Elcielo Hotel & Restaurant

Elcielo Hotel’s name — and that of its proprietor, Juan Manuel Barrientos — might be familiar to gastronomes; the restaurant of the same name in Washington D.C. earned a Michelin star in 2021. Here, in his hometown of Medellín, Barrientos has expanded his vision into the luxury-hotel world, with results that are impressive, to say the least — this is much more than a restaurant with rooms, and in fact occupies a place at the top end of the local hospitality scene.

The building is immediately arresting, a modern structure whose full-length windows are shielded by articulated metal screens. The interior is perhaps even more dramatic, oriented around a verdant atrium garden. Upstairs, the 28 suites are ultra-modern and ultra-tasteful, with modern furniture set against rich hardwood paneling and classic travertine bathrooms.

The neighborhood, too, has much to recommend it; El Poblado is the city’s most vibrant upscale enclave. And the eponymous in-house restaurant, arguably the hotel’s main attraction, is every bit the equal of its sisters in D.C., Miami, and Bogotá, and serves everything from a very fine hotel breakfast to an extravagant 17-course tasting menu — and the concierge is happy to arrange outings to Mr. Barrientos’s other local restaurants.