The Hotel Principal is in a great location two minutes from Las Ramblas and if you are looking for a place to be in the centre of the main strip at a reasonable price then this will be ideal.
At a minimum of a three night stay the price ranges from 80-100 euro's per room, per night with a choice between standard and superior rooms, including breakfast.
Whilst the accomodation is not a high standard, the standard rooms offer, TV, Safe (which cost 1.50 euro's per night) ensuite, balcony and air conditioning. The superior rooms are slightly better with marble bathrooms and slightly more spacious than the standard rooms.
Personally, we booked a standard room and found it in dire condition with mould on the walls, brick and brack furniture. The wardrobe is the size of a small broomcupboard with no door and only two hangers and the double bed as comfortable as a park bench. With a party of 22 girls, we complained until we were upgraded to slightly better rooms (superior) at a small extra cost had an enjoyable stay.
The Superior rooms are an improvement and definately worth paying a little extra for comfort and a decent, clean bathroom, comfortable beds and in better decorative condition.
I would strongly recommend breakfast is avoided at all costs! You can find a numerous clean cafes dotted around the hotel, which offer a better alternative.
The staff are helpful and always happy to assist with booking cabs and giving you advice about the area and best places to visit during your stay, however I would avoid paying extra for "Security" which is mentioned along with your friendly safety advice.
I can't help but feel they make money on scaring you half to death and then offer you the service of a bodyguard (I kid you not)for your duration in this wonderful city!
A good tip is to hire a safe or lock all valuables in your case as we had an incident where someone tried to break into our room on our last night and with no security in teh hotel, people can come in and out without any question.
On a positive note, the hotel offers free internet service, two lifts, a roof terrace, a bar open from 7-11pm, vending machine and a meeting area in the basement.
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Information:
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