Eight Days, Four Hotels | Costa Colonia, Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay

Eight Days, Four Hotels | Costa Colonia, Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay | 24 October 2012

In under an hour, a ferry will take you across the Rio de la Plata from Buenos Aires to Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. It’s an easy day trip, but at the last minute I decided to stay a night in Colonia. Ironically, the hotel I chose to stay in was a stark contrast to the sleepy town of ancient stone buildings . . .

This is Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay.

And this, a few kilometers outside of the village, is the Costa Colonia Riverside Boutique Hotel, the third hotel of my eight day trip.

Bit of a contrast, huh? It was actually kind of fun . . . I spent the day tripping over the archaic, bumpy cobbled streets of Colonia, and then returned to the sleek and modern Costa Colonia in the evening. From one extreme to another.

The hotel was designed by renowned architect Martin Gómez, who combined wood, concrete, and steel, with compelling furniture and accessories in a way that created a light and contemporary, warm and welcoming space.

The hotel has been designed so that all sixty-one guest rooms have a balcony with a view of the river.

Floor to ceiling, wall to wall, windows at one of the room provide gorgeous natural light, and that fabulous view.

Mid-century modern furniture is used throughout, like this Saarinen table next to the bed (and the Eames chair in the first photo of the lobby). It makes a great design impact.

Each room is equipped with a small kitchen, and table and chairs. (The chairs are also Saarinen.)

The bathroom was, as expected, beautiful in its simplicity . . .

. . . with one distinct and captivating feature . . . a shower with a glass door that opened to the balcony, and the view. Yes, you bet I took a shower with that door open . . . just like showering “en plein air.”

On the main floor, overlooking the pool, and the river beyond, is the cheerful breakfast room. Lime green chairs add a pop of color to the otherwise neutral color palette.

It’s winter, so the view is not quite as inviting as it will be in a month or so.

Nonetheless, a couple of rainy winter days didn’t stop me from making the most of my time in Colonia del Sacramento. (More on what I did there in a future post.)

This quote, written on a blackboard above the breakfast buffet, was a good reminder to be present in the moment . . . especially important when traveling!

“The biggest obstacle in life is waiting for tomorrow and losing today.”
Seneca, 45 AC