The swans are still there, but the 103 rooms now have interiors designed by Alexander Champalimaud, a La Prairie spa and a restaurant by Wolfgang Puck, who also created the room service menu.

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While the 103 guest rooms and suites are now light-splashed and modern, the familiar Spanish-style architecture remains it now matches the new 12, 000-square-foot building which houses a bell tower, fitness studio, Spa by La Prairie and three airy guest rooms with open floor plans and retractable interior walls.

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"I had to spend all day at customs explaining what a Vichy shower was, " said Jorge Campos, director of Guacalito de la Isla, of the multi-spray spa gadget.

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