Esplendor by Wyndham Montevideo Cervantes

Rooms and decor

Picture a tall Art Deco building standing on the corner of Soriano street in central Montevideo since 1927 — nearly a century in, this hotel has hosted more world-famous writers than you can count. The best known is Jorge Luis Borges, the Argentine writer who stayed so often that there is still a suite named the Borges Suite on the floor he used. Add Pablo Neruda, the Chilean Nobel poet, and Federico García Lorca, the great Spanish poet — both signed the guest book here too. In 2008, the Esplendor by Wyndham group renovated the building into a 105-room boutique art hotel, working to keep the original Art Deco feel: high ceilings, curved plaster molding, wrought-iron stair rails and the looping iron balconies of the Roaring Twenties. Rooms are dressed in warm, modern tones mixed with work by contemporary Uruguayan artists, and many have tall windows opening onto the squares and busy streets of Centro. Sizes are not uniform — some are roomy like a suite, others compact, true to the old floor plan — but every room carries a charm you simply do not get from a new chain.

Food and amenities

Walk in and the first thing that lands is the gallery-style lobby — tall white walls hung with work by contemporary Uruguayan artists that rotates every 2-3 months. Sometimes it is photography, sometimes oil painting, sometimes a three-dimensional installation, so each return feels like a new show. Off the lobby is the Borges Lounge, a bar-and-cafe corner fitted with bookshelves and old photos of the writers who stayed, pouring literary-themed cocktails alongside Río de la Plata-style tapas. Breakfast is a compact buffet that leans into real Uruguayan food — local cheese and ham, fresh pastries, the famous dulce de leche, and mate, the national drink, to try. Take the lift to the top floor and you reach the rooftop, the hotel's highlight: a small plunge pool, a sun deck and a poolside bar, looking out over the Río de la Plata bay running to the horizon with the Art Deco rooftops of Centro as a backdrop. At sunset the orange light on the bay is genuinely beautiful, and it is quiet enough that you almost forget you are in the middle of the city.

Location and getting there

The location is a dream for anyone who likes to explore a city on foot. The hotel sits on Soriano street in the heart of Centro, a 2-minute walk from Plaza del Entrevero, the small square ringed with cafes and a horseman statue. Three more minutes brings you to Plaza Independencia, the city's central square, with the monument to José Artigas, founder of Uruguay, at its center. Around the square stand the landmark Palacio Salvo, the Solís Theatre — the oldest in South America — and the former government house, all within a 5-7 minute walk. From there you pass through the Puerta de la Ciudadela into Ciudad Vieja, the old town of cobbled streets, the Mercado del Puerto where you eat parrilla grilled beef, and the Andes 1972 museum, about a 10-minute walk. For the rambla, the 22-kilometre waterfront where Montevideo checks in, it is about 15 minutes on foot. Carrasco airport (MVD) is 25-35 minutes by car, and the COT/COPSA intercity buses run from Tres Cruces station, about 10 minutes away by car, if you are heading to Punta del Este or Colonia.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide. The point reviews raise most often is room size and layout, which vary from room to room because this is an old building nearly 100 years old — some are roomy like a suite, others compact and oddly shaped to fit the original plan. Some guests land a room they love, others feel boxed in, so tell the hotel ahead if you want a larger or brighter room, and ask to switch if what you get does not suit you. Second is traffic noise from Soriano street, a busy central road; rooms on the street side can hear it morning and evening, so if you sleep lightly, ask for an interior or patio-side room. Third, the pool and gym are on the small side — the rooftop pool is a plunge pool for cooling off and photos, not lap swimming, and the gym is modest for a 105-room hotel, so serious exercisers may want an outside option. Last is the upkeep of an old building: a few reviews note old door locks, weak shower pressure or a slow lift. Read it as the character of a 100-year-old building, not a brand-new hotel where everything runs to spec.

Our take

After reading through hundreds of real guest reviews, Esplendor by Wyndham Montevideo Cervantes is a hotel that sells a specific thing — Art Deco heritage nearly a century old with a storied literary history, a central location within walking distance of everything, and a rooftop pool with a fine bay view, all at strong value for this caliber of hotel downtown. If you are a literary traveler who wants to sleep in the same building as Borges and Neruda, a design lover drawn to Art Deco and an art gallery, or someone who wants to spend most days walking Ciudad Vieja and Plaza Independencia, this is hard to match in Montevideo. But if you expect uniformly spacious rooms, the full amenities of a new luxury hotel, or a large pool and gym, it may not be the perfect fit. Overall we give it 8.0/10 — best for couples and culture-minded travelers who fall for heritage with a story and want real value in a neighborhood where you can walk to everything Montevideo has.