The Barcelona Edition - hotel review

The Edition's sexy new Spanish outpost in Barcelona has been created by illustrious hotel designer Ian Schrager and launched in September, complete with a tenth-floor saltwater infinity pool and an underground cabaret bar.

Where is it?

Bang slap in the middle of Barcelona, in the artsy El Born district. Just off one of the city’s main avenues, Via Laietana, it’s right next to the popular Santa Caterina covered market (you can look out over the multi-coloured undulating roof from many of the rooms) and a couple of minutes’ walk from the cathedral, on the edge of the gothic quarter. Walk out and you’re only a four minute wander from the Picasso Museum, ten minutes from Ciutadella Park and 20-minutes to Barceloneta beach (they’ll arrange a car if you’re too hungover from all the punch). There’s no better location in town.

Style

For Edition disciples, Schrager’s Barcelona outpost has the same familiar luxury as the rest of the hotel collection – sweeping white spiral staircases, a replica of London’s famous Punch Room and a signature scent you can smell from down the street. Rooms echo the brand’s sleek, low-lit vibe with added sexy Spanish trimmings - original Catalan art pieces, locally-designed wooden chairs and Gaudi-inspired welcome snacks. Much of this was the work of renowned interior designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán while Schrager’s tell-tale trademarks can be seen throughout, from the striking double-height lobby bar to the sultry basement dining room featuring black velvet walls.

​Which room?

Each of the hotel’s 100 rooms and suites has views over the Gothic quarter, Santa Caterina Market and the El Born district. Inside, rooms are decked out with the Edition’s signature luxury Anichini bed linens, walnut wall panelling and embossed Spanish leather headboards, while en suites feature custom-scented Le Labo amenities, gold mirrors and contrasting brass hardware. The design is sleek and high-tech: there’s a Bluetooth speaker next to the bed and there are four different lighting modes for creating your perfect atmosphere. I used makeup mode for party-prepping, which was a fun perk. For celebrity guests, the two penthouse suites are true luxury, each a home-from-home concept with adjoining rooms for family, agents or publicists. Private terrace included.

Food & drink

Drinks start at ground-level. True to the Edition vernacular, an warm backlit lobby bar, Bar Veraz, serves local vermouth, craft beer and sherry, and there you’ll also find the hotel’s informal all-day restaurant offering an à la carte breakfast. Expect brunch classics from acai and smoothie bowls to avocado and poached eggs – you can have these delivered to your room on lazier mornings. Ten floors up, the roof bar serves trendy acai ice creams and local gins topped with fresh flowers. Try the signature Yuzu and beer-blended cocktail if you have a sweet tooth. The hotel also features a fresh incarnation of The London Edition’s award-winning Punch Room, a speakeasy-inspired mezzanine-level lounge bar serving punches from vintage silver bowls. Expect elegant oak panelled walls and a dark checkerboard floor accessed by a signature Edition spiral staircase, perfect for an Instagram pose if you’re not feeling too wobbly from all the sangria. Down in the velvet-lined basement, a supper club meets live performances at Cabaret, the hotel’s sexy late-night dining room and cocktail bar. Weird and wonderful is the order of the day, from provocative circus acts and cauliflower desserts to a colour-coded tasting menu.

Facilities

The whole point of a minibreak to Spain is to eat tapas and drink sangria in abundance, so the hotel’s main centrepieces are naturally its four distinct bars and restaurants. There’s also a 24-hour gym with a wellness and meditation space and a rooftop saltwater plunge pool – though don’t pack your goggles. It’s more for Instagram than any kind of proper swimming.

What to Instagram

The rooftop, with its 360 degree views. There are white sofas for all-day lounging and a narrow saltwater infinity pool with floating lilies for the ultimate sunset Insta shot. Storm model Sydney Lima and actress Anna Brewster have already gone in for a (skinny) dip.

Best for?

Party types – you won’t get a rustic Spanish experience but you will get luxury, poached eggs on sourdough and Instagram opportunities galore. Plus there’s the celeb-spotting: Jack Guinness and Lady Mary Charteris jetted in for the launch party and Dynasty actress Nathalie Kelley booked in for a romantic visit with her husband in September.

How to get there

Fly to Barcelona–El Prat Airport, an easy two-hour flight from London Gatwick and just a 20-minute taxi from the hotel at the other end. We travelled with Vueling, which has regular flights from just £20.

When should I go?

Late summer is perfect for autumn hues and 360-degree sunsets, but the rooftop is open all year round thanks to sliding glass walls, so you can still soak up the views on a winter minibreak.

Details

Room rates start from £330, based on two sharing, on a bed and breakfast basis.

Av. de Francesc Cambó, 14, 08003 Barcelona, Spain (+34 936 26 33 30, editionhotels.com)