Hotel Colon, Barcelona

The Hotel Colon has to have one of the very best locations in the whole of Barcelona.

Right in the heart of the Barri Gòtic, and directly opposite the Cathedral, it is a favourite with people looking for a hotel with ‘old world’ charm, but some modern facilities.

The Hotel Colon, built in 1951 and refurbished in 1998, is one of those classic, old-style European hotels. The marble and hardwood lobby, with its porters hovering expectantly, will seem like a step back in time as you come in from the bustling plaça outside.
The rooms – there are 141, now all air-conditioned and classically furnished, might still look like that step into the past but they do also have high-definition, interactive televisions, internet access, CD/DVD players and other modern prerequisites. I do recommend that you request a street-facing room, so that you can not only look out at the cathedral but also have a fine view of the Thursday antiques market and the traditional sardana dancing of the locals at the weekend. In the summer evenings, you might even have a live concert in the square to be entertained by.

There is a fine restaurant, the Catedral del Hotel Colon, which serves highly commended Mediterranean cuisine and the terrace café again has those views out towards the Gothic Quarter that will long live in the memory.

If you prefer contemporary, everything to hand, large hotels, then Hotel Colon will definitely not be your cup of tea! If, however, you like to feel almost a part of the environment surrounding you, breathing in its ambience, then it might just be the place you’re searching for. And besides, it’s 2 minutes from Las Ramblas, 10 minutes from the beach – no time at all from the Picasso Museum and you could reach the cathedral in the time it’s taken to read this sentence.

Comfort, class, cleanliness, convenience and character – the Hotel Colon.