HotelChatter

Someone suggested she try her own hotel, the Gran Hotel Princesa Sofia. But that was even worse! 500 rooms, even further from the centre, and even more full of businessmen and wedding parties. In fact, she only kept it and the rest of the Expo Hotel Group to make money and fund her extravagant lifestyle. It may be a 5-star with all the boxes ticked, but the atmosphere had long gone mouldy.

Feeling in need of a comfort-feed, she walked down the road to the Majestic and got a penthouse suite - she'd read that it was named as Spain's Leading Hotel and Spain's Leading Suite by World Travel Awards 2007, and had won a 5-star Diamond Award every year running since 2003.

Really she went for the Michelin-starred Drolma restaurant, run by the award-winning Catalan chef Fermí Puig. Stuffed and happy, she lay on the roof-top terrace looking out of Barcelona. Where she saw.....

...the Casa Fuster. The Casa Fuster looks like a palace from the outside. It's modern by royal family standards, built in 1908 by the renowned Catalan architect Doménech i Montaner. There was a scandal at the time - he used such high quality materials it was officially categorised as the most expensive building in the city. It's now a protected monument as well as a 5-star 'Gran Lujo' hotel.

And they treat you like royals when you're inside. Despite the size, it keeps its atmosphere. The staff are renowned among upper-class Spaniards for remembering your name (although you probably have to go quite regularly for this). The décor is modern, but soft enough to be comfortable - unlike, we suspect, the hotel's new half-sister Casanova over the road. Best of all, there's an open-air pool on the roof terrace and that killer view everyone keeps talking about - best at night when Barcelona's lit up and jiving.

The Casa Fuster is a hotel for a princess. Now she's just waiting for the prince.

[Photo: Jordi Domenech]