Stara Hamburgo

What it is. A hotel in an eighteenth-century French-style mansion on Hamburgo, in colonia Juárez, with contemporary interiors set inside it — marble and granite detailing, original artwork, and furniture that deliberately does not imitate the shell it sits in.

Why the building matters here. Colonia Juárez was laid out in the late nineteenth century for families imitating European life, and its mansions are what survived. The neighbourhood has been through a long revival: those houses now hold galleries, restaurants and design shops, and the streets around Hamburgo and Berlín are among the pleasantest in the centre to walk.

Where it puts you. On the edge of the Zona Rosa, the most concentrated going-out area in the city, with Amberes and Niza two minutes away; and on Paseo de la Reforma, with the Ángel de la Independencia a short walk west and the Bosque de Chapultepec beyond it. The historic centre is four Metro stops east.

Practical notes. Hamburgo #32, colonia Juárez. Metro Insurgentes and Cuauhtémoc, line 1, and the Reforma Metrobús. On Sunday mornings Reforma closes to traffic for cyclists and runners — worth planning a morning around.