Sunday brunch there a few times and would recommend it too.
However, the brunch and tea at the new Park Hyatt on Posadas is the best food and service in town. I haven’t had better service anywhere on the planet.
I do agree with the earlier post about the Caesar Park. It was nothing special and despite racking up over a week hotel stay, they treated my family less than special. Service in the restaurants is worse than service at any regular restaurant in town –no where near the international standards of a hotel of this caliber.
Please consider dropping Caesar Park from you list and replacing it with the Park Hyatt. I haven’t stayed there but everyone agrees… It is THE place to say in BA now.
Alan,
Hello. Regarding your BA top 5, I was just in Ba for about 3 weeks and I visited each of the properties, some very often, so I just read your blog and thought that I would comment. The Caesar Park should be off your list, I walked in and walked right out. No offense to the place, but it is a nice place, but no energy, no service, just a standard overpriced old hotel in a nice area. The Alvear Palace was nice, but a big let down due to the over hip of the reviewers. I did enjoy popping in for for a glass of wine and late lunches while shopping on the Avenida, but the hotel is much much better than the Caesar Park, but no way near a world top ranking. The Four Seasons, I am a huge fan, was nice to visit and I ate there several times has the best service in town as they do all over the world. But, the hotel is charmless, more of a corporate hotel and design. But, at FS you pay for more than design. The Park Hyatt is the top luxury hotel in BA right now hands down. I experienced a meal or drink on the terrace overlooking the garden just about everyday, since the weather was perfect. I had breakfast, dinner, tea, drinks and such out there. The service and food are good, but the service is in need of attention for a luxury hotel. Too many workers not working effectively. If I order a second glass of wine with my meal, I would expect it to arrive during my meal, not 20 minutes later. I had to send breakfast back, the 2nd try was a bit better, but not great. I really ate there for the great atmosphere and outdoor dining and cocktail time. The bar is great for late night sandwiches and nightcaps. The wine and cheese bar is a nice experience. The fine dining restaurant is average. The spa is great, great lighting at the pool, and they have a nice art gallery. This is really the best place for a nonguest to visit, with the art, architecture, modern furniture, antique interiors of the bar, and al the mansion. Hopefully, service and consistent quality will improve though. The Faena, well, although over rated, it should be experienced. High standards are met in some areas. Service in Library Lounge greatly lacking, but the musical acts late at night are very very good. The Tango Rojo show is very good although a bit broadway, it is still very good, since most of the overhyped tango in BA is just that overly hyped. The best empanadas, surprisingly were here at the Marcado- who know- Foot note, the worst were at the Four Seasons, shame, the spa is nice. Overall, nice design, service is needing improvement due to the attitude they try to create, overall a nice place to visit but everybody in group was over it after an hour or two. Though, I do suggest the music, shows and food. The BoBo is very disappointing compared to all I have read. A “HOT LIST” in current issue of Conde Nast Traveller, lists the Moreno hotel in San Telmo as a current hot hotel. I stayed there two different times during my stay, and I would not agree. It does have much potential, the rooms are very nice and for the price I paid, 95.00 usa, and then 125.00usa, both interenet rates from hotel directly, were great. Nice mimimal, but large rooms with design. The exterior of building is nice, art deco, the roof nice but lacking, great view of the San Francisco Cathedral. No restaurant or bar open currently, spa??? gym is a joke, the other americans laughed as well as I overheard each time I used the treadmill. But, from what I have seen of other BA boutique hotels, this one has the bones and potential to be a HOT LIST. THey do need some help.
I must go now but, I have more hotel info if wanted. I am a hotel junkie if you have not noticed.
Regards,
Richard
hi, i know this post is quite old but i will answer the same, i’m argentinian not from BA but i’ve had tea at Alvear Palace Hotel and i tell you that it’s the best hotel in Argentina since it was built back in the ’30 when my country was one of the world’s richests countries, here in Argentina it can’t be denied to have that position, the second place is a tie between the Plaza (owned by Marriot) and the new Park Hyatt Palacio Duhau, the Plaza was always one of the bests but sometimes is forgotten because it isn’t in Recoleta neighbourhood, it’s a few blocks away going to downtown and its also a palace, the three i’ve mentioned are palaces, the park hyatt is a new tower in one street and a palace on the opposite the whole hotel complex opened in 2006, those 3 must be in the list, caesar park should go because it isn’t very famous or luxurious as the others it’s just another 5 star hotel, faena + universe must stay, it’s very new and fresh, relaxing, naïve, awesome and it’s and old fabric or something a deposit recycled, the following place i think is for the four seasons because it’s very nice, famous, and the small palace beside it is consider the most luxurious place to stay, it belongs to the hotel but it’s private, worlwide famous stars sleep there, i know that there’s a boom for boutique hotels but you can’t mention one of those while there are palaces transformed in hotels, well i hope that you like my opinion as a local, forgive my English please, i assist a bilanguage school and i’m on the top of my class i’m 14 years old