02 Jul 2014
Viceroy Hotel Group to redevelop 17th Century convent at UNESCO World Heritage site
BY Helen Andrews
Viceroy Hotel Group and investment firm KIT Capital will redevelop the UNESCO World Heritage site of Obra Pía, a site which dates back to 1640 as the original capital of the Spanish Empire in the New World, Cartagena de Indias in Colombia. This site originally functioned as a Franciscan convent and was later home to a hospital, army barracks, orphanage and most recently – a school.
Scheduled for completion in early 2016, the Convento Obra Pía, Viceroy Cartagena will be the hotel group’s first branded property in South America. The restored 17th Century convent will feature 102 luxury guestrooms and 15 cabanas at an affiliated site in the Rosario Islands – off the coast of Cartagena.
The project will be led by KIT Capital - an investment group based in Cartagena and Dubai – controlled by Colombian-American entrepreneur Kaleil Isaza Tuzman. The redevelopment is expected to cost more than US$50m (€37m, £29m).
The Viceroy Cartagena will be restored by architectural firm Barrera & Barrera, preserving the structure and cultural heritage of the convent but adding modern amenities such as a 275sq m courtyard pool (2,960sq ft), a fitness centre and spa.
The cabana property on the Rosario Islands – keeping guests connected via two luxury yacht ferries from the Old City to the islands – will also feature an Asian-themed spa. The entire Viceroy resort, including both sites, will offer a ‘country club’-style membership for up to 400 non-hotel guests who will have full access to both the hotel gym and spa as well as the private beach club and Asian island spa.
“With just over 700 high-end hotel rooms, Cartagena’s Old City is one of the most underserved luxury travel markets in the world,” said Tuzman. “KIT Capital was very fortunate to acquire one of the history centre’s last viable locations for a large-format hotel. Competition amongst potential operating partners was fierce. We chose to partner with Viceroy because of its track record of creating ‘in-context’ urban resort meccas, coupled with our shared vision that Cartagena and the Rosario Islands are fast becoming one of the world’s premier ‘jet set’ destinations.”
The mainland hotel site will also include 1,250sq m (13,455sq ft) of cross-functional event space, a nightclub, panoramic rooftop pool and a bar with a 360-degree view of Cartagena.
Overall, the resort will comprise more than 400 restaurant seats, all within close proximity to the city’s world-class convention centre and colourful Getsemaní neighbourhood – filled with salsa clubs, tapas bars and drinking dens carved out of 17th Century and 18th Century facades.
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