3 Best Hotels in Old City, Quito

On the southwest corner of Plaza de San Francisco, this historic mansion is Quito's most luxe boutique hotel, named for the family who built it as their stately home in 1924. Guests are greeted at check-in with a restorative herbal drink, the perfect remedy for the combination of travel and the Andean location, and the top-notch service continues throughout your stay. Common areas such as the terrace and glass-covered courtyard combine plush seating with touches of whimsical; Art Nouveau and Neo-classical design touches are throughtout the property. The decorative molding of the 15-foot-high ceilings is enough to take your breath away, if the altitude hasn't already. Rooms are done in light blues and neutrals with sparkling marble-clad bathrooms. Let the sun wake you in the morning, or block it out with window shutters and heavy drapes. . Be sure to enjoy the ample afternoon tea included in your room rate (4–6 pm), though do let the kitchen know if you're a vegetarian so that they can swap out the savories that have meat. Dinners in the ground-floor restaurant are especially relaxing after a long day of exploring, and the quiet space is only open to hotel guests in the evening.

Arguably Ecuador's most fabulous hotel (with, admittedly, prices to match) puts you right on the prime real estate of its namesake plaza. The business dates only from 2007, but the structure was the mansion of early 16th century nobleman Juan Díaz de Hidalgo. Suites are done up in such a way that you feel as though you're staying in the guest wing of a 19th-century noble's house, though a flat-screen TV and free Wi-Fi bring you back to the present. Plush carpets, thick drapes, heavy, dark wood furniture, and the tapestries and art—including drawings by Oswaldo Guayasamín—decorate each carpeted room. The best rooms face the plaza. Though windows are soundproofed, you need only fling open the French doors and emerge onto your private balcony to survey all that goes on below.

It's a less costly alternative to the Hotel Plaza Grande down the street, but a stay here also lets you lodge in the Old City. Rooms in this four-centuries-old mansion are organized around two interior courtyards. All have wood floors, large desks, and flat-screen TVs. Each suite is split-level, with a bedroom and sitting room. Some of the units have an unusual layout i, where bedrooms are on the lower entry level and baths are on the upper level.