2009-11-20

Hotel Review: Grand Hotel Central, Barcelona

Ana’s trip to Barcelona took her through the huge, original doors of this 1926 building and up into the avantegarde contemporary luxury of the Grand Hotel Central, an oasis of calm in the higgledy-piggledy chaos of the city.

Hidden behind an impressive façade on the Via Laietana near underground station Jaume I, the Grand Hotel Central is a surprisingly relaxing retreat bang in Barcelona’s centre. The hotel has an excellent reputation for culinary genius with its Restaurant Ávalon run by chef Ramón Freixa and is perfectly located for cultural indulgence, shopping sprees, strolls to the port and wining and dining. The hotel’s famous rooftop swimming pool, with views over Barrio Gotico just puts the icing on the cake. Or indeed the dollop of vanilla on the crème catalan.

For short city trips to Barcelona, this is the perfect starting point for a walking tour of the city. It’s just minutes walk from the Mercado Santa Caterina in the La Ribera district, one of the most colourfully food-tastic markets in the city. In operation for over 150 years, it was recently brought into the 21st century with a multicoloured, ceramic-tiled wavy roof – embodying the stylish fusion of history and post-modernism which characterises Barcelona. If you’re really short on time, the hotel offers electric bikes to buzz around the city on.

Extended stays in Barcelona are more than catered for in this contemporary hotel – orchestra musicians performing in the nearby Palau de la Musica often choose to stay for a guaranteed good night’s sleep – it is seriously peaceful here. It’s easy to see how they’d feel perfectly at home thanks to the super professional (and attractive) personnel, the discrete yet friendly concierge and bellboys who endeavour to explain everything about the surroundings and historyof the hotel in the lift up to the room. After a restful nights sleep, guests wake up to a tasty breakfast including a glass of sekt and tomatoey bread. Those who’ve slept too well to need a siesta can take time out in the little library complete with a coffee machine and Barcelona guidebooks.

But come on, who needs a break from Barcelona…?!