Cipriani Ocean Resort, Club Residences & Casino

On the grounds of the legendary Hotel San Rafael, facing the open ocean of the Brava, the most ambitious project Punta del Este has ever seen is moving forward. Cipriani is proposing a complex of residences, hotel, casino and event center designed by Rafael Viñoly's studio, with a main tower that, at its announced 260 meters, will redefine the city's coastal skyline. The first phase —the rebuilding of the San Rafael, the casino and the convention center— is already complete, and the partial opening is expected for October 2026. If you're looking to understand where Punta del Este luxury is headed, this is the benchmark: an internationally-scaled venture that combines the resort town's architectural memory with top-tier hotel services and residences designed for a global audience.

The masterplan bears the signature of Rafael Viñoly's studio, the Uruguayan architect of global standing, and combines two gestures of very different scale: the faithful reconstruction of the Hotel San Rafael, with its unmistakable Tudor style of brick and concrete trusses, and a set of residential towers that, according to the developer's announcements, would reach heights unprecedented for the region. The contrast is deliberate. Below, the memory of the 1930s resort recovered piece by piece; above, a contemporary profile that will redefine Brava's coastal skyline. The casino, already built, draws on classic Italian nautical style with an Art Deco touch, and includes a private club that evokes the historic nightlife of Punta del Este.

The complex occupies the site of the legendary Hotel San Rafael, on rambla Lorenzo Batlle Pacheco, facing the open ocean of Playa Brava and steps from the San Rafael neighborhood, one of the resort's most traditional residential areas. It's a location with real historical weight: for decades, the San Rafael was the social heart of Punta del Este, host to festivals, celebrity weddings and golden summers. The first phase — a hotel with 64 rooms, casino and convention center — is already complete, with partial opening planned for late 2026. For the area, the effect is twofold: it revives an icon that stood abandoned for years and brings an international hotel-services hub to the east side of the peninsula.

With an estimated investment of between 500 and 600 million dollars, it is the largest private project in the history of Punta del Este, and that changes the coordinates of everything around it. The complex's penthouses set sales records for the city, and the combination of residences with a casino, beach club, spa, three restaurants, golf simulator and events center targets a global buyer looking for hotel-level services all twelve months of the year. For anyone analyzing the Punta del Este market with perspective, the Cipriani works as a benchmark: it anchors international luxury demand on the Brava and pushes up the value of land and properties along the entire San Rafael corridor.

• Design by Rafael Viñoly's studio, with a main tower announced at 260 meters
• Estimated investment of US$ 500 to 600 million, the largest in the resort's history
• Full restoration of the historic Hotel San Rafael
• Partial opening planned for October 2026 (hotel, casino and events center)
• Penthouses that set sales records for the city
• Total investment of approximately USD 600 million
• 40% of the 65 units in the first tower already sold; a penthouse sold for USD 17,1 million
• Foundation on 86 piles 1,80 m in diameter that penetrate 9 meters into the bedrock
• It positions itself as one of the largest luxury complexes in South America, on the grounds of the historic Hotel San Rafael