Located in the heart of the port, with rooms that store many stories and legends of early 20th century gangsters, Hotel la Roca is the oldest place to stay in Puerto Peñasco.
Built in 1927 by John Stone, today the main attraction of this site is that it was presumably where American gangster Al Capone stayed in 1929, when prohibition was in effect in the U.S. The hotel had actually been built as a place for gambling and guests would arrive by plane.
The Hotel la Roca was built entirely in a mirror structure, with a large game room in front and ten rooms down a long corridor in a “shotgun” distribution to see who entered and left the hotel. According to legend, Al Capone stayed in room 10 on his visits because he had two exits he could use to flee if necessary.
In the 1930s, the hotel was visited by people from the United States for game nights and boat rides, which was a pretext for storing alcohol barrels from Guaymas that then crossed into Arizona through tunnels built in Sonoyta.
The Peñasco hotel, which was its name initially, was closed and burned down in 1933 when the so-called dry law ended. It later passed into the hands of Benjamin Bustamante who rebuilt it to continue using it as a hotel, though it also served as a post office at one time and as a small school for the city’s early residents.
It wasn’t until 1998 that Mr. Jorge Seldner took over the hotel, renovating it so it could reopen in 2000, maintaining the stone construction and the large hall that now serves as a living room.
Currently, Hotel La Roca offers sixteen rooms with comforts that retain the originality of its walls, some furniture of the time, old photographs, a display case with invaluable pieces, and above all the nostalgia and history of the location.
Guests who come looking for the place given its history and through recommendations principally come from the United States, Canada, Spain, Italy and France.
This iconic hotel, located right at the descent into the Old Port, might be a spot you’d like to visit and stay if you’re looking for a cozy space with lots of history and legends covering its walls, as well as low rates.