Let me just start by saying this hotel was a definite change for the good from the normal hotels I've stayed at. As soon as you walk in you can tell the hotel is more art deco than your Marriott. The hotel made me feel more like a friend and and the service was very personable. Everyone from Andres in the cantina to both Rodrigos', Diego, Daniela, Cali, Florencia, Victoria and Nati and everyone else I forgot made my stay so enjoyable that when I go back, it will definitely be a hotel I will return to and recommend. The girls who clean the rooms also do an impeccable job. Nothing was ever out of place and always looked great. Considering this was my first time there everyone in the hotel always helped me find whatever I needed. The room was fantastic and I was so blown away that I will definitely make this a recommended spot for me and my friends and family.

I spent 3 nights in late Jan/early Feb 2008 and found a lot to recommened the CE Design Hotel. My room was in the rear of the hotel and thus I missed out on the view of the Plaza but appreciated the quiet room. The room was clean and the bathroom well stocked. The complaints listed about the odd shower are justified and I often flooded the floor. The bed was not as great as some have described and the pillows were just OK. Where the hotel really impressed me was the Staff: from check in to check out everyone was great - especially Andreas at the downstairs bar . At less than $150 a night the CE Design is a bargain.

This hotel seems likely to be a love it or hate it kind of place. A key "design" element of the bedrooms is that they are largely bare, undecorated concrete, which has a certain industrial-chic appeal, but someone looking for "design" in any sense of "elegance" or "finish" may be startled by the cold, raw-building-shell feel of the space. Overall, we had a good stay at this hotel, but would not consider it a great value at ~$150/night unless you're a true believer in the Miesian ethic of "Less is More".

Functionally the rooms work very well - microwave, flat screen TV, floor-to-ceiling front windows with nice views of a green plaza, good soundproofing, and electrically operated shades, big floor to ceiling mirrors along one wall that double the apparent size of the room, cool bathroom, great water pressure, all as prior reviews say - but you need to get past the psychological whack of the artistic statement and the scent of limestone to appreciate those features. More traditional tourists might consider it an Emperor's New Clothes act of marketing - spend zero on room finish, call the result Art, and charge a premium - but the presentation seems sincere.

Downstairs, the staff was quite friendly and helpful, the included breakfast was good, and electrotango chill music was in the air.

Location is interesting. Calle Rodriguez Pena around the corner is a magnet for goth/emo kids (esp on Saturdays), and has a lot of shops with hip, inexpensive clothes & gear, as well as some very busy casual restaurants. It's a little off the beaten path - "walking distance" from the center is a pretty substantial walk - but there's plenty to see in the Recoleta neighborhood and taxis are cheap.

One odd additional fact. See the attached photo from Jan. 2008, front of the hotel, facing the Rodriguez Pena plaza. cEDesign (6-panel windows) is on the left, DesignSuites (from which cE was apparently cloned a few years ago, same architect, different owner, we were told) is on the right. In the middle, presto! there's a third concrete building (under construction, with wood structures to catch debris), absent from some of the hotel building photos still posted on TripAdvisor. Taxi driver also told us that passengers are constantly confusing the two "Design" hotels two doors apart, which look almost exactly alike, including their lobbies, but are under entirely different management.

We stayed in a few hotels in Buenos Aires and this was our favorite! The staff was just soo nice here - they spoke English, and helped us with everything that we needed. We were on our honeymoon, so we booked a Plaza Suite which I highly recommend - very modern! The room was huge, only one room per floor, so very quite- had a huge jacuzzi bath, big bathroom, cool flat screen TV, big kitchenette with plates, spoons, microwave, refrigerator, dining table, comfortable sofa and bed! The breakfast was amazing - they made fresh coffee for each person, had lots of good cereals, juices, breads, and even toasters at each seat! They give you a free welcome drink at their fun bar. I highly recommend this place and will definitely stay here again!