Colon Hotel

The long and short of it is Hotel Colon is in a perfect location but is just an average hotel for the price you pay. We stayed at the hotel from 3/30/06 and left on 4/4/06. Read on for much more detail :). Location: This is the reason why you stay at Hotel Colon. You are situated directly on the same square as the old Cathedral. Unfortunately the Cathedral was completely covered in scaffolding as you can see in one of my pictures. Nonetheless, it was awesome being able to come right out of your hotel doors and be in the middle of all the action. There are performers/singers/bands playing outside which immediately puts you in a good mood. There is tons of shopping and places to eat right outside the hotel. The hotel is in the Barri Gottic region which has all these amazing side streets w/ shops that are great to walk around in (only during the day though!). It reminded me a lot of Venice. If you are craving American food there is a Pizza Hut, Starbucks and the mandatory McDonalds all in immediate walking distance. Another thing to note is the hotel is w/in easy walking distance of Placa Catalyuna which is the main square in Barcelona and where the Aerobus drops you off from the airport. We took a cab to the hotel and had a good laugh once we realized how short of a distance it was. Rooms: As you can see in the pictures I have posted our room was very average. It was a decent size but all of the furniture and color was outdated. It was pretty clean though so I didn’t have too many complaints about it. We peeked into a few other rooms when the maids were cleaning and it seemed like all of the rooms facing the Cathedral are much nicer and bigger. You pay more for these rooms so this is not a surprise. There is also a building being built (see the picture facing out of our window). The construction for this started promptly at 8am and ended around 6pm as best as I could tell. You could hear this very easily in the room, but I’m guessing you wouldn’t hear this nearly as well if you are facing the Cathedral. I should also note that we stayed in Barcelona 5 nights so we had a discount of 1 night free. Make sure you take advantage of this if you are staying long enough (I think a minimum of 4 night is required – see --- for details). It was a relief to see that the bed was not two twin beds pushed together. I noticed this to be a very common thing in hotels throughout Barcelona based on reviews/pictures I’ve seen. I believe other rooms would be the same but I’m not sure. Hotel Staff: The staff seemed very friendly. We did not need their help but I did notice a man asking for directions and they seemed to be more than willing to help him out. Everyone behind the front desk spoke English pretty well but the man that helped us with our bags did not (though he tried very hard to!). Not much else I can say here. Night Life: I was planning on going out to clubs but never did so. I can't say if this is a good spot to be located for heading out to clubs. Barcelona is a great city and this is a pretty good hotel to enjoy it from. We had an awesome time in this wonderful city. If you are big on location then I highly recommend this, but if you want a fantastic hotel for the money you can probably do better.

Stayed 4 nights, prebooked, paying premium charge for room with "Cathedral View". Hotel facilities and service are fine, and the view over the plaza in front of the cathedral is lively and interesting. However, the cathedral itself is covered in scaffolding, with only the spire being actually visible! Since there is a hefty premium charge, specifically for the "Cathedral View", I think it is less than honest of the hotel to advertise their rooms in this way without at least a cautionary mention of the fact that the cathedral is almost totally obscured by scaffolding. After I paid at check-out, I mentioned this to the counter staff, but they shrugged my comments off, clearly believing this not to be their problem. I would think the scaffolding will the there for months, if not years.

I've just returned from my first visit to Barcelona and two nights at the Hotel Colon. It's a great place - I would definitely stay there again. The hotel is one of the oldest and best known in the city - not quite a grand old palace but charming, comfortable and old-fashioned (in a good way). The staff are delightful and very helpful. My room was cosy (and not too small, especially by European standards) and had all the usual mod cons such as mini-bar, hair dryer and TV with English language channels. The decor is not for everyone - rather old style with flowered wallpaper and ruffled bed covers (so not ideal for a Barcelona stag weekend - which is perhaps a bonus...) but if you like slightly shabby chic you'll be in heaven. The bathroom was spotless and came complete with fluffy white dressing gown and slippers, as well as a stack of soft towels and bath goodies. The bathroom fittings are slightly outdated - perhaps installed in the 1970s - but its probably a matter of personal opinion... I thought it was charming and added to the hotels distinctiveness. Definitely not an anonymous box! If you want everything to be absolutely up to date this may not be for you - but then you'll also spend much more. I had a special winter rate of 75 Euros for a large single and was very happy.

Spent five nights in Hotel Colon December 2005. The location near La Cathedral can't be beat. It has comfy beds, great warm water pressure & is very clean. Bathrooms are very modern by European standards with lots of extra products. The staff was friendly & helpful when needed. I give them an A+

My husband and I recently traveled to Barcelona and stayed at the Hotel Colon. The location is excellent...near Metro as well as all the major sites. The front desk staff was extremely helpful and professional and spoke perfect English. The room was comfortable and not claustrophobic...always hot water and good pressure in the shower. The balcony provides a great view of the cathedral and non-stop activity. The room was surprisingly quiet at night! Breakfast is awesome and is served til 11AM, which is great after a late night out on the town. We both felt very safe walking to the hotel at night and the front desk was always staffed. I would, without hesitation, recommend this hotel to anyone traveling to Barcelona.

Really liked this hotel. Location directly opposite the Cathedral was great, although it is still covered in scaffold for renovation. The Barri Gothic area is a good spot. The room was quiet, given it's location, the sounds from the square in the evening through open doors were delightful. Breakfast was also very good, if you can't find something to eat I'd be shocked. The front of house staff recommended, and booked, a flamenco show and dinner, at Cordobes, only minutes away, and it was worth it. Although don't eat the stew, my husband got food poisoning. A good place that I would recommend, and return to. Room 109.

We were moved from the Regencia Colon to the Colon due to a lack of rooms at the former hotel. We found the hotel to be elegant in the public rooms. Well decorated, spacious, comfortable with a number of sofas and club chairs and an adjacent bar that was also very nice. They also have outdoor patio seating on the plaza where you can enjoy drinks while watching the passing strollers. The room was neat and clean but modest in style. The bathroom was reasonable size with all the goodies and hair dryer. The A/C worked great. We had use of plush terry robes which was nice. The room was very quiet, had roll shutters to cover the window and keep out noise. Not sure the room quality was worth the money charged by the Colon but well worth it to us since we were paying the Regencia rate. Location is wonderful. In Barri Gotic close to everything. Staff friendly and well versed in English.

Well, let's see...the first room they placed me in had paint falling from the ceiling due to a water leak. I awoke in the next room to the sound of banging and drilling due to construction of a new hotel next door (right next door). I was finally dragged to a third room but NO ONE (front desk staff) acted liked they cared. I complained to the manager and she did comp my daily breakfast (which I thought was free anyway since they don't give you a bill in the breakfast room...you just sign your name and room # on a slip). All in all I don't think I was treated with much respect and courtesy at this hotel; it would not have taken much for the management to show a bit of concern. I came away with a very bad opinion of it, although it IS in an excellent location. BTW, the cathedral is still draped so don't bother with the rooms that overlook it.

We just returned from 3 nights at the Hotel Colon in Barcelona. The location is great, the service was average but sufficient, and the rooms and bed were clean and comfortable. Attached are pictures from the room so that you can see for youself. I am a bit surprised by the negative reviews as they almost made me change our minds about staying here. I am glad they didn't and would absolutely stay here again if I ever have the privilege of returning to this great city. By the way, we had friends that stayed around the corner at the Hotel Neri. That was a VERY cool hotel, with GREAT rooms, comfortable beds and a lot of style. Just a thought.... Have fun!

The hotel itself has a great location. The rooms are on the small side, but that is normal for Europe. The rooms are well-kept and cleaned everyday, saw the maid ourselves a few times. The hotel staff are helpful enough. We were given a better room without being charged for it, (quite a few room tours before we got to the right one). They also recommended a tour company to drive us out of town and we were quite happy with the service. I recommend this hotel for its great location and accessibility to everything.