Santa Teresa Hotel

Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro, located between the tropical forest and the ocean, is a gigantic and legendary city, full of contrasts. It elegantly combines the traditional and the modern, with impressive skyscrapers alongside colonial buildings, dizzying mountain peaks overlooking golden sand beaches, and lush forests opposite dynamic residential areas.

From the peak of the celebrated Corcovado, there is a fantastic view of all of the city’s quarters bordering the bay, the famous Ipanema and Copacabana beaches, the Rodrigo do Freitas lagoon and Sugarloaf Mountain.

Among the most popular quarters of the city, Santa Teresa truly stands out. Situated on a hilltop, this small Bohemian neighborhood possesses an uninterrupted view of the bays of Rio and Guanabara. Nicknamed the “Brazilian Montmartre”, visitors can stroll through its cobblestone streets, bordered by colonial houses and numerous artists’ ateliers, and discover another aspect of this stunning and diverse city, famous for its celebrations and especially for “Carnival in Rio.”

Red Brazilian design

The Santa Teresa, a boutique hotel in this Bohemian quarter of Rio, far from the beaches, is both modern and colonial at the same time. Located in a former coffee plantation, surrounded by magnificent tropical gardens with mangos and centuries old palm trees, the site is frequented daily by monkeys, toucans and parrots from Tijuca Park. The owner, in order to transform this old fazenda into a five star hotel, surrounded himself with the finest craftsmen and designers in Brazil.

The result can be summed up in two words : design and chic. The hotelis filled with contemporary works of art and Brazilian craft objects, creating a successful blend of modernism and ancestral roots.

Defined as tropical chic, the style of the hotel elegantly combines burnt cement, quicklime, slate and dark tropical wood with contemporary design furniture. Local materials were used just about everywhere including hard Brazilian wood, banana, buruti and bacaba tree fibres, and local stones.

In the 44 rooms and the sumptuous suites, we find the same décor concept. Immense and luminous, overlooking the city and the beaches of Rio, they all possess the same design furniture created by RockLane and Carassas, canopy beds, Brazilian works of art, floors in tropical wood and whitewashed walls. Integrated into the bedroom, the bathroom has huge gilded raw slate showers and large burnt cement bathtubs.

Awarded the « Best New Suite » prize by Wallpaper in 2010, the fabulous 160 square meter Loft suite offers guests an endless panoramic view of Rio de Janeiro, the Teresopolis Mountains, the National Park, the Bay of Guanabara and the twin city of Niteroi.

Before going out to discover the city, a delightful dip in the green slate swimming pool is highly recommended and, at the end of day, a refreshing visit to the spa to cool off after a day in the hot Brazilian sun is ideal.

After a drink in the Dos Descasados Lounge Bar, it’s time for dinner at the very popular Tereze restaurant. This contemporary gastronomic paradise is classified as one of the finest tables in Rio. The menu consists of a magnificent blend of the finest in French and Brazilian cuisine. Guests can dine in the company of artists, politicians and the most sophisticated and trendiest travellers in Brazil.