Second acts: Four beautifully restored hotels breathing fresh air into storied buildings

1.
Farasha Farmhouse
Marrakech

After stints in Marrakech and Ibiza, in 2021 Fred and Rosena Charmoy decided to channel their experience as seasoned party planners into the purchase of a former artist’s residence and studio in Marrakech, which opened in 2023. The French-Irish couple created a regenerative farm, hotel and exhibition space known as Farasha Farmhouse.

The new Ranch House, unveiled in February, expands the property from four to 11 suites, and showcases a generation of Moroccan architects and artists. Designed by Idriss Karnachi from Studio Noss Noss, who is based in Morocco, additional wall space has also increased the in-house collection of contemporary African artworks by Amine El Gotaibi, among others.

As part of the expansion, the Charmoys partnered with Robert Wright, co-founder of Morocco-based Beni Rugs, a collaboration that has resulted in each room being warmed by bespoke weavings. “A well-curated, coherent space can have a powerful effect on enhancing wellbeing,” says Rosena. “Guests visit us in need of rest but we try to inspire their sense of curiosity in a way that leaves them feeling recharged.”
farashafarmhouse.com

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2.
Casas Elilula
Preá, Brazil

After visiting Preá – a village in a wild corner of Brazil’s northeastern coastline – in 2012, French publisher Christine Pasquier and her family decided to establish a holiday home there.

Over the years they built their own beachfront properties, with three houses that are now available to rent, separately or together. Casa La consists of a cluster of palm-thatched bungalows linked by wooden walkways, while the larger, two-storey Casa Eli has Atlantic views; Casa Lu, meanwhile, is arranged around a large terrace. Casas Eli and La have private gardens, and a shared garden surrounds the pool.
casaselilula.com

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3.
Hotel Sevilla
Mérida, Mexico

Mérida in the Yucatán was once one of the most affluent cities in the world. Many of its mansions have been transformed into private homes, galleries or hotels. Such is the case with Hotel Sevilla, from Mexican hoteliers Grupo Habita. Set in a 16th-century house or casona, the 21-room hotel was overhauled by Berlin-based Zeller & Moye, working with local architect Carlos Cuevas.

The building was in disrepair but much has been restored, including arches, stonework, tiles and beams. The exterior, which has intricate balconies, has been given a lick of paint. And in the rooms, there is a clean aesthetic with inky tiles, wooden shutters and earthy lampshades spun from an agave fibre named henequen.
hotelsevilla-merida.com

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4.
The Dean
Berlin

Irish hospitality group The Dean has taken its first step beyond home turf. In Charlottenburg – West Berlin’s old-money quarter – the brand has taken on an 81-room, late-19th-century building that has served, in turn, as a residence and a postwar office.

“My approach was about revealing the building rather than over-restoring it,” says British designer Rachael Gowdridge. Instead of doing away with its past, she leaned into it. “This place has lived many lives,” she says. Thus, the interior embraces narrow proportions and unconventional layouts rather than disguising them: furniture is often set slightly off-axis and a bed’s headboard might rest against a window, instead of a wall. Throughout the hotel, an extensive art collection that features German artists is positioned in unexpected places. “There’s a deliberate tension throughout,” says Gowdridge. “Refined moments sit alongside raw ones, much like the district itself.”
thedeanhotels.com

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