Hotel Humboldt

The Hotel Humboldt stands on the very summit of the Ávila mountain — a 14-storey cylindrical tower of glass and white concrete designed by Tomás Sanabria and completed in 1956. It was originally accessible only by cable car from Maripérez, a thousand metres below in the city. For most of its life the hotel has been closed; after a long refurbishment it reopened in 2018 as a luxury property under government management.

Even when not staying there, day visitors riding the teleférico can access the lobby, the wraparound terrace, and the restaurant for the famous view: Caribbean coast to the north, Caracas basin to the south. On clear days you can see Pico Naiguatá and, in the right conditions, the islands offshore. Sunsets at the summit are unforgettable; check the last cable car down before you commit to staying.

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The hotel was built in 1956 in 165 days, on a tight schedule set by the dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez, who wanted it open for the Inter-American Conference. The cylindrical glass-clad form, designed by Tomás Sanabria, is one of the most striking modernist hotels in the Americas; Pérez Jiménez was overthrown two years later, and the hotel has spent much of its life closed or only partly operating.

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