The best holiday is made up of trifles, but such responsible decision as the choice of the hotel is not a trifle. Every tourist knows that a bad hotel can spoil all the impressions of the trip. Despite the fact that there are no bad hotels in Barcelona (the lowest quality is three-stars), it is worth choosing the best of all the good hotels that are available. The service of these giants of the hotel industry will turn a holiday into a good fairytale, which has become a reality, and their proximity to the sea or to the city center, can reduce the time spent every day on the road to your favorite place. In some ways, the choice of a hotel depends entirely on the purpose of the visit.
The best hotels in Barcelona: highlights
In general, all the best hotels in Barcelona can be divided into two categories: design and boutique hotels. The “design” option speaks for itself: majestic and triumphant, these hotels were built in the same style. By the way, regardless of the century. Neoclassical or Baroque – the concept of design hotel refers to both.
It’s a different situation with boutique hotels. The interior and design, as well as the shape of the building itself (if possible), were made to order. Often, designers put their souls into such buildings. One small nuance of boutique hotels: the concept of luxury in them is somewhat exaggerated, but the resulting comfort makes us forget about it.
By the way, another division of hotels into two categories is carried out by their location: a coastal hotel, or it is located in the heart of Barcelona. However, the criterion of geographical location in our top is only partially included.
The first place – the El Palace Barcelona
Despite the fact that it is always difficult to choose the best of the best, the El Palace Barcelona is the first place in the top list with confidence. There are several reasons for this, detailed below.
First of all, the geographical location. Anyway, there are all the good hotels in Barcelona in the city center, or just a few steps from the sea. The El Palace Barcelona has surpassed them all! It is located in the heart of the metropolis, near La Rambla street. By the way, this hotel will be exactly a hundred years old by 2019.
The interior decoration of the rooms is impressive, especially their area is memorable. Many of the tourists who stayed there call the rooms at the El Palace Barcelona as mansions. Each of them has a standard set for the best hotels in Barcelona: air conditioning, mini-bar, TV and other nice things like slippers and bathrobes for guests.
The kitchen is on a high level in the hotel: two restaurants try to serve their guests 24 hours a day, without closing for a minute. And as one of them is on the roof, you can have a meal outdoors.
Like most of our top hotels, the El Palace Barcelona is a design hotel. That’s why there is nothing surprising in the fact that the spa center reminds of the heyday of Mayan civilization. Gym, fitness center, swimming pool and sauna – all this serves have only one purpose: to provide comfort to its customers.
In addition to the excellent service inside the hotel, the El Palace Barcelona also offers city tours. Over the years, the hotel staff has long learned that it is primarily to show visitors, and this is a pastime chosen by many modern tourists.
Second place – the Mandarin Oriental
The second place is occupied by the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. In level of comfort and location it is almost as good as its predecessor, the El Palace Barcelona. Like other hotels on the list, booking a hotel in Barcelona is easy on the booking.com.
It is surely that Mandarin Oriental is located in the most convenient point of the city for tourists! Gaudí’s masterpieces (Casa Milla and Casa Batllo) can be reached on foot in about three minutes, and Plaza Catalunya is no more than seven minutes away.
The conveniences available to the Mandarin Oriental guests are just as good as the El Palace Barcelona service. Swimming pools, fitness and spa centres and 24-hour room service are just a few of the hotel’s services. The hotel is pleasant to stay even in winter: the impossibility of swimming in the sea is compensated by artificial reservoirs.
As the hotel type is a design-hotel, it is arranged in a rather peculiar way. Minimalistic style fantastically combines with home theaters, and light tones of the room decoration with black TV screens.
Special attention should be paid to the local cuisine. The chief of the Mandarin Oriental is the famous Carmé Ruscaleda, who has earned fame as one of the best chefs in Spain. She was the one who once won 7 stars in Michelin. There are several restaurants in the hotel, one of them even cooks exclusively in neo-Catalan style. One of the main advantages of the hotel’s kitchen is round-the-clock delivery to almost any corner of the hotel: from the terrace outdoors to the doors of the room.
Third place – the design hotel Almanac Barcelona
Closes the top three hotels – the Almanac Barcelona. He is known throughout the city for his special attitude towards his clients. Room meals, coaches at fitness centres, and courteous masseurs at spas are just some of the services provided by the staff. By the way, regular customers are allowed to book a hotel without prepayment. This is a real rarity in Barcelona.
The hotel is located in the heart of the city, ten minutes walk from Gaudi’s famous houses. Plaza Catalunya, the Picasso Museum and the Passeig de Gràcia are also within walking distance.
Other services include cocktail bar, fitness and spa centres, terrace, swimming pool, sauna and even relaxation rooms. After sporting activities, you usually have a savage appetite, which is worthy of competition only with the masterpieces of local cuisine. Mediterranean cuisine is mostly prepared there, but some delights from other areas of cooking are also present. Visitors who have stayed at the Almanac Barcelona especially praise the local wine.
Hotel The Serras
The Serras Hotel is the first boutique hotel on our list. And it certainly has something to interest the tourists. Location, terrace and rooftop pool, restaurant with excellent cuisine – it all impresses visitors in the first days of their stay at the hotel.
The Serras Hotel is particularly distinguished by its location: it is the only place it has managed to occupy in the Gothic Quarter. And the sea coast, located within walking distance, attracts tourists much better than any other attraction of the capital of Catalonia.
Each room at the hotel is given a lot of attention: absolute soundproofing, air conditioning, TV and mini-bar. Each room has a balcony that allows you to view the beauty of the Gothic Quarter without even going outside the hotel!
By the way, this hotel is a kind of monument to the great artist Pablo Picasso. At the beginning of his career the young genius painted the facades of the building. The Maestro’s Museum of Art is located near the hotel, just a ten-minute walk away, so that the knowledge of Picasso’s work can be easily expanded.
It is also worth noting the roof terrace of the building: an impressive swimming pool and the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the city – another factor that helps to make a choice in favor of the Serras Hotel. By the way, the hotel has its own cocktail list and very impressive library.
The best coastal hotel – the W Barcelona
The W Barcelona Hotel has been, is, and for a long time will be one of the best hotels in Barcelona by the sea. This majestic and proud sail would have been ready to compete for the first place in our ranking if not for its specific location. For those who have come to the capital of Catalonia to swim and sunbathe, there is no better option. And those who are going to devote the main time to sightseeing will have to travel a little. Each walk to the city center will take about fifteen minutes.
The W Barcelona is a seaside hotel. But even in spite of this, the swimming pools, located in it, are worthy of attention of every guest. Each of the reservoirs is surrounded by loungers, so it is easy to relax on a comfortable bed.
Each room allocated to the guests is created for one purpose: to provide the highest comfort. As a rule, there are several rooms in the apartment, and one of them is a living room. By the way, special attention in this hotel is paid to bathrooms: each of them has a tropical shower, richly decorated sink, slippers, towels, bathrobes and other trifles are included in the service of a decent hotel.
Some of the W Barcelona rooms are occupied by business people. Accommodation in this hotel automatically emphasizes the status of the visitor, so those who came to Barcelona for the sake of major transactions almost always settle here.
The cuisine of the W Barcelona Hotel is also beyond competition: two luxury restaurants, one of which is headed by the legendary Carlos Abelian, are ready to provide guests with the best food round-the-clock. And those who want some exotic food can always take a walk to the beach club-restaurant near the hotel. The originality of the menu, which includes mainly burgers, often crosses all boundaries.
Hotel Arts Barcelona
Luxury high-rise. This is how it is possible to describe the Arts Barcelona Hotel. The building was built to order, so it is so original in its simplicity. However, even one look from bottom to top is enough to want to be in one of the suites.
From the geographical point of view, the architects of the hotel have not made a mistake: the road to the main beach of the city will take no more than five minutes, and Barceloneta is generally two hundred meters from the front door.
Each room is equipped with a magnificent acoustic system, giving a loud, and, most importantly, clean sound. As a result, the soundproofing of the Hotel Arts Barcelona is also at its best. The hotel’s bathrooms are beyond praise: one shower with hydromassage is able to bribe every water lover.
In addition to gyms and saunas, various spas and swimming pools, the Arts Barcelona Hotel has its own business center equipped with everything necessary. This allows the hotel to attract business and wealthy people on an almost equal footing with the W Barcelona.
Food is of particular importance at this hotel: two of the best restaurants, one of which is run by Sergi Arola, work every minute to serve the best Mediterranean cuisine, and the poolside bar is able to serve wine and snacks within one minute.
The hotel’s reception is open 24 hours a day, so when you arrive in the middle of the night, you can be sure to find a place to stay, as the hotel staff can understand customers in almost any language. And booking a hotel in Barcelona is easy on the booking.com.
The Monument Hotel
Magnificent and massive, as luxurious as its name, the Monument is a typical example of a design hotel. Luxury here is an evident in every detail: in the reception and decoration of the rooms. Even the glasses in which the wine is served to the table look gorgeous.
The Monument Hotel, located in the heart of Paseo de Gracia, is difficult to miss. The ornate facades, shouting for grandeur and wealth, attract the attention of thousands of tourists. Almost every one of them would give everything for just opportunity to live even a day in this island of comfort.
The building is majestically not only on the outside and the interior decoration also boasts luxury, but it cannot be taken for a “show”. Comfortable rooms, rich interior, finishing in gold tones – literally every little thing testifies to the solvency of the guests.
One of the main advantages of the Monument is its cuisine. Although it is not even cuisine, consisting of two restaurants and a bar, but a huge wine collection. Having studied it a little, even the most picky gourmand can find a drink to his taste.
The hotel service, like everything else, is definitely up to date. The Monument includes spa, swimming pools, gyms and saunas, even free breakfasts to fill the most hungry stomachs.
The Ohla Barcelona Hotel
The Ohla Barcelona Hotel is located almost in the historic center of Barcelona and borders with the Gothic Quarter. The pool and rooftop terrace reinforce the desire to be there as soon as possible, as some of the architectural delights of Spain can be enjoyed without leaving the hotel.
The boutique hotel has adopted a trend towards comfortable bathrooms clearly with its coastal colleagues: the W Barcelona and Arts Barcelona Hotel. In addition to showers, literally packed with the latest technology, guests are provided with TV sets and air conditioning, not to mention such everyday things as free internet.
The Ohla Barcelona Hotel is perhaps the most food-oriented hotel we have gathered in this top hotel. The fact is that there are three restaurants on its territory, which are supervised personally by Romain Fornell, a recognized expert in culinary arts.
The leisure options are not much different from other hotels: the same gym, the same spa treatments. The only peculiarity is the “health zone” – a complex of rooms, things and activities aimed solely at restoring the energy spent during the day.
The best hotels in Barcelona near El Prat airport
As the name indicates, these hotels are located almost near the airport. Of course, the location of the hotels exposes their quality to some doubt, but this statement is false with a 100% probability.
Not every tourist arriving in Barcelona wants to spend his vacation only in the bathing, lying on the beach and sightseeing. There are also those who want to travel all over Spain, to see every corner of the country. The choice of such people often falls on the hotels located near the airport, and responding to the whims of tourists, the capital of Catalonia, of course, provides them with the desired.
Staying at one of the hotels listed below, one should not be afraid that the noise of landing planes prevents you from sleeping: each room has excellent soundproofing.
Barcelona Airport Hotel
The Barcelona Airport Hotel is truly the best in the vicinity of the central airport of Barcelona. The clean and bright rooms, each with a TV, air conditioning and internet access, are perfect for taking your breath away between journeys for a day or two.
At the Barcelona Airport Hotel guests’ disposal is its own fitness center and swimming pool, which is often much more spacious than the most popular hotels in Barcelona. Those who want to eat well can definitely enjoy the hotel’s own bar and restaurant.
Those who decide to take a tour inland and a day’s rest on the hot sand near the warm sea are provided with a special transport, for a certain amount of money regularly carries guests to La Rambla street. And the trip to the airport is free of charge: the main thing is to specify the terminal where you should drop off.
Tryp Barcelona Aeropuerto Hotel
This is Barcelona’s second best hotel near the airport. Like the Barcelona Airport Hotel, it offers its guests regular and free transport from the airport to the hotel and back.
Service in this hotel is not much different from the best hotels in Barcelona: delivery of food and drinks is carried out directly to the room, regular breakfasts are formed by the system of buffet.
Having acquainted with the range of services of all the above mentioned hotels, it is possible to confirm that they are really the best in the whole capital of Catalonia. And for those who like to save a money while booking rooms, we have specially selected cheap hotels in the center of Barcelona.
