Castillo de Santa Cecilia, Medieval-style hotel castle in Guanajuato, Mexico.
Castillo de Santa Cecilia is a castle-style structure featuring stone towers and gothic elements perched on a hilltop above the Guanajuato valley. The building contains about 110 guest rooms, parking facilities, and event spaces available throughout the year.
The grounds originally housed the Hacienda de San Francisco Javier, a silver mining operation, before transforming into a hotel in 1951. This conversion marked a shift from mining activity to hospitality and tourism.
The hotel takes its name from the old Santa Cecilia mine that stood on the land, not from a devotion to the saint. Its rooms and halls have appeared in Mexican films and telenovelas, among them Derbez en cuando and Amor Gitano. Guests have included King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía of Spain, Queen Elizabeth II, Cantinflas, María Félix and Celia Cruz.
The castle sits on elevated terrain with views across the surrounding landscape, accessed by paths and stairs throughout the grounds. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes since the site is hilly and requires climbing to explore different areas and levels.
The hotel's name comes from the abandoned Santa Cecilia mine that once stood on the grounds, not from the saint. Scenes from the telenovelas Derbez en cuando and Amor Gitano were filmed here, and guest registers list King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía of Spain, Queen Elizabeth II, Brigitte Bardot, Cantinflas and María Félix.
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