AC Barcelona, Barcelona

...heard positive views of the AC Barcelona so decided to book here.

~~Booking~~

I booked through Hotelopia as they were offering the best deal which worked out at £317 for a 3 night weekend stay in September. I don't think this is too bad for a 4 star hotel although, as seems to be typical for Spanish city hotels, this doesn't include breakfast. There was an option available to include breakfast but at around £100 more, ...
...averse to trying another AC Hotel which are mainly situated in Spain and Northern Italy, with a couple in Portugal.

Hotel AC Barcelona
Pso. Taulat 278
08019 Barcelona
Barcelona

Tel: 93 489 82 00
Fax: 93 489 82 01

Email: acbarcelona@ac-hotels.com  ... more

~~Reasons for choosing this hotel~~

I'd stayed in the Diagonal Mar area last year at a hotel opposite this one which had, in fact, been my first choice and I'd happily booked it, albeit for the wrong weekend!! I realised my mistake but my original choice wasn't available on the correct dates. Having looked at many alternatives including central Barcelona, I kept coming back to the fact that I really liked the area and had heard positive views of the AC Barcelona so decided to book here.

~~Booking~~

I booked through Hotelopia as they were offering the best deal which worked out at £317 for a 3 night weekend stay in September. I don't think this is too bad for a 4 star hotel although, as seems to be typical for Spanish city hotels, this doesn't include breakfast. There was an option available to include breakfast but at around £100 more, we decided go for room only which meant we could either do our own thing or choose to have breakfast in the hotel once we were there.

~~Arrival and departure~~

When we arrived at reception there were a lot of people around but most were at a separate desk registering for a conference which was taking place in one of the many meeting rooms. Everything in Barcelona appears to be a style statement and the lobby was no exception - very modern, atrium style space with lots of large sofas. There were three staff on reception and we were dealt with quickly and efficiently. We were given the option of a sea or city view - a sea view is always my first choice and this proved to be lucky as there was an air display taking place over the sea at various times over the weekend and we were treated to a free show.

Check-out was smooth and efficient - our room bill was already paid so just a matter of checking our extras and settling up.

~~Room~~

Our room was on the 12th floor and I was initially quite disappointed as it was quite small. However, once I stopped comparing it with my first choice hotel, I took the view that I wasn't planning on spending much time there anyway! On the left as you enter the room is the bathroom which has dark greenish marble tiles and was spacious - powerful shower over the bath, toilet, bidet and glass sink , all absolutely spotless. The toiletries provided were very nice - not a brand I'd heard of but the shampoo in particular was lovely - there was also packaged slippers, shaving kit, comb, tissues, shower cap etc arranged on a trolley under the sink. The shaving kit is particularly handy for those chaps that like a wet shave but are travelling with hand baggage only, as the alternative these days is to buy a razor once you get to your destination.

The furniture was dark wood which could have made the room gloomy but for the chrome and glass TV unit and small coffee table which bounced the light around. The bed wasn't very firm but was comfortable and the built-in wardrobe was spacious with plenty of hangers. The TV had channels in all languages and there was also a small stereo in an alcove above the mini-bar which contained soft drinks and a couple of beers - better still it was free and replenished daily. Rooms are air-conditioned but also have opening windows which I think is always a big plus.

I was expecting a safe in the room and having looked in all the obvious places (and a few non-obvious ones) without success, hubby popped down to reception and asked about placing items in a safe deposit box. When the receptionist realised we didn't have a safe in our room, he waived the usual charge of approx €9 per day for the box which we were given a key for sited in a room behind reception - he did seem a bit surprised so I guess we were just unlucky not to have one.

~~Meals~~

We chose not to have breakfast in the hotel so I can't comment on that. We did however use the bar and the restaurant on different occasions. The bar is on the 1st floor in a mezzanine area over the reception and our bill was €35 for a couple of beers each , a burger with chips and a large salad. Not cheap but the quality was very good and the service excellent. However, on another occasion, we popped into the bar for a quick drink on our return to the hotel and sat in an almost empty bar for about 15 mins without being served as the two young ladies on duty were more interested in gossiping amongst themselves.

Having had a very long day, we returned to the hotel one evening and decided not to go back out again but use the hotel restaurant on the 4th floor. The restaurant is very stylish and we were shown to a lovely table in the window which overlooks the street. We were happy with this but I'm sure we could have chosen any other table as the restaurant was completely empty when we arrived although it did fill up a bit later. I can't remember exactly what we had to eat but starters, mains, a bottle of wine and a bottle of water came to €80 - the portions weren't huge but the food was good.

~~Other Facilities~~

Free newspapers are available in the reception area and there is a screened-off area with internet access and printing capability.

Gym and swimming pool - I fully intended to use the rooftop swimming pool on the 13th floor but never got round to it. When I went up to have a look on my last morning I instantly regretted my decision - you should be able to understand why from the pictures. There is a fair sized well equipped gym, hot-tubs with a view of the city and a café bar on the floor - the café bar wasn't open when we were up there although there was a sign saying you could ring the room service number and have something brought up. We choose just to sit a while and take in the views.

~~Things to do in the area~~

Beach - the hotel is literally a couple of minutes walk from the beach and there are lots of public beaches including a nudist beach within walking distance. You can choose as we did to walk (or cycle) along the promenade as far as the Marina, Olympic Port and into the City Centre - it is a long way but there are lots of places to stop and have a drink or just sit and watch the world go by and it was a beautiful day!

Diagonal Mar Shopping Centre - this is located opposite the hotel and has lots of shops on two floors including a supermarket. There are also various eating places catering for every taste, some of which are outside and have separate access via steps or an escalator so can remain open even when the shopping centre is closed.

Bike Hire - the hotel has a few bikes to hire but there is also one of the hugely popular Bicing stands a few yards from the front of the hotel. You can hire bikes for periods from 30 mins to 2 hours and there nearly 200 bike stands all over Barcelona. The idea is that you pick the bike up at your starting point and drop it off at the nearest point to your destination. More information is available at www.bicing.com in Catalan or Spanish - alternatively good information is available in English on www.barcelonayellow.com

Other Transport - there are tram and metro stops within a few hundred yards on Avenue Diagonal. There are always taxis outside the hotel and the Green route of the open-top tourist bus stops opposite the hotel (the green route only operates during the summer season and finishes around the end of September).

~~Overall Opinion~~

I enjoyed my stay at this hotel and would happily recommend it. I'd definitely stay there again as the facilities are very good, service excellent most of the time and I really like the area. I'm also not averse to trying another AC Hotel which are mainly situated in Spain and Northern Italy, with a couple in Portugal.

Hotel AC Barcelona
Pso. Taulat 278
08019 Barcelona
Barcelona

Tel: 93 489 82 00
Fax: 93 489 82 01

Email: acbarcelona@ac-hotels.com 

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