NH Duc de la Victoria - Barcelona, Spain     

My wife and I stayed at this hotel the nights of November 29, 30 and December 1, 2007 before a Transatlantic cruise December 2. While there were several positive aspects for our stay, there was particularity one which was quite negative.. I will save this till later. The hotel does have a very nice location, as mentioned by several others. Also, I received timely responses to several e-mails concerning taxi directions, etc. The second room we had, 422 was fairly large, for Europe, and the bath excellent. We arrived at the hotel about noon on November 29. We had tickets for Aida at the Liceu Opera for that evening. I had e-mailed asking that, if possible, we be allowed in our room early so we could rest a bit prior to attending the opera. To the hotel's credit, we were given a room shortly after our arrival. We did indeed nap a bit that afternoon, and thus enjoyed the opera much more than we could have had we been dead tired from our overnight plane trip. The production was really outstanding. The problem was the room, number 420, size and layout. It was, as we saw on the posted floor plan, and later verified, only a bit more than one-half the size of other rooms. When the space taken by the twin beds is subtracted, that meant the remaining area was indeed minimal. The bath fixtures were fine, but here again the bathroom was tiny,. The door would open only about 90 degrees before hitting the toilet. I had to squeeze into the bathroom, and I am average size. I happened to see two young ladies checking out of room 422 the next morning, and immediately requested that we be changed to that room. My request was granted. I later spoke with the desk clerk, and then the manager, to inform them that I thought it ridiculous that both rooms had the same €140 rate,, that 420 should have had at least a bit less rate. Neither person seemed able to understand this. Since our final two nights were on a weekend, our rate for 422 was only €120. I am sure 420 was the same rate. So don't stay in 420, 320, or any other 20 if you want a decent size room for a decent price. Another minor irritation was that we were not allowed to purchase a morning cup of coffee in the dining room. We could buy coffee, but only if it were to be delivered to the hotel lobby. The Bagel Shop, turn left out the door, then left again at the street, is great for breakfast, but not open Sundays. It is across from the park in the middle of the block. Finally, I confirm dunnoh's July 28 comments about the small bar and café Babia. We went to Babia, and she was totally correct . Rollo remember her and served us a very, very good meal, with a nice wine. This is a really great little place.

My husband and I stayed at this hotel for two nights prior to embarking on a transatlantic cruise. We were very pleased with our stay. I had booked the hotel on the NH website and had requested early check-in if possible. Sure enough, after walking for five minutes from the Aerobus (as easy as others have indicated!) we were able to check in at 10:30 in the morning -- unexpected and wonderful after a night with very little sleep on two flights! I had requested a room with a balcony on the fourth or fifth floor and was given a nice room (425). The room was a decent enough size, but a little crowded with our luggage -- I ended up moving the tea/coffee tray to make more room. Nice robes and slippers were provided and the bathroom was excellent. It had terrific toiletries and all sorts of extras like a toothbrushing kit and a plastic razor with shaving cream. As indicated elsewhere, the bed was very large and comfortable and assorted pillows were provided. Nice touches: I was able to use the computer in the lobby (if you ask they will provide you with a business coupon good for 15 minutes of free internet). They provide many daily papers in the lobby including the International Herald Tribune. Service was excellent. I had a problem during our stay involving a restaurant reservation and needed one of the front desk staff to call the restaurant for me while I was out and about in Barcelona. Andres was wonderful. He not only called the restaurant, but he also called me back twice to make sure I knew everything had been taken care of! Our room was clean and well serviced by staff. When I asked for extra towels, they were quickly brought to the room. Also, I had occasion to correspond with the hotel before and after our stay. Cristina responded promptly and politely to requests in both instances. Although not inexpensive, the location is what makes this hotel wonderful. You can walk to the Placa Catalunya to board the Hop On Hop Off Bus easily and a short walk in the other direction brings you to the Cathedral and the many shops and restaurants of the Barri Gotico and the Born. BTW many posters extoll the virtues of the Bagel Shop, but alas, it isn't open on Sunday. A short stroll brings you to the Rambla, which is filled with cafes and other places where you can grab a bite quickly and easily. Every other day of the week you can also walk a couple of blocks to the Boqueria, which is a treat. We walked to the hotel from the Aerobus, but we used a cab to take us to the cruiseport. This was called by the front desk -- very quick and easy and the driver came up to the front door. I would definitely recommend this hotel and plan to stay here in the future.