Esplendor by Wyndham El Calafate

Hotel · Lago Argentino

Esplendor by Wyndham El Calafate

Hotel · Lago Argentino

Av. Juan Domingo Perón 1143, Z9405 El Calafate, Santa Cruz, Argentina

Highlights

Upscale hotel offers lake views, restaurant, indoor pool, free breakfast

Av. Juan Domingo Perón 1143, Z9405 El Calafate, Santa Cruz, Argentina Get directions

esplendorelcalafate.com

@esplendorh

@cntraveler

Esplendor El Calafate

"El Calafate, a dusty, Patagonian steppe town fronting Lago Argentina, survives entirely on visitors to the three-mile-wide Perito Moreno glacier, 50 miles westward. Observing its huge columns of ice calve and collapse is a compelling day trip; the Esplendor, unveiled in 2006 by Argentina’s Grupo Fën, can also arrange hikes on the ice itself. Sadly, the hotel’s boxy exterior is both prominent and unhandsome, but designer Martín Churba, whose Tramando clothing brand retails in Greenwich Village, has produced a lavish yet uncluttered interior. Flowing canvas drapes, 15-foot leather sofas, and tables of wind-scored quebracho hardwood divide the ground-floor public space. The 57 chocolate-and-burgundy rooms, encircling a soaring atrium, are Scandinavian in their simplicity: in place of a welcoming bowl of fruit, an earlobe-shaped table proffers two pebbles. Diners can savor Patagonian king crab, venison and lamb, fused with fruits, herbs and wines, while gazing over turquoise, glacial waters and the gulley-scythed mountains beyond. When to Go: Avoid the stormy chill of Patagonia’s June-August winter. Which room to book: Picture windows in the three suites form a triptych of Lago Argentina."

https://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/argentina/el-calafate/esplendor-el-calafate

View Postcard for Esplendor by Wyndham El Calafate

anna wojciechowska

Google

I am surprised that my review is so enthusiastic because I really didn’t expect it to be. In El Calafate, I first stayed at a completely different hotel, where I was disappointed with the quality of the rooms, the service, and the inability to communicate with the staff, who spoke only Spanish—despite the hotel having the same four-star rating. I booked Esplendor literally at the last minute, almost from one hour to the next, and to this day, I believe it was a great decision. The hotel offers beautiful rooms with stunning views and is located very close to the city center, making it easy to walk to dinner or shopping. Another great feature is the heated pool, which is perfect for colder days. I had dinner at the hotel restaurant twice and was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the dishes and how delicious they were. The staff is excellent and speaks good English, which makes the stay much more comfortable. I highly recommend this hotel to anyone traveling to El Calafate.

Nick Christopher

Google

Lovely hotel located very conveniently to the main street in town, about a 10 minute walk (although note that it’s uphill on the way back). One of the nicest, if not the nicest hotel in town. Excellent service from absolutely everyone. Good restaurant with a nice menu. The food was generally good. The shrimp were delicious, I drank the sauce with a spoon. Great bar with fun cocktails and a view. Oh, did I mention the view? Super views of the town and the lake from the high perch (uphill, remember?). Has a pool. Now to the only negative: no AC, and the rooms are SUPER hot. Housekeeping closes the windows and shades, so you come back to a hot and stuffy room after a long hike. No fan in the room, although they will send one up on request. Sleeping is very hot and uncomfortable. Aside from that, the rooms a nice and well appointed, sadly the only window is a little small; disappointing, considering the fantastic view.

Ashley T

Google

My family and I enjoyed our stay at Esplendor in El Calafate. The hotel was modern and clean. The staff were always friendly and helpful in arranging tours and giving recommendations for restaurants or things to do in town. The breakfast was typical of hotels catering to international guests, but the food and juices were fresh and never ran out. Lunch and dinner at the bar or restaurant were excellent and prices were decent compared to town. Our only negative was it was very hot in the room, but the staff provided us with a fan at our request. You can also open your window for a natural breeze. Although we did not use the pool/spa during our stay, it seemed very nice. I consider it to be pricey, but I would stay here again.

Radhika Patel

Google

Overall nice experience. Lobby is lovely, rooms slightly dated but comfortable and clean. Ok breakfast, free parking. Helped call a taxi to the bus terminal. Spa was a nice touch too. It is slightly out of town but really not that far!

Carol G

Google

Beautiful and comfortable lobby with decent breakfast and gorgeous lake view. Great location to walk to the town. There is no AC, but with the window open it is pleasant. We asked for a fan that never arrived. When the windows are open in the room with the lake view, the homeowners below keep their dogs fenced in their yard all night and multiple dogs barked all night long.

Olga Shalimova

Google

One of the most beautiful and new hotels in the area. At this prices we were surprised to get such a beautiful room. Swimming pool is also good and nice breakfast. As the business owner I can see who really cared about their place and made it beautiful and who not. Thank you the owner amazing taste :)

Nok Kanokwan

Google

Room size is quite big, no air conditioning and you have to open the window. It was so lousy when windy. The location is in walking distance from city center. Breakfast is variety and delicious. Staffs are nice and helpful.

Kelvin

Google

Super kind and accommodating staff! We’ve stayed at three different places during our trip and this has definitely been the top address. Rooms spacious and clean, decor aesthetic, views superb, and location easy to access including a hotel parking lot (free of charge).

David M.

Yelp

Nice accommodating staff but some basic problems with the hotel kept this from being a pleasant experience. On check-in we were told that we were being upgraded to a nicer room than had been booked, but I don't think so because if we got the nicer room I'd have hated to be the person who stayed in the one we'd originally been assigned. While the view from the top floor was pleasant, there was no air conditioning and so it turned out to be uncomfortably hot in a room that had almost no air circulation. And the bathroom was so small and poorly laid out that it was physically impossible to use some of the plumbing. Now what could that last sentence actually mean? Well what it means is that the bidet was jammed right up against the radiator so you literally couldn't use it. So now let's talk about how we Americans hardly ever either have the chance to use a bidet or actually use one in practice.... On second thought, nah, let's not talk about that. Let's save that for a Talk section topic. Bottom line on the Esplendor: Not really.

Daryl S.

Yelp

Esplendor was not very splendid. It wasn't bad, but I feel like it was not reaching up to its potential. It's find of silly because there is a really late night flight from Buenos Aires into El Calafate and then this is one of the nicer hotels so everyone from the flight then ends up in line at the hotel. There was only one guy working and he was having a hard time keeping up. The hotel room was nice and the bed was very comfortable. My room also had a great view of the sunrise in the morning. The decor of the room was kind of weird and there was a lot of space that didn't seem utilized correctly. My parents and I went to eat dinner in the hotel after dropping our bags off knowing that it would probably be a disaster and we were not wrong. The dining area is mostly seats in the bar area with a couple of other tables around that seem our of place. We sat down and wait a few minutes, but of course there was only one person working the area and all of the tables were now full with the other passengers that were on our flight. Finally they brought us menus and I got a pizza. The cheese was really good - kind of like fondue cheese, but not too much.