A past filled with glamour and romance has led to a present brimming with intimate sophistication at Hacienda San Angel. Though this one-of-a-kind hotel gem has changed over time, its spirit of indulgence, passion and subdued elegance lives on.

The late Richard Burton purchased the Hacienda’s main villa as a Valentine’s Day gift for his wife, Susan in 1977, after falling in love with Puerto Vallarta as he filmed John Huston’s The Night of the Iguana there in the mid 1960’s. The cult classic film put Puerto Vallarta on the map as a favorite vacation spot for the international glitterati, including Burton’s ex, Elizabeth Taylor, who owned a house mere blocks away from Susan’s. Perched on the hillside above the famed Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe Church, the villa, aptly named Casa Bur-Sus, embodied coastal charm and Mexican architectural tradition.

In 1990, entrepreneur Janice Chatterton purchased Casa Bur-Sus from Susan Burton to use as a vacation home. After splitting her time between San Francisco and Puerto Vallarta for ten years, she decided to relocate to Puerto Vallarta, and began to spearhead a major renovation. The renovation of Casa Bur-Sus soon became a newfound passion for Chatterton, and when she was presented with the opportunity to purchase an adjacent villa, she eagerly snapped it up, renovating it and coining it Casa San Angel. So became Hacienda San Angel, and its original eight room property, which debuted in 2003. Since opening the Hacienda, she has purchased and renovated several additional neighboring villas, creating a spectacular property connected by lush interior courtyards filled with bubbling fountains, fiery bougainvillea and dramatic sculptural details. The Hacienda’s gloriously romantic guest suites offer sweeping views and respite from the bustle of downtown Puerto Vallarta.

Peering from their private terrace, guests can observe migrating whales gliding through Banderas Bay during the winter, as well as the Sierra Madre mountain range to the east and the terra cotta rooftops of the charming city all around. Chatterton continues to win raves for the hotel’s exquisite design and impeccable renovation as well as for the hotel’s fine dining restaurant, Hacienda San Angel Gourmet, which was added to the property in 2006 and Puerto del Cielo, a striking, open-air, on-site wedding chapel and event space.

Rich in history with a storied past, this picturesque property combines history and culture with the best of modern accommodations. Enjoy the lavish contemporary amenities and historic artifacts of the grounds and then step outside and back into time with legendary cobblestone streets that lead to white, stucco colonial homes topped with terra cotta tiled roofs, draped in bougainvillea and wrapped in wrought-iron fenced balconies brimming with ancient beauty.