Hotel Claude Marbella, Marbella, Andalucia, Spain - Explore & Book

"The hippest hotel retreat in Marbella takes its name from the opera singer Claude Devoize who once lived here. At that time the house was a hub for the local intelligentsia, and the dream of its present owners was to hear the house ringing to the sound of animated conversation again, and to see it full of happy guests. Right now it certainly is, and their diminutive 7-room hotel - each one named after a province of Andalucia - has set a new benchmark in the boutique-is-beautiful league of southern Spanish hotels. The focus of Hotel Claude is a marble-flagged patio where the original columns and wafer-bricked arches, along with a 17th-century well, are juxtaposed by two eye-catching green pouffes. This same ritzy note is carried throughout the hotel: in the library-cum-drawing room where the feel is one of a plush boudoir, in the Art Deco diner where you can take breakfast if the summer sun is too much on the roof terrace, and in its 7 bedrooms, which are among the sexiest in the Costa. Highs A perfect position on a pedestrian street at the heart of Marbella's labyrinthine old town, yards from some of its best bars and restaurantsSumptuous bedrooms come with every conceivable gizmoDon't let the 'grotty Costa' image put you off coming: the old town is authentically Spanish and pretty with a capital 'P'We loved the intimate feel and distant sea views on the split-level roof terrace Lows Marbella's beaches can get crowded, and the town can feel more international than Andalucian; but as a chic city and seaside break rolled into one, it's hard to beatFull lunches and dinners are generally not offered, but there are plenty of restaurants nearbyThere's no parking - but there's a car park 2 minutes awayBathrooms have glass doors, which may not suit travellers needing total privacy" - Guy Hunter Watts