Emiliano hotel to open 47 suites in Brazil, in a development designed by Foster + Partners

A hotel brand with just two properties does not open a third by chance. Emiliano, the Brazilian luxury house from São Paulo and Rio, is set to open in Praia Brava, on the coast of Santa Catarina, within a tower designed by Foster + Partners whose construction has just commenced.

The project is called Tempo, developed by Müze, and groundworks began on Wednesday 9 September 2026 in the presence of the British firm’s directors. Seven residential buildings, a hotel tower, and an overall sales volume estimated at 2.5 billion reais · around 400 million euros.

Construction began on 9 September

A real estate project of this scale is judged by the day the machinery arrives, not the day of the announcement. The equipment for Tempo moved onto the Brava Norte site on Wednesday 9 September 2026 for groundworks, in the presence of Müze teams and representatives from Foster + Partners.

The development combines seven residential buildings and a tower dedicated to the hotel. On the residential side, there are 83 private units ranging from 400 to 950 square metres, starting from 30 million reais · marketed by the developer as “suspended mansions”. The residences are slated for completion in 2031, and the hotel in 2030.

Tempo and the future Emiliano hotel in Praia Brava

Foster + Partners enters Brazil

This is the news that extends far beyond the real estate file alone: Tempo is Foster + Partners’ first residential project in Brazil. The practice founded by Norman Foster has built airports, corporate headquarters and museums across five continents, but had yet to undertake a residential scheme in the country. Juan Frigerio, partner in charge of Latin America, is leading the project.

The architectural approach follows the natural topography rather than flattening it: low, tiered volumes with cascading planted terraces above the beach. For a coastline that has become crowded with vertical towers over the past fifteen years, this is a deliberate counter-statement.

Emiliano adds a third property

Emiliano is not a chain. The house maintains two addresses, both of which matter: Emiliano São Paulo, on Oscar Freire Street in the heart of the Jardins district, and Emiliano Rio, in Copacabana, designed by São Paulo architect Arthur Casas. Praia Brava will be their third.

The hotel will feature 47 suites and will also serve residents of the condominium · a common model for this type of development, where the hotel provides services and branding to the residential units. The developer announces nightly rates around 6,000 reais.

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The reality behind the “six-star” claim

The press pack mentions a “six-star” rating, and the term is being circulated widely. It should be read for what it is: a marketing pitch, not an official classification. The official Brazilian hotel rating system stops at five stars, exactly like the French system · no regulatory body issues a sixth star anywhere in the world.

The expression is used to signify “above local luxury standards” for an audience that won’t look at the fine print. It is fair game, but it only commits those who use it · and real stars are earned and lost. A hotel in the Périgord region recently gave up its own voluntarily.

Why Itajaí attracts major names

Santa Catarina has become the most expensive coastline in Brazil in a single decade, and Praia Brava is its most competitive stretch. The local business press readily compares it to a Brazilian Riviera · the phrase is easy, but prices confirm it: 30 million reais for a starting apartment is not an ordinary resort market.

The project is located in Brava Norte, the least developed part of the beach. This is where the core issue of the project lies: a development of this scale relies on preserving the very site it occupies.