Tryp Albayzin in Cordoba
 

We have a reservation at 75E. Have we made a good choice, or is there a much better option?

The Tryp Albayzin is in Granada. But there are two Tryp hotels in Cordoba as well.

You're right Tatoo--we booked in Granada. Do you have any first-hand knowledge of the hotel in Cordoba or the ones in Cordoba?

The Tryp Gallos where I stayed in Cordoba is a bit of a hike from the historic center; the building is very drab, even by the standards of a chain hotel. The Tryp Cordoba is closer in. The chief advantage of the Tryp chain is the price, the impersonal but hassle-free service, online booking/cancellation, and a certain reliability. A few are in historic buildings; others have a slightly depressing corporate character. In many cities, they seem to have a less-than-ideal location. That said, for the price -- often as little as 50 euros a night if you book through solmelia.com --- it might be hard to find an independent hostelry that's as good.

I also stayed at the Tryp Albayzin in Granada. It was perfectly adequate but somewhat out of the way -- despite the name, on the other side of the Alhambra from the Albaicin neigborhood, which is one of the main attractions of the city. I know nothing about the hotel situation there, but for 75 euros, I might look for a better location and atmosphere. Granada is wonderful at night, and if you plan to go out, it would be better to be closer to the Alhambra/Albaicin.

Finally, a word of warning about the bill. Tryp/Solmelia practices dynamic currency conversion. If you pay by credit card, they convert the amount to dollars first, using their own highly unfavorable rate, rather than letting your bank make the conversion on their end (the bank rate is generally quite favorable). Much better to withdraw cash at an ATM (using your ATM, not credit card) and settle the bill with cash.

Wow. Thanks for the warning about Tryp's currency exchange practices. We booked in Euros--I hope that helps.

We're staying at AN Amistad in Cordoba. Do you know about it?

I concur about the dynamic currency conversion (in Madrid, in my case). I had booked in Euros, but it didn't help. You can also pay with American Express, and not Visa or Mastercard, and that avoids the issue.