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08007 Travel Guide

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Mandarin Oriental Barcelona Will Now Open on November 26th

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: Passeig de Gracia 38-40, Barcelona, Spain, 08007
October 29, 2009 at 12:42 PM | by juliab | 0 Comments

Oh Barcelona, you’re pretty n all, but we could do without your mañana mañana attitude spoiling our hotel plans. First the W pushed back its opening date no less than three times, and now it’s the turn of the Mandarin Oriental.

Last time we checked, the hotel was due to open on October 29. But when we hadn't heard any fanfare today, and checked out the hotel’s website to find the calendar showing “no availability”, we smelt a rat.

So we just called Mandarin Oriental’s PR people, and they told us the hotel is scheduled to open on 26 November. So that’s delay number one. But we’re expecting a delay number two, seeing as the website’s not taking reservations until 15 December. Hmm.

Opening rates, if they are opening December 15, are showing up as €284 ($421/£254) at the moment, although there’s an intriguing note on the booking page saying that “most rooms accommodate 3 people.” Er, surely the kind of people paying that amount of money won’t want to share with two others? Unless, of course, we're being, um, naive.

Here’s hoping all will be revealed on 26 November. In the mean time, how nice does that rooftop pool look? Shame it'll be too cold to use when they finally let us in.

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Mandarin Oriental Will Say 'Hola' To Barcelona Later This Year

July 9, 2009 at 5:57 PM | by juliana | 1 Comment

Looks like we might have to return to Barcelona again pretty soon. We're already eagerly anticipating the opening of the W Barcelona and now we've got word that Mandarin Oriental will open their Barcelona outpost later this year. From the press release:

Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona is ideally located on Paseo de Gracia, Barcelona’s most prestigious address, at the very center of the city’s commercial and entertainment district. The property provides easy access to the city’s finest shopping, dining and cultural venues and is a short walk from many major tourist attractions. From the hotel, guests will be able to stroll amongst the city’s celebrated promenades and architecture and enjoy the attractions of the famous Las Ramblas and the Gothic Quarter. Barcelona’s many museums, churches and parks are all close at hand and two of the most celebrated buildings by the city’s famous architect, Gaudi, are just a stone’s throw from the hotel.

The hotel will feature only 98 guest rooms, all designed by Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola. A 10,763 square foot Spa at Mandarin Oriental will be onsite and of course, several restaurant and bars are expected, one of which will be al fresco in the hotel's 7,104 square foot outdoor garden. Plus, a rooftop pool. We just hope it's bigger than the Omm Hotel's rooftop pool.

No word on the price point yet but expect it to be muy caro.

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Barcelona's Eurostars Hotels Replace Your Guidebooks with MP3's

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: PASEO DE GRACIA 29-31, Barcelona, Spain, 08007
April 6, 2009 at 2:03 PM | by juliab | 0 Comments

It's one of our permanent travel quandaries — to cart around or not to cart around? The guidebook, that is — as much as we hate weighing down our bags with 600-pagers, we're loathe to miss any little detail that might improve our limited understanding of a city.

Luckily for us, the Eurostars hotels in Barcelona (of which there are 11 to choose from) have devised a city tour especially for the likes of us. Eight of the hotels are going to have MP3 players, maps and headsets to dole out to guests, starting this month. The players come in five languages (German, French, Italian and Spanish, if you fancy a challenge), the batteries last a heroic 15 hours, and there are 100 points of interest covered, which should do for most weekend trips.

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Barcelona's Cristal Palace Only Has Good WiFi on the First Night

Go To The Hotel's Web Site Where: Diputacio 257, Barcelona, Spain, 08007
February 19, 2009 at 9:15 AM | by amandak | 2 Comments

We're always heartened to hear of hotel WiFi that not only doesn't cost anything extra, but also actually works. As in, whenever you want, you can actually check your email--it's not a big ask these days.

So we started off quite pleased to read a NewsWireless mention of the Eurostars Cristal Palace Hotel in Barcelona. The reporter checked into the hotel, switched on his laptop and the WiFi "just worked right away". And it's free. All good so far.

But the next morning, despite changing nothing, the WiFi didn't work on that computer anymore--even though other people could log on. Not being able to discuss the problem well enough in Spanish, and with staff who couldn't deal with the drama in English, the tech troubleshooting came to a standstill and the reporter ended up "freezing his arse off" in an internet cafe.

With a double room putting you back a minimum of €127 ($160) at the Cristal Palace, landing in an internet cafe to read your mail is not really on. Still need some work on their technology over in Barcelona.

[Photo: jaju]