Hôtel Marques de Riscal: Haute couture signed by Frank O. Gehry

The Luxury Collection, a brand of the chain Starwood Hotels & Resorts, enters the winemaking world of Rioja thanks to the heirs of the Marques de Riscal, the oldest bodega in Spain, and to the immoderate genius of the architect Frank O. Gehry. The author of the celebrated Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao was asked to design this 60 million euro complex - all dressed up in pink, gold and silver ribbons of titanium - for upmarket tourism and business clientele. He successfully integrated his work into the heart of the domain (the three pillars of the hotel are rooted in its 19th-century cellars!). The resort, whose lighting and furnishings are signed by Gehry and Alvar Aalto, has 43 rooms including 11 bright, sleek luxury suites of 38 to 90 sq.m, all outfitted with flat-screen televisions by Bang & Olufsen with a CD player, High Speed Internet Access (ADSL and wireless). All have exceptional views of the vineyard and the 16th-century church of Elciego. The "Luxury Collection" plans to sell a "Frank O. Gehry" package that includes the Guggenheim Museum, the Sheraton in Bilbao and the Hotel Marques de Riscal in Elciego.