Elizabeth Taylor lived at this resort in Texas

This article first appeared on Texas Highways. Click here to view the article in its original format.

The newest luxury property in El Paso is a 19-story hotel haunted by the ghosts of Hollywood gossip: The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park, formerly The Hilton, was the home of Conrad “Nicky” Hilton and the from May to October 1950 Actress Elizabeth Taylor during their brief marriage. “She divorced him,” says the hotel’s event manager, Shanon Woodruff. “He was a little bit alcoholic and a little bit rough.”

The original hotel opened in 1930 and has 300 rooms and a bad case of bad timing – the Great Depression had only just begun. Despite all the odds, the Hilton thrived.

As history repeats itself many times, this year’s reopening coincided with the arrival of COVID-19 after a 29-year shutdown. The Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park reopened in June following a $ 78 million renovation by El Paso businessman Paul Foster. The 130 rooms and suites cost between $ 259 and $ 509 a night and offer great views of the city, the Franklin Mountains, and Mexico just across the border, plus charming amenities like Le Labo products in the marble bathrooms and Matouk robes and slippers . Since Nicky Hilton’s first advertisement for the hotel promised a radio in every room, this amenity remains a historic tribute.

The hotel has traces of 1930 such as stained glass chandeliers, tile floors, mailbox guests who used to post postcards, and elevator doors that were engraved with the original Hilton crest. Along with these old-fashioned touches, the property’s “Pueblo Revival Art Deco” designs combine Mexican, indigenous, and cowboy cultures with an Art Deco twist – intricate glasswork, hand-woven carpets, and rich leather. “We have a lot of leather,” says Woodruff and shows me a stylish cowhide rug in the lobby. “It’s a nod to El Paso’s livestock farming. Leder kept the hotel running during the Great Depression and saved the Hilton empire. “

The hotel’s restoration is part of a recent El Paso movement to revitalize downtown. The area offers fascinating Mexican-American history, sprawling street scenes and impressive restaurants, including Plaza Hotel Pioneer Park’s neighbor, four-time James Beard Award-nominee Café Central.

But hotel guests don’t have to leave the hotel for an incredible dining experience: the hotel’s Ámbar restaurant boasts a 700-bottle collection of agave spirits, including Patron en Lalique, a tequila in a crystal bottle for USD 1,750 per shot. A highlight on the contemporary Mexican menu is tuna marinated in coconut milk, habanero, lemongrass, and citrus fruits.

After dinner, the Bar La Perla on the 17th floor, named after La Peregrina, one of the most famous pearls in the world, is the perfect place for a nightcap. (La Peregrina was once owned by Elizabeth Taylor, and when she died it was auctioned for $ 11 million.) Sip a mezcal cocktail on one of the three terraces for sparkling views of Mexico, New Mexico and El Paso, including the 459 – Lightbulb star that glows in the Franklin Mountains after dark. As you soak up the warm night air, pretend to be a young Elizabeth Taylor. After all, La Perla was once her penthouse.

Copyright 2020 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.