SPAIN - Best of Europe 2014 - page 1475

$$ Hotel Racó del Pi, part of the H10 hotel chain, is a quality, professional place with
generous public spaces and 37 modern, bright, quiet rooms. It's located on a wonderful ped-
estrianstreetimmersedintheBarriGòtic(Db-oftenaround€130-145,canbeaslowas€100,
cheaper if you book “nonrefundable” room online, breakfast-€10, air-con, free Internet ac-
cess and Wi-Fi, around the corner from Plaça del Pi at Carrer del Pi 7, 3-minute walk from
Metro: Liceu, tel. [phone], www.h10hotels.com , [e-mail] ) .
$$ Hotel Regencia Colón, in a handy location one block in front of the cathedral,
offers 50 slightly older but solid, classy, and well-priced rooms (Db-€110, more on week-
ends, extra bed-€33, breakfast-€13, air-con, elevator, free Wi-Fi, Carrer dels Sagristans
13-17, Metro: Jaume I, tel. [phone], fax [phone], www.hotelregenciacolon.com ,
[e-mail] ).
$ Hotel Cortés has 44 rooms on a traffic-free shopping street just off Avinguda Portal
de l'Angel (between Plaça de Catalunya and the cathedral). It's a bit sterile and scruffy, but
well-priced and wonderfully located. Back rooms overlook an old extra muro cloister, while
front rooms face the busy pedestrian drag (Sb-€70, Db-€100, includes breakfast, air-con,
elevator, free Internet access and Wi-Fi, Carrer de Santa Anna 25, Metro: Catalunya, tel.
933-179-112, www.hotelcortes.com , [e-mail] ).
$HostalCampi isbig,subdued,andramshackle,butofferssimpleclass.Thiseasygoing
old-school spot rents 24 rooms a few doors off the top of the Ramblas (S-€35, D-€60, Ds-
€62,Db-€69,T-€78,Tb-€92,nobreakfast,lotsofstairswithnoelevator,payInternetaccess,
freeWi-Fiinsomerooms,CarrerdelaCanuda4,Metro:Catalunya,tel.&fax[phone],
www.hostalcampi.com , [e-mail] , Margarita and Nando).
In the Eixample
For an uptown, boulevard-like neighborhood, sleep in the Eixample, a 10-minute walk from
the Ramblas action (see map on here ) . Most of these places use the Passeig de Gràcia or
Catalunya Metro stops. Because these stations are so huge—especially Passeig de Gràcia,
which sprawls underground for a few blocks—study the maps posted in the station to estab-
lish which exit you want before surfacing.
$$ Hotel Granvía, filling a palatial 1870s mansion, offers Botticelli and chandeliers in
the public areas; a large, peaceful sun patio; and 54 spacious rooms—along with deliberate
and sometimes quirky service. Its salon is plush and royal, making the hotel worth consid-
ering for romantics. To reduce street noise, ask for a quiet interior room or a room over-
looking the courtyard in the back of the building (Sb-€75-85, Db-€125-150, Tb-€145-155,
does not include 8 percent IVA tax, can be cheaper in slow times, mention Rick Steves
to get best available rate, breakfast-€11, air-con, elevator, free Internet access and Wi-Fi,
Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes 642, Metro: Catalunya, tel. [phone], fax [phone],
www.hotelgranvia.com , [e-mail] ).