Barcelona...Marriott or Hilton hotels....your experience?

[skiiergirl]

We will be visiting Barcelona next year. We will stay at a Marriott or Hilton property.  

If you have stayed at a Marriott or Hilton property (any brand in those families) in Barcelona, please tell me the pros and cons of that property.

 (Please list property name and any other info you feel helpful.) 

 

Thanks in advance. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

We are normally #1 Hilton fans, but we chose not to stay at a Hilton property in Barcelona because we didn't like the locations.  We just spent 4 nights at the [Marriott] Le Meridien on La Rambla and loved it!  We booked a Premium Deluxe room which was spacious and had a very nice bathroom with a spacious shower.  The hotel's entrance is on a side street just off La Rambla [Fortuny] so some rooms face La Rambla [which might be noisy], some face Fortuny [which also might be noisy] – ours faced the very narrow side street on the left side of the hotel and it was very quiet.  Breakfast was not included [even for Marriott Gold members] but was worth the 14 Euro charge.  We even ate at the hotel restaurant one night for dinner, and it was good then too.  We'll be going back to Barcelona next year and will definitely stay at Le Meridien again.

[skiiergirl]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

We are normally #1 Hilton fans, but we chose not to stay at a Hilton property in Barcelona because we didn't like the locations.  We just spent 4 nights at the [Marriott] Le Meridien on La Rambla and loved it!  We booked a Premium Deluxe room which was spacious and had a very nice bathroom with a spacious shower.  The hotel's entrance is on a side street just off La Rambla [Fortuny] so some rooms face La Rambla [which might be noisy], some face Fortuny [which also might be noisy] – ours faced the very narrow side street on the left side of the hotel and it was very quiet.  Breakfast was not included [even for Marriott Gold members] but was worth the 14 Euro charge.  We even ate at the hotel restaurant one night for dinner, and it was good then too.  We'll be going back to Barcelona next year and will definitely stay at Le Meridien again.

Thanks for the great info! 

[the mice]

Stayed 2 nights last November 2018 at the Cotton House Hotel, Autograph Collection (Marriott), located in the Eixample district a few blocks from Placa de Catalunya, near all the places we wanted to walk to.  Our preference was to not stay on La Rambla.  We are Marriott Gold now but I think we were only Silver last year.   We booked on points, but had to pay a 5 euro per night tourist tax.    Hotel is stunning as it is a historical building.  We booked a basic room but were upgraded to a large terrace room, light and airy, which had been assigned to a Platinum Elite who cancelled.  It was quite lovely, had a separate tub/shower "wet room" and excellent amenities.   I've read on TripAdvisor that some complain about the small regular rooms, but I have no experience of those.   Staff were excellent.   Did not have breakfast in the hotel, but went to Cafe Alsur around the corner which was excellent.  There is a small bakery/coffee shop, L'Art del Pa,  next door which opens earlier than Cafe Alsur if you have early tickets to anything.    

[skiiergirl]

9 hours ago, the mice said:

Stayed 2 nights last November 2018 at the Cotton House Hotel, Autograph Collection (Marriott), located in the Eixample district a few blocks from Placa de Catalunya, near all the places we wanted to walk to.  Our preference was to not stay on La Rambla.  We are Marriott Gold now but I think we were only Silver last year.   We booked on points, but had to pay a 5 euro per night tourist tax.    Hotel is stunning as it is a historical building.  We booked a basic room but were upgraded to a large terrace room, light and airy, which had been assigned to a Platinum Elite who cancelled.  It was quite lovely, had a separate tub/shower "wet room" and excellent amenities.   I've read on TripAdvisor that some complain about the small regular rooms, but I have no experience of those.   Staff were excellent.   Did not have breakfast in the hotel, but went to Cafe Alsur around the corner which was excellent.  There is a small bakery/coffee shop, L'Art del Pa,  next door which opens earlier than Cafe Alsur if you have early tickets to anything.    

Thanks so much for the info. We also stayed at Cotton House last year. It is beautiful and the staff was fantastic.  The location was great for walking around, etc, We did eat breakfast there both mornings as it was raining cats and dogs outside.  So glad you were upgraded to a nice room.  We...on the other hand...were not. My husband is top tier elite and we were given a tiny room with only a shower  that leaked all over the bathroom (no door, no curtain). We could barely get the two of us and our luggage in the room.  So he told me to make sure I didn’t book there again.  

I know many European hotels have an assortment of room sizes (even when booking the same category) so I just have to hope for better “assignment” next time we go. 

So I am trying to get everyone’s opinions on the Marriott/Hilton hotels in BCN so I can determine which to book.   (It May be Cotton House is the best of all and I may have to convince him to try again. Lol)

thanks for your info! 

[the mice]

6 hours ago, skiiergirl said:

 

I know many European hotels have an assortment of room sizes (even when booking the same category) so I just have to hope for better “assignment” next time we go. 

So I am trying to get everyone’s opinions on the Marriott/Hilton hotels in BCN so I can determine which to book.   (It May be Cotton House is the best of all and I may have to convince him to try again. Lol)

thanks for your info! 

check this article out:   https://travel.usnews.com/Hotels/b-Marriott_Group_Hotels/Barcelona_Spain/     Might be of help.

If you do end up booking the Cotton House, write to them from your husband's email (there's probably an email contact on their webpage)  and address the email to  Gossypium, Director de Relaciones Públicas at Cotton House Hotel, Autograph Collection.   That's the name they use in responding to all TripAdvisor reviews.   Mention that you are celebrating a special anniversary (your birthdays will show on your passports - unless one of your birthdays falls during your stay)  and specifically say that you were very disappointed in the room you were assigned last time.   If you know the room number, quote it.    See what response you get and decide if you want to keep the booking or go elsewhere.  

 

We actually had 2 separate bookings - one from my account and the other from my husband's.  I didn't contact the hotel to link them so when we showed up they said we could not have the upgrade for night 2.   We packed up our things and they said they would move our bags while we were out.   They sent me an email while we were out offering apologies for the inconvenience but we could stay in the upgrade as they had a cancellation.    So I think they really want to excel on service and emailing them is worth a try.   Good luck!

 

 

 

 

[skiiergirl]

9 minutes ago, the mice said:

check this article out:   https://travel.usnews.com/Hotels/b-Marriott_Group_Hotels/Barcelona_Spain/     Might be of help.

If you do end up booking the Cotton House, write to them from your husband's email (there's probably an email contact on their webpage)  and address the email to  Gossypium, Director de Relaciones Públicas at Cotton House Hotel, Autograph Collection.   That's the name they use in responding to all TripAdvisor reviews.   Mention that you are celebrating a special anniversary (your birthdays will show on your passports - unless one of your birthdays falls during your stay)  and specifically say that you were very disappointed in the room you were assigned last time.   If you know the room number, quote it.    See what response you get and decide if you want to keep the booking or go elsewhere.  

 

We actually had 2 separate bookings - one from my account and the other from my husband's.  I didn't contact the hotel to link them so when we showed up they said we could not have the upgrade for night 2.   We packed up our things and they said they would move our bags while we were out.   They sent me an email while we were out offering apologies for the inconvenience but we could stay in the upgrade as they had a cancellation.    So I think they really want to excel on service and emailing them is worth a try.   Good luck!

 

 

 

 

Thanks! 

[skiiergirl]

16 hours ago, the mice said:

check this article out:   https://travel.usnews.com/Hotels/b-Marriott_Group_Hotels/Barcelona_Spain/     Might be of help.

If you do end up booking the Cotton House, write to them from your husband's email (there's probably an email contact on their webpage)  and address the email to  Gossypium, Director de Relaciones Públicas at Cotton House Hotel, Autograph Collection.   That's the name they use in responding to all TripAdvisor reviews.   Mention that you are celebrating a special anniversary (your birthdays will show on your passports - unless one of your birthdays falls during your stay)  and specifically say that you were very disappointed in the room you were assigned last time.   If you know the room number, quote it.    See what response you get and decide if you want to keep the booking or go elsewhere.  

 

We actually had 2 separate bookings - one from my account and the other from my husband's.  I didn't contact the hotel to link them so when we showed up they said we could not have the upgrade for night 2.   We packed up our things and they said they would move our bags while we were out.   They sent me an email while we were out offering apologies for the inconvenience but we could stay in the upgrade as they had a cancellation.    So I think they really want to excel on service and emailing them is worth a try.   Good luck!

 

 

 

 

Lol! My husband thinks you got our room!😬 

[the mice]

20 minutes ago, skiiergirl said:

Lol! My husband thinks you got our room!😬 

But I will be curious to hear if you write to them.   We were surprised at our upgrade, esp. since we had only Silver status and figured we were getting a small room with no view.   Attached some photos of what you should get.    The sink/vanity was in the hallway, last photo of the separate "wet room" - shower/tub.  Slippery floor - didn't like it - found it scary, until I realized the rubber mat was tucked way under the sink.  There was a separate toilet (I didn't take a photo of that  )   BTW, this room was on the same floor as the fitness center if that helps.   

[skiiergirl]

23 hours ago, the mice said:

But I will be curious to hear if you write to them.   We were surprised at our upgrade, esp. since we had only Silver status and figured we were getting a small room with no view.   Attached some photos of what you should get.    The sink/vanity was in the hallway, last photo of the separate "wet room" - shower/tub.  Slippery floor - didn't like it - found it scary, until I realized the rubber mat was tucked way under the sink.  There was a separate toilet (I didn't take a photo of that  )   BTW, this room was on the same floor as the fitness center if that helps.   

Lol! Your photos show the Presidential Suite compared to our room!  We didn’t bother to take photos. We literally walked in the door with the bed immediately to the left and the bathroom immediately to the right. Small closet. One window that looked out to a wall. Bathroom had shower (no door/no curtain), sink, and toilet all within the same room. It was larger than a cruise ship bathroom. I think our tv was on the desk and about the size of a laptop screen. I  don’t remember what floor we were on....maybe 5.  I doubt we write them.  Mr. Ski is a “one and done” kind of guy.  (He is the same with restaurants too. A group of 20 might all love a restaurant but if he doesn’t enjoy the food/service, he is done for good.)

So glad you had a great experience there. 

Edited October 4, 2019 by skiiergirl

[samavarcruiser]

Another vote for Le Meridien on La Rambla