We had a night at Hotel Arts Barcelona both going to Venice and on the way back. Towering 44 floors above the sea, the 5-star hotel is a striking tower of blue glass and steel, 483 rooms, a two Michelin-star restaurant and spaces, including a rooftop spa and two outdoor pools, that overlook the sea.
The hotel entrance is difficult to find the first time you stay.Any new guest has to research how to arrive, the entrance is discreet to the point of invisibility. But the concierge staff who park your car are very efficient and polite, and even recognised our car. on our return
The reception was perfect the first time but diabolical on our return. At a peak time there was only one receptionist on duty, who decided not to get any of his colleagues out of the back office until he had a long queue of guests waiting. Meantime he was happy to chat up an arriving female guest with stuff that did not need to be done on check-in. When another receptionist eventually emerged from the back office , there was no apology for the wait, just his standard rule-book check-in spiel with a plastic smile
The rooms are nice, and views incredible, the beds are very comfortable....but whoever designd the hotel forgot to factor in window cleaing - we had difficulty seeing out our window
For an expensive 39 euro breakfast, it is served in a cavernous room, reminiscent of a works canteen. Having said that, seated at a different table on our return, Chris was quite enamoured with it. And for Spain, the orange juice was of poor quality. And the cheeses were "sweaty" from being cut too far in advance
Would I return?..not sure, but perhaps time will make up my mind one way or the other
There are a number of local restaurants, but none had the correct combination of both taking my fancy and having an empty table for us, so we settled for drinks and tapas in one of the bars along the front
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The Whale statue is by Frank Ghery
This giant goldfish has become one of the symbols of post-Olympic Barcelona and looks as if it is bobbing along on the waters of the Mediterranean. The sunlight is reflected in the scales of this sculpture that presides over the waterfront of the Olympic Marina and Barcelona's beaches. In 1992 Barcelona was transforming its seafront. A new Olympic Marina was taking shape, presided over by its twin towers. On one side stood the Mapfre Tower; on the other was the Hotel Arts. Frank Gehry placed his fish sculpture at the foot of the hotel. The animal is 56 metres long and 35 metres high and seems to be longing to jump into the blue waters of the Mediterranean.
The sculpture was made from intertwining gilded stainless steel strips supported by a metal structure, its gentle, subtle form marked by its intense gold colour. The interplay between the rays of the sun and skin creates the impression of scales, depending on the intensity of the light, and accentuates the organic form of this vast sculpture. The Fish can be seen from Barceloneta Beach and the Olympic Marina, and has become one of the city's best-loved iconic landmarks.
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What a difference a week can make. On our way through, this restaurant was heaving and we could not get a table. On our return there were only 2 other tables occupied We shared a Black Rice. Oddly one of the othe tables had an Irish couple from the centre of Ireland - Port Leix