Faena Hotel travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises, spa and resorts

Arriving at night at this Buenos Aires beauty is perhaps the best way to appreciate its sumptuous decor and sophisticated brand of chic. It is certainly the best way to savor the Faena‘s electrifying Philippe Starck design, from the red-lit walkway into a towering spice-scented hall, and from the wild whimsy of its Bistro restaurant to the cool splendor of one of 110 bedrooms in signature white, red, and gold. Photo by: EspressoBoy

Playing up the drama of the hotel concept at every turn, the Faena deftly marries audacious fantasy with the decadence and drama of the belle epoque. And it is appropriate, too, because the hotel is housed in what was once a grain storehouse from where Argentina‘s agricultural riches were exported to the world in its turn-of-the-century heyday. Photo by: Daniel Chicote

After a cozy aperitif to the strains of a grand piano in the rich wood and leather library, modeled on the old-fashioned luxury of a 1900s ranch, it is a deliciously shocking thrill to move on to the Bistro for dinner. There the menu treads a sure-footed line between timeless excellence and the stylishly modern. Photo by: Sterin

A dinner there studded with airs, foams, spherifications, and deconstructions of classic dishes is de riguer for lovers of both fine cuisine and haute design. If you get the timing right, you can then move on into the snug cabaret theater, where one of the city’s finest tango shows comes complete with an orchestra, free-flowing wine and champagne, and wonderfully saucy dancers. Photo by: Jum Nakao

Photo by: Jum Nakao