Hotel in Granada, Spain
 

I can't decide on a hotel in Granada for one night in September. My husband and I are driving in for one night before leaving for Valencia and Barcelona. I want to enjoy the historic area and the activity of local cafes, restaurants, and tapas. We are on the older side and are looking for some comfort but would like to be near the activity of the old town area. Cost is not a major barrier. I have looked at many hotels on tripadvisor and rule them in and out for various reasons. For example, I like Hotel Monjas del Carmen and Hotel Anacapri for their location but not sure if they will be comfortable enough for us. I like Hotel Casa 1800 Granada but wonder why it is so expensive. AC Palacia Santa Paula is also tempting but it appears further away from much of the old town culture. Hotel Casa Morisca is also highly recommended but is booked on the day we need. I apologize for being all over the place but having never been to Granada I don't have a sense of the city. Can anyone make a suggestion?

I stayed at the AC Santa Paula. It is only a few blocks to the heart of the nighttime activity on calle Navas and around. By "old town" do you mean the Moorish section, the Albaicin? That area has steep hills and I would not choose to stay there with any mobility issues.

The AC Santa Paula is a good enough hotel but minimalist in design, a lot of cold, hard surfaces.

I wrote more about it in this report from my last visit to the city in 2011; from that report:




Here again, I had vacillated back and forth between a hotel in the downtown area, convenient to the better restaurants and tapas bars, or one in the more atmospheric, and hilly, Albaicin neighborhood. (I did not consider staying at the top of the Alhambra hill because I considered that too cut off from the nighttime life of the city). Now that I’ve returned from the city, my opinion is that there is no single “right” place to stay, but our decision worked out very well, although the hotel did not score a spot at the top of my all-time favorite list.

<The AC Palacio Santa Paula is a sensitively wrought renovation of a former convent and an adjacent Moorish residence into a 5-star business hotel. I had requested Room #121 in the original section of the hotel, where the rooms encircle the original 16th-Century courtyard cloister of the Santa Paula convent. This room is one of several in the hotel to retain the original elaborate coffered wood ceiling which looked to me to be at least 15-feet high. The king-sized bed in this room is set into a niche sheathed in mottled blue Venetian plaster bounded with arched brick. The room itself was not large, but it did have a small seating area and a contemporary tiled bathroom. The furnishings do not live up to the architecture and are what one might expect from a chain hotel with boutique pretentions.

There is a free computer in the lobby and the youthful front desk staff are unfailingly helpful and polite. We found the location to be excellent; there is a bus stop right in front of the hotel and the buses run very frequently. However, Granada is small enough that we were able to walk almost everywhere and we took only a couple of bus rides during the three days of our stay. It IS true, though, that staying in the downtown area of Granada is much like staying in the downtown area of any small city..you will not be immersed in the magic of the city while you are in the hotel or its immediate surroundings.>


The report in its entireity:


http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...k-in-spain.cfm

My sister and I said at Hotel Monjas del Carmen last year in June. My sister chose the place,after much research, due to its position and cost.We found the rooms and bathrooms more than adequate and very comfortable.The location is near many restaurants and markets. The front desk attendant was very helpful recommending sites and restaurants and booked us into a fantastic flamenco show. We wouldn't hesitate to stay there again.

I recommend to use booking.com to see hundreds of guest reviews from people who actually have stayed in the hotels. Here about two of the hotels you mention:

Hotel Monjas del Carmen: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/monj...carmen.en.html

Hotel Casa 1800 Granada: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/casa...ranada.en.html

The AC Palacia Santa Paula is well located, and has the extra bonus of Marriott Rewards, should you be into that. The Fontecruz Granada is just across the street and is generally an excellent option.

One of the most incredible places we've EVER stayed is at the Parador actually on site at the Alhambra. The Alhambra itself is not to be missed, but the experience of spending the night wandering the gardens, looking at the city lights below, seeing all these cute feral cats peeking out of the bushes...wow. If you could swing it financially, this would be the hightlight of your trip in my mind. There is also a very atmospheric restaurant onsite open to guests.

The parador at the Alhambra used to be, and may still be, THE most popular parador in Spain. When we stayed there several years ago we had to make reservations nine months out...but that was for late summer.

I agree that the place is magic, especially at night, but if you are going to see "the rest of" Granada then the parador is not the place to be IMO.

The Parador de Alhambra is one of the most expensive in the group, but worth it if it fits your budget.

And it's not a problem getting down the hill into the city. The bus service is excellent and runs quite often. The closest stop for line 34 is the Alhambra-Generalife stop. (www.lovegranada.com/transport/alhambra-buses/)

I agree the Parador will be an unforgettable experience. I will most likely stay at Carmen de los Alcubilas on my next visit. It's a small owner run hostal near the alhambra.

Carmen de los Alcubilas del Caracol is an excellent 3-star boutique hotel, not a hostal. David Cameron, the ex Prime Minister, stayed there a couple of years ago, taking the entire hotel.