VINCCI TALKS – EPISODE 16: “The Art of Living at Vincci Hotels”

On our podcast Vincci Talks: “The Art of Conversation” we explore destinations, stories, and people that give meaning to every experience. But on this occasion, in a particularly meaningful episode, the journey turns inward, to understand where we come from in order to know who we are.

In this very special episode, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of Vincci Hoteles, we sit down with Carlos Calero, to revisit a story built on bold decisions, constant learning, and, above all, people.

Because these 25 years cannot be explained only through openings or figures. They are explained through a way of doing things. Through a distinctive vision, a “Vincci Vision” that represents a way of understanding hospitality and that, from the very beginning, was clear it could not be just another one: “We couldn’t be just another chain. We had to offer something different, something the guest would feel the moment they stepped through the door,” Carlos recalls.

That is how Vincci Hoteles was born. With an almost conceptual yet very clear idea: to create experiences. To make each hotel more than just a place to sleep. A space where design, destination, and people would become part of the same story.



The beginnings, as he himself says, were “crazy.” Starting from scratch in an already established industry was not the easy path. But it was the only possible one if something different was to be built. And in those first steps there is an anecdote that perhaps better than any other summarizes the spirit of those years and also the legacy that would shape everything that came after.

When the company had only just been launched, an opportunity arose to manage a hotel in Valencia. Without business cards, without a consolidated structure, and with more enthusiasm than resources, Carlos and his brother attended the meeting with a name freshly written on paper.

But it was not until their father, Rufino Calero, stepped in that everything fell into place. While they expected to talk about numbers, conditions, or contracts, the conversation took a different turn. For more than an hour, there was no talk about the hotel. They spoke about life, experiences, shared stories between two people who simply connected.

And then it happened. “He asked for a sheet of paper, wrote four lines, they both signed… And that agreement lasted ten years,” Carlos says. No complex contracts. No intermediaries. Just trust. “They shook hands, they gave their word… and that was enough.”

That seemingly simple scene holds one of Vincci Hoteles’ deepest values: the importance of trust, ethics, and doing things properly.

And it also explains who “the boss” was, as he was called both inside and outside the company. Because speaking of Vincci Hoteles is also speaking of family.

Rufino Calero did not just build a company, but a way of understanding it. A philosophy based on unity, dialogue, and working together. An idea that has been passed down from generation to generation and remains alive today.

“He always made it very clear that what mattered most was family. Unity, dialogue, and working together,” Carlos recalls.

It is no coincidence that, after so many years, they continue to meet, work, and grow together. Nor that new generations naturally join the project. Because this is not just about business continuity, but emotional continuity.

And amid all of this, one thing has never changed: the role of people.

In a sector that has evolved enormously, where technology, digitalization, and immediacy set the pace, Vincci Hoteles has remained firm in one conviction, as Carlos Calero says:

“This is not a building that opens and closes. It works because there are people behind it… We are a service company, and that means taking care of the guest, making them feel good, accompanying them”.

Carlos Calero, CEO of Vincci Hoteles.

True luxury is not only about location, design, or services. It is about how you are welcomed, how you are looked at, how you are made to feel. Because, in the end, experience is not measured in stars, but in emotions. This way of understanding hospitality has allowed Vincci Hoteles to adapt to change without losing its essence. Because yes, the guest has changed. Today they seek more. They seek experiences, authenticity, connection with the destination. And the response has been to evolve without ceasing to be who they are.

Each hotel is different. Each project adapts to its location, the traveler, and the moment. But they all share something invisible yet recognizable: that “Vincci Vision” that connects everything.

Because if anything defines these 25 years, it is a way of being and moving forward together.

And perhaps that is why, when Carlos Calero is asked what Vincci Hoteles’ Art of Living means to him, the answer is not a fixed concept. It is a feeling that Carlos explains like this: “I would like someone entering for the first time to say: yes, this is it. I’ve made the right choice”.

It is that immediate certainty. That calm. That warmth. Feeling good without knowing exactly why. Feeling, in a way, at home.

Today, 25 years later, Vincci Hoteles continues to grow, evolve, and look to the future. But it does so with the same essence it started with: putting people at the center, caring for every detail, and understanding that the real difference lies in what is not always seen.

Because the art of living Vincci Hoteles cannot be explained. It is felt. Don’t miss Episodio 16 de Vincci Talks: “El Arte de Vivir Vincci Hoteles” and discover a story built from within, with emotion, memory, and future, through our YouTube and Spotify channels.

"Come. Be amazed. Discover more than 40 four- and five-star hotels where every experience is unique. Open your eyes. Look around. Enjoy the most privileged locations. See. Touch. Feel a design and a style reflected in every detail. Rest. Relax. Let yourself be cared for by a service where you are the center. Dream. Smile. Live. You are at a Vincci"

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