Hi,
My husband and I are going to Barcelona in October and we will be staying at the Hotel Royal, has anyone heard of this hotel and is it in a good area?
Does anyone know of any excursions that are good to get out into the country and see some of the scenery? There seems to be alot to do in the city but can anyone recommend any areas around Barcelona?

I'm not familiar with the hotel itself, but it's a 4-star on Las Ramblas, close to Plaza de Catalunya. There is a good review of the hotel on Tourist Guide Barcelona (http://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.c...barcelona.html).

You may want to download a copy of Maribel's Guide to Barcelona for a information on what to see and do. (http://maribelsguides.com).

You can also check out the following web sites:

http://www.barcelonaturisme.com/
http://www.aboutbarcelona.com/

Hi, and welcome to the Europe forum on Fodor's "Travel Talk".

You may think that you posted this on &quot;the Spain forum&quot; - - and in a <i>virtual sense</i>, you did... for the handful of people who click on <i>Spain</i> and only look at those questions.

But to most people her, this is simply the Europe forum. And &quot;we&quot; can't tell what you're asking about without stopping to click on your question, and read it. And most won't know enough about Barcelona (or even care about Barcelona) to be interested.

So, for your futur rference, it's worth your while... and a common courtesy, to list the actual destination (yes, technically thew hotel is a destination, but its name will be recognized by few if any... even fans of Barcelona!)

You might evn re-post <i>this</i> question, and use as the message header...

&quot;Is this hotel in a good area of <i><b>Barcelona</b></i>? - - asking about the Hotel Royal...&quot;

Best wishes,

Rex

I stayed at Hotel Royal for 4 nights this past March, room is all right, good breakfast (but other meals not recommended), the best is the location, within walking distance to most tourist sites and theatres, easy connection to metro and bus.

Las Ramblas are quite busy from early morning, if you are a light sleeper, it would be quiter to ask for a room facing the back, but the room could be quite dark and withoout any view.

Thank you for the information. I am so excited! Sorry, I forgot to put Barcelona in the title. I don't use these talk forums much.

I was at the Hotel Royal some years ago and I loved the location. I wake up every morning just to see the people preparing their news stands and flowers shops for the day , it was really a show !! Many people think of the Ramblas to be too touristic, and they are but also are a special place for me, like the heart of the city...
The Opera, the big market La Boqueria, the florists, Canaletas Fountain (nothing very special but it is where the Barcelona FC fans celebrate), a very lively place

Basically good reviews on TripAdvisor as well:

http://tinyurl.com/pn6zl