Fodor's Expert Review Casapueblo

A hotel and museum at the tip of a rocky point with tremendous views of the Río de la Plata is the main draw in Punta Ballena. Uruguayan abstract artist Carlos Páez Vilaró created his work as a "habitable sculpture" and it defies architectural categorization. With allusions to Arab minarets and domes, cathedral vaulting, Grecian whitewash, and continuous sculptural flourishes that recall the traceries of a Miró canvas, this curvaceous 13-floor surrealist complex climbs a hill and is highly unique.

The spaces include an excellent series of galleries dedicated to the artist's work and peruse copies of his books: one book tells the true story of his son Carlos Miguel, who survived a plane crash in the Andes, which was made into the 1993 film Alive.