W Santiago

"In a glass-and-steel tower in the capital’s spotless Las Condes district, the 196-room W (the brand’s first foray into Latin America) owes its tinselly visual appeal to New York designer Tony Chi (whose CV includes Shanghai’s Park Hyatt, on last year’s Hot List). Chi has transformed a whopping chunk of office space with frosted-glass and taffeta partitions, perspective-teasing alpaca ceilings and mirrored walls, and a treasure trove of decorative objects. The pièce de résistance, Whiskey Blue—a cavernous room paneled in copper and stacked with wine bottles—is so showy that even Santiago’s moneyed classes swoon as they sprawl languorously in its plush banquettes. Design is paramount in the ample rooms, too, where floor-to-ceiling windows, fabric-paneled walls, angular furniture, and a plethora of gadgets underscore a masculine sensibility. Personable, resourceful staff provide switched-on service (a bellboy obtained last-minute tickets to a sporting event), but the W’s hefty surcharges are irritating: Phone and in-room Wi-Fi come at a price. What’s worth every penny is the restaurant NoSo, where executive chef Jean-Paul Bondoux (known for his La Bourgogne eateries in Argentina and Uruguay) applies French techniques to Chile’s Pacific sea urchins, abalone, and hake."