Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Hotel Arai, Barcelona
Facts in brief
Official star rating 4-star superior
Location In the Gothic Quarter, directly opposite George Orwell Square and behind City Hall.
Annual opening All year
Closest airport Barcelona El Prat
Distance from airport 40 minutes by taxi
Closest railway station Barcelona-Sants
Distance from railway station 25 minutes by taxi
Hotel facilities and services
Palosanto Restaurant & Bar, rooftop terrace with seasonal outdoor pool, sauna, plunge pool, fitness centre, solarium, 24hr concierge, room service, daily housekeeping, bicycle rental, babysitting services (on surcharge), and on-site museum with Roman mosaic and archaeological artefacts.
Complimentary
Wi-Fi
Land sports
Cycling
Out and about nearby
The 13th century Barcelona Cathedral – formally the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia – is a four-minute walk, with ornate chapels, a cloister, and the remnants of the Roman walls of Barcino in the streets around it. The Museum of the History of Barcelona, in nearby Plaça del Rei, allows visitors to walk through an extraordinary section of the underground Roman city of Barcino, including houses, a church, and a fish factory. Las Ramblas is five minutes on foot, leading to La Boqueria – one of Europe's most celebrated fresh food markets – and the Gran Teatre del Liceu opera house; the neoclassical Plaça Reial, with its palm-lined arcades and terrace restaurants, is a short stroll from the hotel. The Picasso Museum in the neighbouring El Born district is 10–15 minutes on foot, housed across five mediaeval palaces on Carrer de Montcada, and Barceloneta beach is reachable in around 15 minutes. Gaudí's Sagrada Família – a UNESCO World Heritage Site – is five to six minutes by metro. Further afield, the mountaintop Benedictine monastery at Montserrat, set among jagged rock formations with panoramic views extending to the Pyrenees, is around an hour by car; the seaside town of Sitges, with 17 beaches and a well-preserved mediaeval quarter, is 35–40 minutes away; the Penedès wine region – heartland of cava production with over 80 producers – is 45–60 minutes by car; and the mediaeval city of Girona, with its Gothic cathedral, ancient Jewish Quarter, and colourful riverside houses, is around an hour's drive north.
We had a wonderful holiday which exceeded our expectations. Great hotels with a good itinerary. We wouldn't hesitate to use your services again.Mrs J, June 2025
From about
Holiday Code EXH4670
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Hotel Arai, Barcelona
Built in 1702, the Palau dels Quatre Rius – the House of the Four Rivers – takes its name from the sgraffito designs on its façade, which depict allegorical figures of the noble arts on the first floor and personifications of four great rivers – the Danube, the Nile, the Ganges, and the River Plate – above. Listed as part of Barcelona's Architectural, Historical, and Artistic Heritage, the building was acquired by Derby Hotels Collection at the beginning of the 21st century and opened as a luxury aparthotel in 2013, with a restoration that preserved original stonework, wooden beams, wrought-iron balconies, a coffered hall ceiling recreated from recovered fragments, and a black-and-white marble floor that is an exact replica of the original. A small museum on the lower floor houses artefacts uncovered during the works alongside pieces from the Fundació Arqueològica Clos, including a large Roman mosaic with a religious dedicatory. Each of the 31 apartments is individually furnished with custom pieces, warm lighting, deep colours, tactile fabrics, and Catalan art; black slate bathrooms are inlaid with silver pyrite from India, and upper-floor apartments have private terraces overlooking the city. At ground level, Palosanto – a neotavern managed by the acclaimed Grupo San Telmo – serves high-quality tapas and small dishes drawing on traditional Catalan and Mediterranean recipes alongside more innovative cooking, with a terrace open year-round on George Orwell Square. The rooftop terrace offers a seasonal outdoor pool with city views, alongside a sauna, plunge pool, solarium, and fitness centre.
Room descriptions
Hotel Arai has 31 individually designed apartments, each with air-conditioning, minibar, espresso maker, satellite TV, safe, desk, blackout curtains, free Wi-Fi, bathrobes and slippers, and a fully equipped kitchen with fridge/freezer, cookware, and utensils. All apartments have black slate bathrooms inlaid with silver pyrite from India.
We had a wonderful holiday which exceeded our expectations. Great hotels with a good itinerary. We wouldn't hesitate to use your services again.Mrs J, June 2025
From about
Holiday Code EXH4670
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Hotel Arai, Barcelona
The journey and how you get there
For a holiday to the Hotel Arai, you can fly into Barcelona El Prat airport, from which the hotel is approximately 30–40 minutes by taxi. You can take the metro from the airport into the city centre, with the nearest metro stations to the hotel – Liceu (L3) and Jaume I (L4) – being within a two to three-minute walk. Alternatively, we can arrange transfers from the airport. The Gothic Quarter location means most of central Barcelona is easily reachable on foot, though the metro provides quick access to sights further afield.
Additional information
Children: The Hotel Arai is suited to families, with Junior Suites accommodating up to four guests. Babysitting services are available on request at a surcharge.
We had a wonderful holiday which exceeded our expectations. Great hotels with a good itinerary. We wouldn't hesitate to use your services again.Mrs J, June 2025
From about
Holiday Code EXH4670
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Hotel Arai, Barcelona
About Barcelona
An Expressions tailor-made holiday to Barcelona include the very best four and five star hotels in the city, all of which provide a superb base for a short city break or as the starting point for your holiday to Catalonia. First founded by the Romans, Barcelona is now a dynamic and cosmopolitan city on the Mediterranean coast which is charming and exciting all at once. The capital of Catalonia is famed for its staggering concentration of Gothic architecture as well as surreal wonders such as the Sagrada Familia, making it one of the most visited cities in Europe. Previously a relatively overlooked industrial city, Spain’s second city played host to the Olympic Games in 1992, prompting a period of extensive regeneration and leading to its reinvention as a lively holiday destination. Unique architecture, a rich culture with art galleries and museums abound, gourmet restaurants, lively bars, designer boutiques, golden beaches, parks and gardens – Barcelona has it all. An exhilarating destination for a city break, with much more to discover...
Highlights of Barcelona
There are a huge number of day trips and excursions which those on holiday in Barcelona can enjoy. These include: The Monastery of Montserrat, a religious complex in a spectacular setting atop craggy mountains with chapels, hermits’ caves and numerous nature trails, reached by a one hour train journey followed by an exhilarating cable-car ride; Wineries in towns such as Sant Sadurní d’Anoia and Vilafranca del Penedès, both around one hour away by train; Catalan towns and cities including Tarragona (a port city with fascinating Roman remains), Girona (an ancient walled city with a fascinating history), Vic (a quintessentially Catalan town with an outstanding market) and Figueres (home to the renowned Dalí Theatre-Museum), all of which can be easily reached by train or bus.
Cultural highlights of Barcelona
There are numerous places of interest that visitors should see during their luxury holiday in Barcelona: La Rambla, Spain’s most famous street which is busy at almost any time of the day or night with flower stalls, tarot readers, musicians and mime artists lining the wide walkway which is shaded by trees. The Gothic quarter, a maze of narrow streets and plazas in the old town with architecture dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries. This historic area is home to Catalonia’s government building, the town hall, a former royal palace and the imposing and intricately-decorated La Seu Cathedral, which includes a beautiful cloister. Montjuic, a fortress-topped hill in the south of the city with museums, art galleries and restaurants dotted throughout the spacious gardens. This is also the setting of the 1992 Olympic stadium, the large open space enjoys panoramic views of the city and sea, and is accessible by cable car from the port, by funicular from the base of the hill, by bus or on foot. The harbour area, where almost 3 miles of sandy beaches meet the Olympic port and the older area of Barceloneta, known for its numerous fish restaurants. Parc de la Ciutatella, a popular park with gardens, a boating lake, a zoo, several museums and the striking Catalan Parliament building. Eixample District, a vast area towards the north of the city which was built according to a grid system and is full of unique buildings which were designed in a ‘Modernista’ (Catalan Art Nouveau) style by the famous Antoni Gaudí and his contemporaries. The most famous building which was designed by Gaudí is the Sagrada Familia, an unconventional church building which is filled with symbolism but is still unfinished. Other famous works of art which feature Gaudí’s trademark curved lines, decorated chimneys, elaborate wrought iron and mosaic decorations include Parc Guell, a colourful park which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site; Casa Batlió, a house with a fascinating interior and exterior and La Pedrera, a curved apartment building.
Gastronomy in Barcelona
Cuisine in Barcelona is similar to the rest of Catalonia, taking inspiration from both nearby France and from central Spain whilst making use of local ingredients available including seafood, fresh vegetables, meat and game. Typical dishes include ‘Crema Catalana’ (a Catalan version of a Crème Brûlée), ‘Pa amb tomàquet’ (bread smeared with tomato, oil and garlic), ‘Fideuá’ (a variant of Paella which uses pasta in place of rice), ‘Zarzuela’ (a seafood stew which is made with fish, prawns, squid and mussels), ‘Escudella’ (a stew containing vegetables, meat, rice and pasta) and unusual ‘sea and mountain’ combinations which use both meat and seafood. Barcelona is home to some of Spain’s best restaurants, with gastronomic chefs creating innovative cuisine and over 20 boasting at least one Michelin star. The best fish and seafood can be found in restaurants in the Barceloneta district, or if you want to buy some local produce yourself then head to the busy La Boqueria market on La Rambla.
Climate in Barcelona
Late spring and early autumn are the best times to go on holiday to Barcelona, as the weather is warm with temperatures of around 20 degrees centigrade. Summer is often unbearably hot with some shops and restaurants closing in August as locals leave the city to get away from the heat. Winter is mild with occasional rain and average temperatures of 10 degrees but is an enjoyable time to visit as Christmas markets are held and many celebrations take place.
