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Design Suites Calafate

Calle 598 Numero 190 Playa Lago Argentino, El Calafate 9405 Argentina
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Traveler (1177)
Room & Suite (408)
Dining (151)

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About

#34 of 73 hotels in El Calafate
Location
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Service
Value
Situated about one mile from El Calafate downtown, the Design Suites Calafate is an excellent choice for guests who seek tranquility during their holidays. This boutique hotel is located in the upper area of the Nimes Peninsula, where you can admire the low vegetation, hills and lake invite during a pleasant walk. If you want to visit the city, the hotel offers a shuttle to downtown on a regular basis. As a guest of the Design Suites Calafate, you will have free access to the heated pool, sauna and gym. In addition, the hotel provides a health club and spa treatments in order to optimize your relaxation during your stay. A restaurant and a bar provide meals and drinks from the morning until late at night.
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Property amenities
Free parking
Free internet
Pool
Fitness Center with Gym / Workout Room
Free breakfast
Free shuttle or taxi services
Business Center with Internet Access
Conference facilities
Secured parking
Wifi
Hot tub
Pool / beach towels
Pool with view
Indoor pool
Heated pool
Fitness / spa locker rooms
Sauna
Bar / lounge
Restaurant
Breakfast buffet
Snack bar
Airport transportation
Banquet room
Meeting rooms
Spa
Foot massage
Full body massage
Massage
Neck massage
Steam room
Baggage storage
Concierge
Currency exchange
Non-smoking hotel
Shared lounge / TV area
24-hour front desk
Express check-in / check-out
Dry cleaning
Laundry service
Ironing service
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Room features
Air conditioning
Housekeeping
Room service
Safe
Telephone
Bottled water
Minibar
Flatscreen TV
Room types
Non-smoking rooms
Suites
Family rooms
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
4.0 of 5 stars
HOTEL STYLE
Great View
Park View
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish, Portuguese
1,377Review38Q+A95Room tips
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Wafa L wrote a review Feb 2024
4 contributions1 helpful vote
Let’s start with the pros: 1. Very nice architecture and fancy building. 2. Has a pool, has wifi. 3. Bed was verrrry comfortable! 4. Had bath robes. 5. The view of blue Lago Argentina was amazing! Cons 1. Far away from city center. We rented a car so this didn’t bother us but I’ve read reviews of people walking the 4km to the city which is inconvenient. 2. There were gnats and moths in our room!! This is the main reason I rated it two stars. I think housekeeping or somebody from staff left the balcony door open. We didn’t sleep till 2am because we were killing all the bugs. 3. The shower is hard to maneuver, it doesn’t have hot or cold written on the handles. 4. My husband ordered a late dinner, it was lamb and vegetables and it was terrible. Inedible food. We ordered dinner from Cuevos pasta bar the next day for fear that all of the dinner menu being bad. 5. Breakfast was sub par compared to other places that we stayed at in Patagonia. It wasn’t bad just not the same standard.
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Date of stay: February 2024
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Trip type: Traveled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Suzanne S wrote a review Feb 2024
Phoenix, Arizona271 contributions47 helpful votes
This hotel isn’t awful, but it’s too far outside the center of El Calafate. It’s a 40 minute walk to the center, and the free shuttle the hotel provides does not run at convenient times. We had to get a taxi every time we wanted to go into town. We saw plenty of nice hotels in the center of El Calafate that would have been better. As far as our room, it was very hot and stuffy I think because of the light coming through the large windows. We had the air conditioning cranked up the whole time to make the temperature bearable. The room had a nice view of Lago Argentino. I recommend they put blackout curtains on the windows because it’s hard to block out the light when you’re trying to go to sleep. As others have mentioned, the walls are thin so you hear everything going on in other rooms. The breakfast was decent, although it would have been nice if they provided a milk alternative (almond, soy, etc.) as I don’t drink regular milk. Other hotels we stayed at in the Patagonia area provided milk alternatives. The hotel provides boxed lunches for a fee. We did this on two days where we had all day activities planned. The boxed lunches were good! We had a very disappointing experience when we tried to pre book a taxi for the day of our departure. We inquired at the front desk the night before to see if we could book a taxi for 7am the following morning to take us to the bus station. The guy at the front desk told us we didn’t need to book a taxi, we could just come to the front desk at 6:45am the following morning and ask them to call a taxi and it would be there by 7am. We took his word for it and unfortunately that is not what happened. We went to the front desk at 6:45am and they called a taxi, but it didn’t arrive for an hour which caused us to almost miss our bus. There was a different guy working the front desk in the morning and he told us that taxis are very busy in the morning, which is not what the guy had told us the night before. We were very angry about the situation because it could have been avoided if they had pre booked the taxi for us as requested. Overall, I recommend you give this hotel a miss and book something in the center of El Calafate.
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Date of stay: February 2024Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Luberon1 wrote a review Feb 2024
Gordes, France36 contributions34 helpful votes
Stunning view from the rooms that are large and comfortable (same for bathroms) but getting a bit oldish. The breakfast is very mediocre, even the bread! fortunatly we had a waitress, if my memory is good called Milena, not only sweet and professional, but in addition every morning permanently doing all she could to make us feel happy even with this bad breakfast. This hotel is truly fortunate to have somebody like her and she should be warmly congratulated by the management, on the contrary of the breakfast chef...
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Date of stay: January 2024
Value
Location
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Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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James S wrote a review Jan 2024
9 contributions
Stayed here as part of an Inspiring Vacations tour. It isn't the type of place you want to stay if on a tour and wanting to see the destination city. Design Suites Calafate is technically I guess in Calafate, but in reality is located about 7km from the part of town as a tourist you'll want to go to and spend most of your day at, or even as someone who is hungry and wants to buy either a meal or just a bottle of soft drink or snack from a shop. There are no shops whatsoever in the vicinity of Design. It's one of those places where if you gave someone directions those directions include turn off the paved road. I did walk into "town" the first day of my stay, you walk down a lot of dirt roads, there's some derelict houses between you and the tourist area (I never felt unsafe at all), as well as plenty of newer houses, hotels and lots of buildings under construction. In fact the great view which is the number one thing this place has going for it, I think if you came back in five years, would be completely different. But at the moment you get a great view from your room (if you get one facing Lake Argentina) or from the dining room and other common rooms. It's nice but it's like a painting, it never really changes. For me I'd rather walk 7kms to see a nice view, stay there for long enough to take it in, then go back to my accommodation where the main town/tourist area is. You really need a car if you're staying here, although they do have to free scheduled shuttle drop offs and pickup times, although they are not very convenient times so I never used it. Room comes with breakfast which is a buffet serve yourself what you want from a couple of tables. Juice, various sliced bread to toast, fruit, cereals, pastries. There were scrambled eggs and on the first day these weird bacon fat things. The second day some little frankfurt things were mixed in with the bacon fat. I preferred it without them. The staff were always quite friendly and helpful. Room was a decent size, two beds had been pushed together to form a double, the second night kind of noticed the gap as you sort of fall in between them. But it was comfortable. These weird leather women's purse type pillows were on the bed and were very uncomfortable along with great normal ones. An odd collection of wires hung above the bed for some reason. Was it art? I don't know. Bathroom toilet was excellent. Shower unfortunately was in a bath tub. No need for a shower curtain with how it was designed. The wash your hands basin though was too shallow. Like the depth of a dinner plate. Walls were really thin, you could here everything that was being said by the loud talker in the room next door.
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Date of stay: January 2024
Value
Location
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Trip type: Traveled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Rhonda wrote a review Mar 2023
Melbourne, Australia12 contributions3 helpful votes
The hotel is a 4 km walk from town but has a great view over the lake. Curtesy car provided to get guests into town and back for dinner. Restaurant and bar was very satisfactory. Walls appear a bit thin as you could hear all from the room next door.
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Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Blackies321 wrote a review Feb 2023
9 contributions12 helpful votes
This hotel looked great on the website but the room was tired and the location too far out of town. The building has been designed to blend into the landscape and it does that very well. Lago Argentina was close but a 10 minute walk over some scrub land/unmade up roads. The views from our lake facing room were spectacular. Breakfast was a disappointment although the waiting staff were nice and pleased to help. We ate out both nights as the restaurant menu didn’t look appealing - not helped by poor lighting and ambiance. This is a hotel where people pass through and it shows. No sign of management but nice reception staff. We were visiting the Perito Moreno glacier and had ordered a picnic for nearly 3,000 Argentinian pesos. It was a shocker. Not worth the money and you can buy cheaper in the coffee shop at the glacier. We didn’t use the swimming pool as not sure how standards were being maintained but our friends did and they said it was very warm. You just need to ask the reception for towels. So not horrible but probably you can find better.
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Date of stay: February 2023Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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CFFSydney wrote a review Feb 2023
Sydney23 contributions31 helpful votes
+1
The hotel views are so beautiful - looking out over Argentina Lake and up towards the snow capped mountains. The hotel building was beautifully designed, but not particularly well maintained. We had a suite facing the lake on some very hot (for them) summer days. The only opening window did not work. The window pane next to it had a very large crack. We were fortunate to have air-conditioning in our room (not all rooms did), but it took ages to cool the room. We were out on a trip all day, from 7:30am to 5pm, but room service knocked on our door after 5pm to service the room and didn't end up making up the room. We ordered lunch from the restaurant when we arrived, and the english translation was incorrect so we ended up with scrambled eggs and hard avocado on toast rather than a ham and cheese toastie. When I told the waiter she giggled! Not quite the response I was looking for. The reception staff were really helpful. They recommended a lovely restaurant, made restaurant reservations and called taxis. The hotel is rather far out of town. We always had to take a taxi. This would be fine if it was top class, but unfortunately the maintenance and service let it down.
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Date of stay: December 2022
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Traveled as a couple
Room Tip: Be prepared to take a taxi in and out of town. Ask for rooms with air conditioning if you're...
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Fromeasttowest wrote a review Feb 2023
1 contribution1 helpful vote
Everything was a disaster. One after the other. We scheduled an airport pick up from them, they never sent anyone. We waited for 40 minutes then got in the taxi line. Later that day ordered a taxi to go into town they came 45 minutes after requested. They say they have a shuttle to bring back from town and we went to the pick up point but it’s really just taxis they call. Every other hotel has an actual shuttle they pick up their guests. But design suites just taxis and they don’t tell you. So we waited 30 mins from pick up time and had to call them to have someone come for us. 30 minutes later. Sent out laundry, they say 24 hours. 36 hours later they called and said it’ll be ready the next day but we were leaving at 7am and their response “oh they said u brought it yesterday” we did not. Asked them to turn on the sauna at X time, they never did. Asked them to book a taxi to go to the airport, they did and told us a certain price, guy came 10 minutes late and charged us more than we were given. Lastly and quite possibly the worst, we booked on booking.com with a US $ rate. When we got there we asked them o charge us in pesos and they completely made up a pesos number not even close to the conversion rate that ended up being $130 more than we booked for. Overall just one after the other disasters. Be prepared to be frustrated. Wouldn’t recommend.
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Date of stay: January 2023
Value
Location
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Trip type: Traveled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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STAF1401 wrote a review Dec 2022
Sao Paulo, SP191 contributions137 helpful votes
The Design hotel has very nice pictures of the hotel, which does have a very good design. But it stopped right there!!!!. The services does not stand for what they charge for the hotel and the staff are not well trained at all!!!. This is very sad because the hotel has a lot of potential. But it just does not delivers what it could. Your are paying a 5 star hotel and getting a 3 star hotel service . The beds need to be changed and the room could be more clean. Air conditioning is just there but it is old and it does not work well. The Food at hotel is really bad....do not reccomend! Besides, the hotel is so out of town, for away, that you need to hire a taxi to get there. There are better option in town. Do not recommend!!!!
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Date of stay: December 2022Trip type: Traveled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Ksvensson00 wrote a review Dec 2022
4 contributions2 helpful votes
+1
Hotel is beat up and dirty. Very poor service. We asked to speak with the manager on several occasions and different times during our stay and unfortunately there was never a manager there running the operation. Because the manager is never there, the staff does not care if there are any issues. Plus staff is Spanish speaking only. Breakfast buffet was horrible. Soupy eggs and dry/stale pastries. Crusty cheese and deli meats. No options for guests with sensitivities. Very limited fruit. Hotel didn’t even do anything extra for a Christmas breakfast. This hotel is not luxury at all. Room was dirty. Black out shades broken, ripped and too small to cover the windows fully, especially since the sun sets after 10pm and rises at 5:15am. Hotel does not allow 2 adults and 2 kids in the same room. We were forced to book 2 rooms. When we checked in, they had our rooms on opposite sides of the hotel AND on different floors. My husband had to sleep in a room by himself on Christmas Eve and for the entire stay. Rooms are tiny. These rooms are NOT suites. Window handles in the room were broken. No fresh air. Hotel location too far from anything. You must taxi everywhere. Taxis are cash only. We do not recommend this hotel to our worst enemies.
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Date of stay: December 2022Trip type: Traveled with family
Room Tip: Avoid this hotel if you can.
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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PRICE RANGE
₱7,620 - ₱14,796 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
design suites calafate hotel el calafate, design hotel el calafate, design hotel calafate
LOCATION
ArgentinaPatagoniaProvince of Santa CruzEl Calafate
NUMBER OF ROOMS
60
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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DESIGN SUITES CALAFATE - UPDATED 2024 Hotel Reviews & Price Comparison (El Calafate, Argentina) - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Design Suites Calafate
Which popular attractions are close to Design Suites Calafate?
Nearby attractions include Lago Argentino (2.3 km), Estancia Cristina (2.4 km), and Estancia 25 de Mayo (3.0 km).
What are some of the property amenities at Design Suites Calafate?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include an indoor pool, free breakfast, and an on-site restaurant.
Which room amenities are available at Design Suites Calafate?
Top room amenities include a minibar, air conditioning, and a flat screen TV.
What food & drink options are available at Design Suites Calafate?
Guests can enjoy free breakfast, an on-site restaurant, and a lounge during their stay.
Is parking available at Design Suites Calafate?
Yes, free parking, secured parking, and street parking are available to guests.
What are some restaurants close to Design Suites Calafate?
Conveniently located restaurants include Rustico Asador y Parrilla, Volpi Bistró Puertas adentro, and La Trinchera Wine & Beer.
Are there opportunities to exercise at Design Suites Calafate?
Yes, guests have access to an indoor pool, a fitness centre, and a sauna during their stay.
Does Design Suites Calafate have airport transportation?
Yes, Design Suites Calafate offers airport transportation for guests. We recommend calling ahead to confirm details.
Are any cleaning services offered at Design Suites Calafate?
Yes, dry cleaning and laundry service are offered to guests.
Does Design Suites Calafate offer any business services?
Yes, it conveniently offers a business centre, meeting rooms, and a banquet room.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at Design Suites Calafate?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English, Spanish, and Portuguese.