It would appear that the hotel business in Barcelona is one of the very few sectors that is still attracting investment and experiencing growth in the current difficult economic climate in Spain. The development of houses, offices and the construction sector in general has practically ground to a halt. However, investment continues into the hotels in Barcelona, albeit at a slower rate than some years ago. After a difficult time at the start of the global crisis, the hotels in Barcelona now seem to be managing the economic crisis better than many other businesses in Spain. By the end of 2011 eight new hotels will have opened in the Catalan capital including two five star establishments, three four stars and three in the three star category. Another twelve new hotels are planned for Barcelona next year and a further thirteen are planned for 2013. A report by consultancy company Global… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

In August the hotels located in the Balearic Islands were among the most expensive of all the most popular tourist destinations in Spain. Last month the hotels in this part of Spain experienced price increases of some 18 percent achieving an average price of €151 per night. During the same period the prices in the hotels in the Canary Islands rose by 13 percent to an average of €94 per night. This information was extracted from the monthly HPI (Hotel Price Index) survey produced by Internet travel portal trivago.es. The survey showed that prices also rose about 10 percent along the Mediterranean coast. In some places like Benidorm there was an increase of 12 percent meaning a night in the popular resort would set you back, on average, €145 whilst in Salou prices were up 6 percent to €167 per night.

The study also highlighted Marbella, where hotel prices exceeded €200… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

The number of reservations in the five star hotels in Barcelona almost doubled in July this year compared to the same month in 2010, recording an increase of some 87.75 percent. This increase in bookings can be ascribed mainly to the reduction in prices that these establishments have been setting as a way of attracting guests in the midst of the ongoing financial crisis in Spain and beyond. At the moment there are quite a few five star hotels in Barcelona that are more affordable than one would expect of accommodation with their characteristics. A data analysis firm, The Data Republic, recently produced a study of the profiles of clients of five star hotels in Barcelona. The analysis was based on more than 6,000 web user reviews and revealed that the profile of the majority of guests of five star Barcelona hotels are young couples. This group, by far, makes the… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

Hiking, diving and all sorts of adventure sports are now being promoted as holiday options to attract new tourists to Spain in addition to those who seek the traditional two-week, beach holiday. All across Spain hotels have started to seek synergies with other activity-based businesses in their vicinity so that they can promote a wider selection of holiday options to potential guests.

For example, the Abba Huesca hotel recently came third place in a list of the best hotels in Spain for enjoying an active holiday as produced by travel portal trivago.es. Guests have can enjoy walking or hiking both in the great natural environment that surrounds the town of Huesca or in the Natural Park of La Sierra Guara and the Pyrenees mountains which are not too far away. The nearby Canyons of  Guara also provide many opportunities for practising a wide variety of outdoor adventure activities like canyoning. The nearby natural environment… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

The ‘Ciutat Vella’, or old town, in Barcelona city centre is starting to increase the quality of both its tourism offering and the type of travelers it is attracting thanks to the fact that some good quality hotels have set up business in the area. These hotels have focused on the marriage of the traditional architecture in the old town and first-class, modern design and service to entice guests to this charming, if somewhat forgotten, part of the city. This combination of architecture and tourism has provided a way of reinvigorating previously run-down areas of many large cities and Barcelona is no exception.

A good example of this is the Hotel España, which has enjoyed great success since undergoing a complete renovation during 2010 and making its 82 new rooms available for booking again earlier this year. Previously known as the Fonda España , the historic original building dates back to… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

Investment into the hotel sector in Barcelona either through acquisitions, new builds or refurbishments, that were completed between July 2010 and July this year, reached a total figure of some €135 million. This figure is still below the one recorded for the same period in 2009, just before the worst of the effects of the global economic crisis really hit Spain, which amounted to some €157 million.  In 2010 some 840 new rooms were added to the capacity of the hotels in Barcelona and during the first half of 2011 several transactions have been completed that will mean a further increase in capacity of some 1,100 rooms in the coming years. The majority of these planned rooms will be in four star hotels in the city. Interestingly, the investments announced in July this year alone, make up nearly half the investments for the whole year, which could demonstrate a renewed… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

The influx of guests to luxury hotels in Barcelona appears to be on the rise again which may be an indication that the worst effects of the global economic crisis in some economies outside Spain may be on the wane. The number of guests staying in top five star luxury hotels represented almost 14 percent of the total number of overnight stays in Barcelona last year and this figure is still increasing.

2010 made history because the number of tourists staying in the hotels of Barcelona reached record levels, achieving an average of almost 75 percent occupancy throughout the year. Within this figure, luxury hotels recorded occupancy levels of 67.8 percent, which was eight points higher than the previous year and was the sector with the highest percentage growth.

Although the rates of many luxury hotels in the city are around €300 per night, there are many accommodation options in Barcelona that are… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

According to a recent survey of the users of the hotel booking engine hotel.info, the five star Alameda Palace Hotel located in Salamanca in central Spain, achieved an average score of 9.4 out of ten. This score situates the hotel at the top of the table in the evaluation of luxury hotels in Spain as rated by users of the site.

Salamanca is one of those towns in Spain that is off the normal tourist track but is definitely worth a visit. It is known for its beautiful medieval architecture and famous central square, the Plaza Mayor, which is surrounded by cafés and restaurants. The Old Town was declared a UNESCO world heritage site back in 1988 and it is the most important university town in Spain. The university was founded in 1218 and today’s 30,000 students ensure the town has a diverse multicultural feel beyond an ordinary town of this size. So,… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

The Gran Hotel Bahia del Duque which is located in the ever popular area of Adeje on the southern part of Tenerife was recently awarded a Biosphere Certificate by the Institute for Responsible Tourism for its contributions to sustainable tourism and protection of the environment in Spain. The award shows that this Tenerife hotel has put the concept of operating a sustainable tourism model at the centre of both its business philosophy and its operations.

Biosphere is a voluntary certification scheme based on the principles of sustainable development through specific criteria related to the protection of the environment and can be awarded to tourism businesses anywhere in the world. The Institute for Responsible Tourism is a not-for-profit organization sponsored by UNESCO and affiliated to the WTO and is a member of the World Council for Sustainable Tourism (GSTC), which has the support of the United Nations Foundation and the United Nations… Click to read more about hotels in Spain

The use of environmentally friendly electric vehicles is starting to take off in Barcelona, and it is worth noting that the hotels in the city are now doing their bit to promote the use of this type of transport in Spain. From now on guests staying in the hotel Diagonal Zero, the Santos Porta Fira, the ME Barcelona, the King Juan Carlos I or the W Barcelona can rent electric scooters directly from these hotels as an alternative way of independently exploring the city. This initiative is a world’s first and is being promoted by the Barcelona Hotel Association, the City Council and Mobecpoint, a green energy company specialising in the installation of charging stations for electric vehicles. The service has been initiated with thirty electric motorcycles spread across the five hotels where charging stations have already been installed. It is is expected that many other establishments throughout Spain will join the… Click to read more about hotels in Spain