Evita A.
Yelp
My husband and I stayed here for 5 days and before booking we read a lot of reviews beforehand on how well situated it was here, how nice the view were at the rooftop and how modern the rooms looked. Now it's my turn to be able to write my review on our experience. Check in is at 2pm and checkout is at 12noon. (Love that the checkout is at 12 especially if we needed to get to the airport a little later). When we checked in, they had welcome drinks ready for us! They're not too strict about time of check in, we were about 1.5 delayed and they didn't mention anything to us.
All the reviews about the location being centrally located was spot on! Took the Aerobus from the airport which stops at Placa Catalunya which is a 15 min walk to this hotel or you can take the Metro just 1 stop which is a 6-7 min walk! We wanted to be very close to a Metro so that it would be an easy commute to other places and we did, almost everyday! The M3 Liceu was the closest metro! 6-7 mins walk was La Boquera Market, La Ramblas and maybe 10 mins from Gothic Center and 12-15 to El born! The hotel is right across El Gato! The only downside to this location was all the migrants that were around here and toward the back of the hotel which didn't seem too safe of an area if walking alone at night. Atleast this was my observation, although nothing happened! There were supermarkets and lots of stores nearby which was great and bakeries for breakfast which was a plus! The lobby inside was chic and gave me NYC Standard hotel vibes, they even had a black horse! At the standard they had a white one at their rooftop bar! The hotel had every single window railing block which was a killer for taking pictures from your window. I understand taking safety precautions though, but don't expect to be able to take pics from your window or have a balcony! Another downside was the breakfast at this hotel! It was €18 PP and we did not opt for the breakfast to be included (with all the bakeries with fresh goodies and cafe we didn't think we needed to) and after tasting their breakfast one morning we were happy we didn't opt for this add on! They had a huge spread! Buffet style but it wasn't any good! Getting coffee at the machine wasn't easy at all and scrambled eggs tasted like carton ones which is surprising in Europe! The only good thing was the fruit!! My recommendation is not to get the breakfast here and go to 365 bakery right around the corner!
The front desk staff was always pleasant and very helpful!! We had a king size bed on the 7th floor and thought the room was just right for us. It was just right for us two! No complaints there, they had a safe easy to use and the shower head was nice and big! They provided 2 bottles of water just the first day, normally hotels would give 2 bottles daily but this one did not. However they gave us a little bottle of red, on them!
The famous 360 rooftop terrace view was a great way to end each night we had which is exactly what we did! After every night we just had a nightcap and it was pretty spectacular and calming! And my husband wakes up earlier than me so he was able to see amazing views of the sunrise at 7 too, one of the best views he's ever had of the sunrise he raves about! The rooftop is on the 10th floor, drinks were overpriced but you are paying for more than the drinks here! Two aperol spritz which was our drink of choice was €25, so def overpriced!
On our last day, our flight wasn't until the evening so we weren't rushing to check out. Luckily check out was already at noon and every 2 hours after was €11 so we did a late checkout at 2pm and when we checked out, we asked the lobby to hold on to our luggage so we can enjoy the neighborhood and rooftop one last day before leaving and they did, gladly at no charge or timeframe!
We had a great stay overall! The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was the breakfast they offer!
Thanks Barcelo Raval for the hospitality!