The Valencia Experience
While the weather in Houston is hurricane prone, this year I got to get away for my birthday to San Antonio at this gorgeous boutique hotel. For 14 years, the boutique Hotel Valencia Riverwalk has been a diamond in the rough along San Antonio’s famed Riverwalk. But in 2017, this unique property received a thorough polishing, in the way of a massive renovation, to reveal it for the gem it truly is.
The Valencia Hotel Group is known to Houstonians as the developers of Hotel Alessandra, which earned a coveted placement in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2020 Readers’ Choice Awards List as the 5th best hotel in Houston and the 17th best in all of Texas. The Group commissioned internationally acclaimed architect and designer Lauren Rottet to completely re-imagine the existing sleek and modern design. Rottet transformed the Valencia’s structure into an alluring Spanish Colonial and Modern Mediterranean themed style to more closely reflect San Antonio’s rich cultural heritage and as a nod to the hotel’s Tuscan namesake, Valencia, Spain.
Completed in late April of 2017, the new design esthetic incorporates warm, rustic woods, elegant ironwork, hand-crafted tiles and textiles that reflect the sensibilities of Spanish Colonial style. The Main Entrance was created to dramatically wow arriving guests with newly redesigned fountain and water feature. The Reception area carries through the design with columns clad in warm walnut wood and showcases a custom-carved reception desk in front of an Alhambra-style plaster treatment on the wall, called Esgrafiado.
The public and private spaces including the Library, the Living Room, the Naranja Bar & Café, and the guest rooms all share in the Mediterranean atmosphere with rich wood paneling and wrought iron accents. The Bar showcases a unique hammered ceiling and porcelain tile floors.
No renovation can be complete without a thorough makeover of the hotel restaurant. Dorrego’s, named for the famed Plaza Dorrego, a public square located in the historic San Telmo neighborhood in Buenos Aires, Argentina, features Argentinean-style tile work and woods with dark metal accents. A private dining room boasts a tin tile ceiling, a dramatic chandelier, and an all-glass, floor-to-ceiling wine storage. The restaurant serves Spanish and Italian inspired fusion cuisine.
However, the highlight of our stay was “Tango in the Courtyard”. Now through the end of 2020, Hotel Valencia Riverwalk is offering “Tango in the Courtyard” room packages as the perfect way to enjoy a relaxing getaway of relaxation with an evening entertainment. Each Friday and Saturday night, professional tango dancers perform in the center of the hotel’s large third-floor Courtyard. Guests can enjoy this show from their private third floor patio or private fourth floor balcony. This one-of-a-kind experience offers guests an evening of entertainment in a completely socially distanced setting.
