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Where to stay in Barcelona: A neighbourhood guide to the city's best hotels

Soho House Barcelona is in the city's medieval heart, the ‘Gothic Quarter’.
Soho House Barcelona is in the city's medieval heart, the ‘Gothic Quarter’.

A neighbourhood guide on where to stay in Barcelona, as chosen by our resident expert, including the best hotels in the Gothic Quarter, el Born, Barceloneta and the beaches.

Barri Gòtic

Barcelona’s medieval heart, the ‘Gothic Quarter’ is a maze of shadowy alleyways that occasionally open, dramatically, into grand sunny squares. Since Roman times, when a temple stood here, the Cathedral has marked the centre of the city, surrounded from buildings from every era, some of which house the city history museum (the MUHBA). Nearby is the ancient Sinagoga Major, in what was once the Jewish quarter, and some spectacular Roman remains.

Soho House Barcelona
From the bewitching rooftop pool down to the Cowshed spa, every whim is catered for at Soho House Barcelona, located in the Gothic Quarter.

Where to stay

Soho House Barcelona
Soho House Barcelona

Soho House Barcelona

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

9Telegraph expert rating

One imagines this is how it must feel to be at an all-weekend party in the staffed country seat of a particularly fabulous pal – luxurious, decadent and just wickedly good fun. From the bewitching rooftop pool down to the Cowshed spa and the plush subterranean cinema, every whim is catered for. Read expert review From £196 per night

The Serras hotel, Barcelona, Spain
The Serras hotel, Barcelona, Spain

Hotel The Serras

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

9Telegraph expert rating

Sunny, friendly and supremely comfortable, The Serras is one of a new breed of stylish and unstuffy five-stars changing the face of the Barcelona hotel scene. Its decked rooftop bar and pool area, with views across the port, is worth a visit even for non-guests, as is its restaurant. Read expert review From £213 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

The best Barcelona hotels with rooftop bars and pools


Born

Traditionally the textile and clothing district, the Born still houses plenty of atelier boutiques, with antique-but-functioning treadle sewing machines up on the mezzanine. It's a great place to pick up a handstitched leather bag or delicate evening gown, but it also bristles with cool bars and mid-range restaurants. Attractions include the basilica of Santa Maria del Mar and the glorious Palau de la Música concert hall.

Grand Hotel Central, Barcelona
Grand Hotel Central is a creatively refashioned Twenties property in the Born neighbourhood

Where to stay

Pensió 2000, Barcelona
Pensió 2000, Barcelona

Pensió 2000

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

A cosy pensión of seven rooms in an 18th-century building. Pensió 2000 doubles as the owners’ home, and is not the place for raucous groups. For those seeking a more peaceful experience, it is welcoming and comfortable, with a sunny charm. Read expert review From £47 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Hotel Banys Orientals

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

Named for the Turkish baths that used to sit in this spot, the hotel is simple but stylish, with small but comfortable rooms, the sort of staff who remember repeat visitors and a decent restaurant downstairs. Not only that, but it's in Barcelona prettiest neighbourhood. Read expert review From £72 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Grand Hotel Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Grand Hotel Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

Grand Hotel Central

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

A creatively refashioned Twenties' property sitting between the city's two most beautiful neighbourhoods. The Grand Hotel Central has character and charm, art and artistry. It also gets repeat visitors for good service and some fine dining. The jewel in the crown, however, is its fabulous rooftop infinity pool. Read expert review From £190 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Where to stay in Barcelona on a budget


Raval

Gentrification's great success story, the Raval was once a haunt of the city's lowlife, until the authorities plonked a huge white modern art museum, the MACBA, in the middle of it. Over time the surrounding streets have filled with shops, galleries and restaurants and the opening up of the Rambla del Raval has provided the area with its own boulevard. It's not quite as pretty as, say, the Born, but has a certain charm.

Hotel Bagues, Barcelona
Hotel Bagués enjoys a prime position on La Rambla but after a day's sightseeing guests can retreat to the hotel's rooftop pool

Where to stay

Casa Camper, Barcelona
Casa Camper, Barcelona

Casa Camper Barcelona

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

9Telegraph expert rating

The Camper shoe people have created a fun, informal and eco-friendly reimagining of the hotel experience, which eschews conventionally luxurious trappings but which cossets in unconventional ways, from complimentary food and drink to staff genuinely concerned with making their guests feel, literally, at home. Read expert review From £119 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Hotel 1898, Barcelona, Spain
Hotel 1898, Barcelona, Spain

Hotel 1898

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

Although it is part of the Núñez i Navarro Hotels chain, the 1898 feels delightfully original, blending grand architectural features with quirky, colourful decor and a handsome colonial feel. It is also virtually unique in having both an outdoor and indoor pool. Situated on La Rambla, it is nothing if not central. Read expert review From £129 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Hotel Bagués, Barcelona, Spain
Hotel Bagués, Barcelona, Spain

Hotel Bagués

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

The bijou Hotel Bagués was once the showroom for a jewellery company, and a forensic attention to materials and details remains evidenced throughout. The Bagués enjoys a prime position on La Rambla, but after a day's sightseeing, guests can retreat to the hotel's rooftop plunge pool or book an in-room massage. Read expert review From £139 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

The best Barcelona hotels near the beach


Eixample

Built to a strict grid system, Haussmann style, the construction of the Eixample coincided with the Modernista movement, so it's here that you will find most of Gaudí's buildings, such as the Sagrada Familia and the Casa Batlló. The Passeig de Gràcia is a showcase for the finest architects of the period, but is also a shopping hub. You'll find most of the flagship stores of the high-street and designer chains here.

Cotton House Hotel, Barcelona
Cotton House Hotel is housed in the former headquarters of the city’s cotton guild in Eixample

Where to stay

Cotton House Hotel, Barcelona, Spain
Cotton House Hotel, Barcelona, Spain

Cotton House Hotel

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

Housed in the former headquarters of the city’s cotton guild, this hotel has honoured its origins. As well as original features and antique furniture, you’ll encounter rooms with names like 'Taffeta' and 'Damask' and a small salon with displays of cotton bolts where you can have your very own shirt made to measure. Read expert review From £187 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Casa Bonay, Barcelona, Spain
Casa Bonay, Barcelona, Spain

Casa Bonay

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

9Telegraph expert rating

Casa Bonay is more than just a hotel; it's a micro city for the hip, a cluster of gleefully designed spaces where guests can eat, drink and tap at laptops alongside savvy locals. A wide entrance beckons passers-by in for DJ events and film screenings on the leafy rooftop terrace. Read expert review From £76 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Anakena House, Barcelona
Anakena House, Barcelona

Anakena House

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

Spread over the first floor of a Modernista Eixample block, this genteel hotel is a gloriously tasteful affair of cream walls and ornate furnishings. Rooms have all the features of typical Eixample Modernista buildings – high ceilings, tall windows, decorative cornicing and ceiling roses. Read expert review From £84 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

The best five-star hotels in Barcelona

 

Barceloneta & The Beaches

The city's six kilometres of beaches begin at Barceloneta and run all the way down to the Fòrum area, becoming cleaner and more peaceful as they go. It's at Barceloneta, however, that you'll get the best of the lively beach shacks (xiringuitos) and upmarket seafood restaurants. Quieter stretches begin north of the Port Olímpic, a lively harbour area of rowdy bars and expensive yachts.

Hotel Arts Barcelona
Hotel Arts Barcelona is a thoroughly modern-looking five-star hotel positioned right on the beach

Where to stay

Pullman Barcelona Skipper, Spain
Pullman Barcelona Skipper, Spain

Pullman Barcelona Skipper

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

A modern, 241-room hotel just back from the beach. With plenty of facilities and two pools, there’s lots to do, but bear in mind you’ll need to take a bus or a cab to get to the centre of town easily. Read expert review From £111 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

W Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
W Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

W Barcelona

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

9Telegraph expert rating

You'll need a streak of fabulousness to feel at home in the W – its poolside areas, particularly, can look like catalogue photo shoots, and entrance to the Eclipse bar is only for the glam. In the rooms the all-glass fronts afford spectacular views of the sea, the city or – if you're lucky, or pay a little more – both. Read expert review From £193 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com

Hotel Arts, Barcelona, Spain
Hotel Arts, Barcelona, Spain

Hotel Arts Barcelona

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

8Telegraph expert rating

A thoroughly modern-looking five-star hotel positioned right on the beach, the Arts is one of Barcelona's original luxury hotels. Its traditional attitude makes for excellent service, and its eating and drinking choices are second to none. Public areas are enlivened with original artwork and huge floral displays. Read expert review From £184 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com