Pestana Convento Do Carmo

Hotel description

The Pestana Convento do Carmo is the product of a familiar formula: a large hotel chain snaps up a small historic property, tears down the old wallpaper and knocks down a few walls, brings in the fine linens and installs a sophisticated lighting system, then reintroduces the place to the public as an upscale hôtel de charme. Luckily, the contemporary renovations haven’t at all diminished the original charms of this 16th-century Carmelite convent — the silver just shines a little brighter in the dining room and the once-murky courtyard fountain is replaced by a gorgeous swimming pool.

Centrally situated in Salvador’s old city, this former convent still bears strong traces of the Portuguese friars who built it. The architecture is European colonial, with dramatic stone archways and a pair of cloisters, while indoors, colorful tile and religious artwork abound. The decor is grand in the public spaces — antique furniture, high wood-beamed ceilings, gilded mirrors and chandeliers, rich hues of dark red and cobalt blue — while the 79 guest rooms subtly remind you that you’re still in a convent. Structural changes to the original building turned rows of single rooms into spacious suites with flat-screen TVs, L’Occitane products, oversized shower heads and wireless internet. But the rooms’ hardwood floors, shadowy corners, and old-fashioned writing desks keep the guest quarters firmly grounded in their humbler history.

The hotel’s acclaimed Restaurante Conventual, too, has stayed true to the convent’s past: there’s no generic “international” cuisine here, just traditional Portuguese delicacies like suckling pig, and a killer selection of fine olive oils. After an afternoon exploring the steep cobbled streets of Salvador’s old city, guests can seek a little R&R at the hotel’s spa, or in one of the inviting canopied chaises circling the pool.