Lonely Planet Review

Celebrating its centennial in 2007, this Zona Rosa institution strives to maintain a belle-époque ambience in contrast to the globalized mishmash around it. Perhaps due to its advanced age, the hotel seems to be in an almost continuous state of renovation.

Designed by Canadian architect Thomas Sinclair Gore in 1907. At the time of its construction, the hotel was the city's most elegant place to stay. In the 1950s, the area was transformed into an international zone of chic boutiques and cafes. In subsequent decades, fast food franchises, strip clubs and gay bars moved in, yet the Geneve remained a prestige address. Once you're out of the clutches of the street touts pushing table dances, bellmen in gray coats will usher you into a different scene. The lobby breathes class, with lily-of-the-valley chandeliers, oil canvasses and dark wood paneling. It opens at the far end onto a skylit Sanborns cafe flanked by corkscrew Solomonic columns. The 270 rooms, in three towers, get the antique treatment, featuring handsome carved wood headboards and colonial dressers and nightstands.