Castillo Rojo Hotel Boutique. This was our home for 2 nights in Chile.

And what a great two nights … This is a very elegant, classical mansion from the 20s, and that seduced us from the very beginning.

To start with, our welcome was everything any guest would expect from a hotel of this calibre and more. Our host quickly found our reservation, gave us the initial information we needed and placed herself at our disposal for any needs which may arise. Then Sebastian, another host at the hotel, was kind enough to give us some quick information about what we should visit in Santiago during those 2 days and lots of tips before showing us our room. He also offered us a transfer to the airport on the 6^th (the day of our flight to Buenos Aires).

We have always thought that service is one of the most important aspects that determines whether a luxury hotel deserves its fifth star. We have worked in 5-star hotels before (in London) and we are fully aware that even the most demanding guest always wants to feel at home during their stay. Throughout our visit we were able to confirm that this is taken very seriously at this property.

Being a boutique luxury hotel also really helps them give their guests personalized attention throughout their stay.

Our room during our stay at Castillo Rojo Hotel

We were given a beautifully-decorated room with a large bed and an extra sofa bed that was made up for Noah. However, as Noah is cleverer than us he obviously managed to find his way to the middle of our bed when it was time to sleep. Never mind; it was comfortably big enough to fit the 3 of us and we had extra space in the bedroom with the sofa bed closed.

The bedroom also had access to a private terrace overlooking the restaurant downstairs. As we didn’t want Noah climbing the railing, we left the access to the terrace closed until he fell asleep.

The water pressure and temperature of the shower were very good, and the bathroom had old-fashioned accessories.

One place that we liked a lot was the living area, located upstairs from reception.

This is a large room with comfortable couches where guests can have a complimentary coffee or tea and use a desktop computer as well as get good Wi-Fi connectivity for private laptops and other gadgets.

The interior design is splendid and it made us feel like we were in a historical castle, just like you would expect from the exterior.

I liked this area a lot. It felt like a place where a guest could take a book and just read peacefully for hours and hours. Noah is not the kind of kid who would let us read books for hours and hours during the day :), but it’s a tip for our readers.

One funny anecdote regarding this living area happened on the morning of our last day. I woke up at around 5am and couldn’t sleep anymore. I also decided not to use the computer in the room to avoid waking Ruth and Noah up with the light. So what did I do? I went to the living area with my computer to write a bit …

What I was not aware of was that there was an alarm at the property that was activated during the night while guests are sleeping. So I think you can imagine what happened … Luckily the alarm was not loud, which is probably to avoid waking up guests who sleep at normal times 🙂

The security guard then came quickly to find out what was going on and saw me there. He was very nice to me and even offered me some coffee.

At least I can attest that security in the hotel is pretty effective 🙂

Restaurants at the Castillo Rojo Hotel

There are two restaurants that are located in the Castillo Rojo Hotel, but they are run by different companies. As they are in the same place, the hotel has an agreement for guests to have breakfast at one and a discount for dinner at the other.

 We tried the Cabildo Cocina Criolla Café-Restaurant. This is where breakfast (included in the room rate) is served to guests.

Ruth fell in love with the decoration there, including the plates, cutlery, napkins, etc. Every detail made us feel like we’d gone back decades. Even the uniform of the waiters matched the theme …

As it is a boutique hotel, breakfast is also personalized and offered directly to guests. We had some fruit with yogurt and scrambled eggs on toast. The ingredients were delicious and fresh.

Unfortunately we did not have a chance to have dinner at the other restaurant, but we did at least pay a visit to check out the menu and take some pictures. We did not taste the dishes, but everything looked very good there too.

The area surrounding the Castillo Rojo Hotel

For those who, like us, prefer to go to other places close to the hotel for meals, this is a perfect location – one of the best in Santiago, as we understood it. Firstly public transport is just a few minutes away, and secondly the street that leads to the hotel is full of bars and restaurants serving local and international food.

Another plus is that some attractions in Santiago are located just a few minutes away, such as the funicular railway (that takes tourists to the top of the hill), the zoo (where Noah spent a fantastic afternoon) and the former residence of Pablo Neruda, called La Chascona.

Of course we had had some great experiences in Bolivia, Uyuni, Copacabana, etc., but we had had a few short nights (waking up early in the morning for our tours) in less comfortable places. Noah also needed to have a good night’s sleep.

Our stay at the Castillo Rojo Hotel Boutique was therefore perfect in this sense. We were in a very comfortable and luxurious hotel/castle, where we were able to catch up on some sleep and enjoy a beautiful city like Santiago.

We don’t need to find anywhere else. Next time we are in Santiago de Chile – which will hopefully be sooner rather than later – this is definitely the place where we want to stay and we recommend it to all visitors.

The treatment we received at the hotel was remarkable. We sincerely thank Victoria for spending some time with us to explain a bit about the castle and its history, my compatriot William for meeting us, Sebastian for the warm welcome and all the tips, Becho for the high quality service at breakfast and all the tips about Montevideo (unfortunately we couldn’t visit your country this time, but we are looking forward to doing so in the near future) and all the staff who made us feel at home. Thanks a lot for having us!

Family Travel Secrets stayed at the Castillo Rojo Hotel as guests. All opinions and the oodles of pictures remain our own.