A Superstar Architect Designs a Luxury Hotel -- The architect Frank Gehry became even more famous than he already was when he designed the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. Now he's making newspaper and magazine headlines once again with his design of the luxury hotel, Marqués de Riscal, Calle Torrea 1 (tel. 94-518-08-80; www.luxurycollection.com/marquesderiscal) at Elciego 01340, some 129km (80 miles) south of Bilbao in the heart of the Rioja wine region. The 43-room "new style" hotel, part of the Starwood organization, has many of the architectural characteristics of the Guggenheim Museum. The roof, for example, is constructed from curved plates of titanium suspended at different angles and tinted silver, gold, and rose. The design of the exterior of the hotel is meant to evoke a "grapevine just before the fruit is harvested." The elegant rooms are all about windows; there are even window seats that follow the zigzagging contours of the exterior glass. The architect said he wanted "to make the view part of the room." The hotel is very pricey, charging 425€ to 815€ ($616-$1,182) for a double, with suites costing 590€ to 1,315€ ($856-$1,907). A Michelin-starred restaurant is on-site, as is an indoor heated swimming pool, a fitness center, and even a spa offering "wine treatment therapies."
