The attendant set my luggage down in my room, smiling at me. “Your room is going to totally transform when the sun goes down,” he said. “I’m not going to tell you how, but you’re going to be blown away.”
I had just arrived at the Fairmont El San Juan, voted one of the best resorts in Puerto Rico in 2023 by Travel + Leisure readers. It opened in 1958 but has been expertly preserved — from its original hand-carved ceiling panels that date back to the ’60s to the stunning 4,000-pound chandelier that hangs over the aptly named Chandelier Bar at the entrance.
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This luxury hotel in Puerto Rico unveiled its newly-renovated Banyan bungalows
The property unveiled its newly renovated Banyan Bungalows in March of this year, and I got to experience the new luxury accommodations first-hand during my visit. Designed by Jeffrey Beers International, the 13 bungalows were named after the 300-year-old banyan tree on the property.
“The layers of various textures — the linen coverings on the closet doors, the ribbed wood on the TV unit, the fabric border on the lamp shades, and the rattan inserts at the minibar — give the character of the suite,” Pierre Josselin, design consultant at Jeffrey Beers International, told T+L. “The 3D butterfly art piece above the headboard is an invitation to escape and relax. We [also] used concealed LED strips around the TV and headboard to create a soft glow and bring a sense of romance to the suite.”
Design choices were inspired by the island. “We used bold colours like deep blue and greens to celebrate the tropical feel indigenous to the region,” Josselin continued. “We created a natural feel by [incorporating] raw materials such as walnut wood, black iron, honey rattan, leather-like upholstery, and embroidery floral patterns on accent pillows.”
My favourite part of the design? The shower. Big enough to be its own room, the shower includes two shower heads, accessibility rails lining the stairs and walls (it’s a step down from the rest of the bathroom), shelving (you’d be surprised at how many hotel showers don’t have shelves), and the pièce de résistance, the tilted skylight that gazes up at a gorgeous cluster of trees. It felt like I was showering outside — without the mosquitoes.
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Each Banyan Bungalow also comes with a private patio with plush, oversized lounge furniture. From the patio, guests have a direct view of (and a direct path to) the pool area. The grass under my feet and the flora and fauna above made me feel like I was lounging in a tropical forest. (Here’s a fun tip: if you leave your room through your patio doors, make sure your front door isn’t latched shut. It took a call to security and a 20-minute wait in the Puerto Rican heat to get back into my room after I locked myself out.)
I made sure I was back in my room before sundown that first night, eager to witness whatever transformation was coming. As the sky darkened and the moon rose, I quickly realised that there wasn’t anything to see. Instead, the room filled with the sound of the coquí frogs outside, transforming (as promised) my space into a mini rainforest that was all my own.
Book your stay at Fairmont El San Juan Hotel via Booking.com
Book your stay at Fairmont El San Juan Hotel via Agoda.com
(Hero and feature image credit: Fairmont El San Juan)
This story first appeared on travelandleisure.com
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