How is it that the Inn of the Five Graces in downtown Santa Fe has remained a favorite of travelers and the travel media for more than 25 years?
Most recently, U.S. News & World Report ranked Inn of the Five Graces the No. 76 best hotel in the United States — out of 6,172 hotels. The next closest Santa Fe hotels are the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi at No. 340 and the Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe at No. 406.
The Inn of the Five Graces is not a traditional hotel structure.
It’s a centuries-old barrio neighborhood of individual homes and buildings on East De Vargas Drive, pieced together by Ira and Sylvia Seret since 1994. They now own the north side of De Vargas from Old Santa Fe Trail to the New Mexico Supreme Court and the south side from Old Santa Fe Trail to the Santa Fe Playhouse.
A walk down the street is a walk through the historic Barrio de Analco. The Inn of the Five Graces is a series of adobe and rock structures, each different, some of which dating to at least the 19th century.
As often happens with historic adobe structures, where the exteriors are nondescript but the interiors can be opulent, the street view of the Inn of the Five Graces gives no clue of the elaborate Silk Road, Middle Eastern and Southwest décor the Seret family has infused into the structures.
“The Inn of the Five Graces has everything you’d expect in a top-ranked hotel, including a central location, stellar customer service and unique amenities,” Zach Watson, senior travel editor at U.S. News & World Report, told The New Mexican. “But, it’s the Inn of the Five Graces’ atmosphere that sets it apart from other luxury properties and makes it such a memorable stay. My favorite aspect of the hotel is the colorful hand-laid tile mosaics in every bathroom. Accommodations also showcase carefully arranged antiques, rugs, textiles and other treasures from across the Eastern Hemisphere, making it easy to forget you’re staying in Santa Fe.”
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