Each time a limousine arrived with a dignitary at the adjacent Hotel Plaza Grande, an entourage of staff and bodyguards followed them. This plot facing Independence Square was gifted to conquistador Francisco Pizarro after the Spanish defeated the Incas in 1534. It was then purchased by Juan Diaz de Hidalgo, the leader of the new city. He built the first mansion in Quito, named House of Mayors. Numerous affluent families owned the property for the next 400 years. During the 1930s, it was rebuilt as the Majestic Hotel with a façade resembling a Venetian palazzo. The property reopened in 2007 as the Hotel Plaza Grande. The five-star hotel has 15 exclusive suites and three restaurants set in opulent décor and furnishings.
