9 of the best hotels in Barcelona

Celebrating the completion of the Sagrada Família this year, the Catalan capital has a rich creative heritage stretching back to medieval times, when crafts thrived among the tangled stone streets of what’s now Ciutat Vella (Old Town). Today, Barcelona’s best hotels blend a thoroughly Catalan character with a design-forward style. Ongoing bans on constructing new hotels in the city centre — introduced to help manage overtourism — mean there are few fully new openings. Instead, many stays have reinvented themselves with bold makeovers, imaginative cuisine and fresh services.

1. Hotel Brummell

Best for: a neighbourhood bolthole

Just outside Barcelona’s historic centre, the Poble Sec district is a residential pocket of town known for its pintxo and tapas bars. You’ll find this 20-room address in a converted 1870 building on one of its quieter streets. Hotel Brummell is worth seeking out for its youthful atmosphere and active ethos, with free yoga classes, weekly run clubs and on-site bike hire. The highlight is the raised pool deck at the back, which invites lingering under candy-colour umbrellas amid palms and oleanders. Some of the bright rooms have fully open-plan bathrooms, while others have balconies gazing towards Montjuïc mountain. Rooms: From €209 (£180).

2. Praktik Èssens

Best for: value

Barcelona’s own Praktik runs a handful of peppy, reasonably priced hotels among the broad boulevards of Eixample. Hidden down an alley steps from the major Passeig de Gràcia artery, Èssens pairs city-centre convenience with boutique style and warm, personal service. The neo-Moorish building dates from the 19th century, and bespoke scents for in-room products are inspired by nearby green spaces, including the Collserola Hills. Rooms are modern and functional but stylish, with a largely monochrome palette and plenty of natural light. Upgrade for terraces with oversized sun loungers, drench showers and al fresco bathrooms with turquoise tilework. Rooms: From €128 (£111).

3. Hotel Pulitzer

Best for: rooftop living

B-Corp certified Hotel Pulitzer, just off central Plaça de Catalunya, has a breezy, upbeat energy. While its 91 rooms are styled in calming, muted tones, designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán — born in Tangier from Catalan parents — added bold bathrooms coated in rich turquoise tiling. A handful of mezzanine Signature room options have small private terraces with banana palms in terracotta pots. From Thursday to Sunday between May and October, the leafy rooftop hosts emerging Barcelona-based DJs in events that draw plenty of Barcelonins. Rooms: From £168.

4. Borneta

Best for: an artistic stay

Launched in late 2024 in El Born, the city’s liveliest ancient barrio, this creative retreat is a rare newcomer. Step through swooping arches into the lobby bar-restaurant, where a mixed crowd of Barcelonins and visitors come together over vermouth and smart Catalan-Italian cooking. Changing contemporary art pops up everywhere, from the ground-floor Gallery lounge to the petite rooftop pool, which features a mirrored egg-shaped installation by Argentinian multimedia artist Pilar Zeta. The 92 rooms are more soothing, dressed in Mediterranean tones like terracotta and sage, and feature some antique furnishings sourced from around the country. Some have views of the Parc de la Ciutadella. Rooms: From €241 (£208).

5. Kimpton Vividora

Best for: city views

You’ll be hard-pressed to find a better location than this laid-back five-star address in the heart of the Gothic Quarter — a short stroll from Las Ramblas, but far enough to escape the crowds. The lobby-cafe has opulent tones of dark wood, deep greens and brass, while the suites incorporate white marble to catch the sunlight streaming in from the terraces. The seventh-floor rooftop has wraparound views that are hard to beat, taking in the gothic spires of Barcelona Cathedral. As the day winds down, head up to the bar for a glass of cava, sit by the small dipping pool and watch the sun slowly set. Rooms: From €281 (£243).

6. Casa Bonay

Best for: Catalan style

Every detail of Casa Bonay is an ode to local craftsmanship: orb-like lamps by Barcelona-based lighting firm Santa & Cole; floors of restored tiles with geometric patterns; custom-made blankets by Catalan label Teixidors. The 67 rooms in the revived 1896 building are thoroughly relaxing, the best with terraces over the Dreta (Right) neighbourhood of central Eixample district, or private decks with showers to cool off after sunbathing. There’s a lobby cafe and cocktail bar, while the rooftop’s recently been transformed into an open-air spa. Vines twirl overhead, the air is fresh with lavender, and you can relax in a sauna or domed hammam before dunking into a wooden cold-plunge tub. Rooms: From £205.

7. Monument Hotel

Best for: a gourmet stay

A legend in modern Spanish cuisine, chef Martín Berasategui is the man behind Monument Hotel’s prized Lasarte, the first restaurant in Barcelona to be awarded three Michelin stars. This year, the five-star address on Passeig de Gràcia has launched Bera, a more casual all-day kitchen specialising in local recipes with a twist, including a truffled version of Catalonia’s classic bikini toastie with botifarra sausage. These contrasting spaces nicely encapsulate the wider atmosphere of the hotel: there are 84 rooms with open-brick walls and oak-built furniture, set in a neo-gothic 1896 mansion by modernista architect Josep Vilaseca i Casanovas. Rooms: From £369.

8. Grand Hotel Central

Best for: history

This luxury retreat is set in a 1926 building originally created for Catalan politician Francesc Cambó by Adolf Florensa, a Lleida-born architect who drew inspiration from the Chicago School. Among the curiosities on show is Cambó’s lavish library, up on the top floor. Fresh from a top-to-toe revamp, the rooms are dressed in cocooning rose-pink or soothing cream, and decorated with curving, custom-designed wood panelling. Explore the neighbouring ancient districts of El Born and Barri Gòtic, then head to the rooftop terrace, where an infinity pool and seasonal sauna overlook the medieval Basílica de Santa Maria del Mar. Rooms: From £230.

9. Antiga Casa Buenavista

Best for: architecture

The 43 rooms at this boutique stay celebrate modernisme (Catalan art nouveau), Barcelona’s characteristic, sinuous architectural style. Each is a little different, with details such as bathrooms behind stained-glass walls or French doors opening onto wrought-iron balconies. Those on the top floor of the late-19th-century building have terraces with large outdoor baths, while all guests have access to the white-tiled dip pool on the roof. The restaurant on the ground floor sources ingredients just down the road from Mercat de Sant Antoni, a maroon-coloured Modernista market restored a few years ago, serving them up in inventive Catalan dishes that change with the seasons. Rooms: From €233 (£201).