A Midcentury Classic Is Reborn in Acapulco

Welcome to the Acapulco of yesteryear; the one that Elvis, Frank Sinatra, and Elizabeth Taylor knew.

To the casual observer, a visit to the Hotel Boca Chica might feel like stepping back in time, to an Acapulco hotspot that time didn’t defeat. The Boca Chica was once a happening place in the boozy but classy Acapulco of the 1950s (even given a shot in the opening scenes of Elvis flick Fun in Acapulco). But the hotel fell into disrepair when Acapulco fell out of favor with tourists, and it suffered 20 long years of neglect.

Enter phenom hoteliers Grupo Habita, who gave the Chica a structural renovation and a fresh coat of cool mint paint. The upgrade was meant to re-create the Boca Chica of yesterday with the conveniences of today, replete with refined hospitality and lots of rum. Little needed a complete overhaul, and the hotel’s sushi bar—though one would think it was schemed up for today’s tourists—is actually an update to the hotel’s original, yes, sushi bar. Credit architects Frida Escobedo and Jose Rojas for the Boca Chica’s new-old look, with help from Mexican artist Claudia Fernandez serving as antiques curator. We’re impressed with the simplicity of the restoration, swapping a little midcentury dust for some new midcentury cool.

Photography courtesy of Grupo Habita.

For more favorites in Mexico, see our posts:

• Hotel Esencia: Secluded Splendor on the Maya Riviera
• Steal This Look: A Characterful Bedroom in Veracruz, Mexico
• Just Open: A Hidden Beach Hotel in Oaxaca

N.B.: This post is an update; the original story ran on August 4, 2012.