Alvear Palace Hotel

Rooms

What’s great about the Alvear is that the elegance is never overwhelming. Rooms are large (and most definitely grand if you have a suite), with impressive Louis XVI details like crystal chandeliers, antique porcelain pieces and fine paintings. However, they're made welcoming with tasteful floral prints and thoughtful details: a daily bowl of fresh fruit (with napkins and cutlery), fresh flowers, slippers by your bed at turndown, and the weather forecast on a card with your morning paper (state if you prefer it in English or Spanish).

Beds are incredibly comfortable: expect 500-thread Egyptian cotton sheets (that means extremely smooth and soft), a choice of feather pillows, and light duvets as well as heavier quilts.

The bathrooms deserve an award in themselves. You may gasp as you open the door to find gold fittings glinting against warm cream Boticcino marble and a cornucopia of towels and bathrobes. Toiletries are the finest you’ll encounter anywhere, made by Hermès: luscious soap, deliciously fragranced bath salts and body lotion you’ll be carrying around for weeks, plus everything else you might need. All bathrooms have hydromassage showers and separate baths (apart from Palace Rooms, which have showers only), as well as a hairdryer and a plasma TV.

The room categories range from Palace Rooms, with Louis XVI furniture and work desks, to Junior Suites with spacious lounges, to the 2-room Deluxe Suites. Large Diplomatic Suites have an elegant living room, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, while sumptuous Governor Suites and the wonderful Alvear Suite occupy the corners of the building and have a reception hall, an oval French-style living room and a large bedroom.

The Presidential Suite and Royal Suite have dining rooms, 2 bathrooms with hot tubs, and dressing rooms; some also have a sauna, home theatre and kitchen. Suites come with Jacuzzis and personalised stationery; if you're staying in the Governor, Presidential and Royal Suites, you get a range of additional goodies, perhaps complimentary drinks or breakfast served in bed.

Your butler will welcome you to your room, help set up the WiFi (or bring you a computer if you need to borrow one), and take away 2 garments for complimentary pressing. All the mod cons are in place, too: direct dial fax by your bed, plasma TVs, DVD players and a free shoeshine service.

Features include:

• Air conditioning
• Minibar/fridge
• WiFi

Eating

There can be no finer breakfast in Argentina. The word ‘buffet’ is inadequate, but laid out before you in the stunning L'Orangerie and ballroom, amidst beautifully dressed tables, grand drapes and gold stuccoed walls, are tables groaning with goodies. Exquisite fresh fruits, an amazing array of pastries and breads, and that rare achievement: a perfect cooked breakfast. Slide back the silver domes to find a choice of creamy scrambled eggs, crispy bacon and sausages, excellent smoked salmon and fine cheeses. There’s an extensive range of leaf teas and great coffee, too: get up early so you can linger before being tempted out to the delights of Recoleta. You won’t need lunch.

Afternoon tea at the Alvear is a famous ritual, and it’s with distinct pleasure that the waiters in their white gloves present you with silver pots of leaf tea (17 types) and a dainty cakestand of delicacies. The full tea might seem costly, but it includes smoked salmon bagels, scones with homemade jams, delicious pastries, and cakes from the ‘chariot’ wheeled with reverent care to your table. And it’s all served on Limoges china in the sparkling L'Orangerie or the palm-filled Jardin d’Hiver, to the accompaniment of live piano. Not to be missed.

Dinner at La Bourgogne downstairs is a striking contrast, amid sparse modern décor. Here, chef Jean Paul Bondoux offers an impressive menu of French cuisine, combining his signature dishes with seasonal specialities. Think tenderloin fillet flambé with cognac, venison with red berries, or a trio of sea fish with chervil sauce. There’s also Taste Vins, an intimate area for wine tasting, where you can sample Argentina’s finest.

But this is the heart of Buenos Aires’ best eating district, and more traditional Argentine restaurants abound: try El Mirasol or Piegari in La Recova (a tiny covered street, just 4 blocks away) for excellent steaks.

Features include:

• Children's meals
• Minibar/fridge
• Restaurant
• Restaurants nearby

Activities

• Alvear Palace is perfectly located for the cultural attractions of Recoleta: just 2 blocks away is the famous Recoleta cemetery where Eva Perón is buried, and next to it, the colonial Iglesia El Pilar. Outside, there’s an arty market and countless cafés
• A visit to the Teatro Colón is a must. The exquisite 1908 theatre is one of the world’s leading opera venues, with its own opera and ballet companies and nightly concerts. Take the tour, then book a last-minute ticket for the opera (asking the hotel’s concierge to find you a rented dinner suit!). The main entrance is on Libertad, parallel with the mighty Avenida 9 de Julio
• One of the best-kept secrets of the area is the Museo de Arte Hispanoamericano. A fascinating collection of colonial art, Cuzqueno school paintings and dazzling ornate silverware from Alto Peru is housed in a beautiful 1920s mansion with tiled gardens. Further afield, MALBA is not to be missed: modern Latin American art in a stylish minimalist building
• Shopping in Buenos Aires now gives New York a run for its money, and you can start right outside the door with smart antiques and jewellery shops. Head to the capital’s most chic mall, Patio Bullrich, for top Argentine designers and international names. The Alvear offers a personal shopper service.
• If you take a cab in BA, you're pretty much guaranteed to drive along the Avenida Figueroa Alcorta, where there's an enormous solar-powered metal flower, Floralis Genérica. The masterpiece of architect Eduardo Catalano, it opens to the sun at dawn and slowly closes up at dusk; wonderful
• The smart hotel spa offers a heated Ludic pool, a sauna and steam room, and Kinesis, as well as the usual exercise machines in the gym area. Facial treatments and expert massages range from the jet-lag recovery treatment to full Thai, Esalen and chiropractic rubdowns. You can also arrange for yoga lessons on request
• Staff can arrange tickets for tango shows in the city, or - even better - tango classes with experts in one of the charming salons, where you can learn in privacy with one-to-one tuition
• Wine tastings are offered in-house with an expert sommelier who will talk you through the best Argentine wines: a superb introduction if you’re heading to Mendoza, or simply want to take the best bottles home (book in advance)
• If you want to play golf the concierge can arrange a visit to the Jockey Club, Pilar Golf Club or Olivos Golf Club

Activities on site or nearby include:

• Golf
• Hiking
• Nightlife
• Shopping / markets
• Wine tasting
• Yoga

Kids

Children are welcome, though you might feel that toddlers would have more fun in a less grand environment. Older children will probably relish the fairytale feel; it's an expensive treat for kids, but they'll never forget it. The hotel can provide a huge range of facilities and amenities for children: cots, bathtubs, changing tables, highchairs, slippers, bathrobes, teddy bears, toys and baby toiletries (including baby wipes, soap, shampoo and cologne).

Best for:

Babies (0-1 years), Children (4-12 years)

Family friendly accommodation:

Baby cots can be added to all rooms. The Diplomatic Suites have 2 bedrooms (one double and one single), and the Presidential and Governor Suites can be connected to a Junior Suite. No extra beds are available.

Cots Available

Distances:

• Shops: 1 minute

For more family-friendly places, see our Kids Collection

Location

Alvear Palace Hotel is situated in the trendy Recoleta district of central Buenos Aires, in Argentina.

By Air:
Ezeiza (32km away) is the city's international airport; internal flights normally arrive at Jorge Newbery (6km away, often referred to as Aeroparque). Click on the links below for a list of airlines serving these airports.

From the Airport
The hotel offers a transfer service - see Rates - or you can take a taxi (approximately US$20 from Ezeiza, or US$5 from Jorge Newbery); buy a pre-paid voucher from the desk in the arrivals hall. test brea

By Bus:
If you're travelling within Argentina, you can book a long-distance bus to Buenos Aires' Retiro bus station (not as uncomfortable as it sounds as long as you book the cama and cama completa services, which recline to 160 and 180 degrees respectively), then take a taxi.

By Car:
If you want to hire a car (although most visitors prefer not to), see our car rental recommendations. Parking facilities are available near the hotel for a daily charge.

Detailed directions will be sent to you when you book through i-escape.com.

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