Hotel O'Higgins, Art deco building in central Viña del Mar, Chile.
Hotel O'Higgins is a 270-room building facing Plaza Latorre in central Viña del Mar, designed by Vicente Collovich, Fernando Silva and Arnaldo Barison and inaugurated in February 1936. Its main entrance was later moved from Arlegui Street to the plaza side. The hotel closed in 2020 and the building now houses the city Transit Department.
The building was designed in 1931 by architects Vicente Collovich, Fernando Silva, and Arnaldo Barison, and opened its doors to guests in 1936. It was built at the moment when Viña del Mar was growing into one of Chile's main travel destinations.
For decades the hotel lodged the artists of the Viña del Mar International Song Festival, and until 2006 it was their official accommodation. Its bar hosted "Aquí, Hotel O'Higgins", a TVN satellite programme of the festival. The building has been closed since 2020, so the lobby can no longer be visited.
The building stands opposite Plaza Latorre, with its main entrance opening onto the square after replacing the earlier access on Arlegui Street. It has been closed as a hotel since 2020 and later housed the city Transit Department, so it is seen from the street rather than visited inside.
The hotel closed indefinitely after its facade was attacked on 23 February 2020, during protests coinciding with the Viña del Mar Festival. From April 2020 it operated as a sanitary residence for patients referred by the health system during the coronavirus pandemic. Its fittings and furniture were auctioned in September 2022.
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