552 Best Hotels in Spain

Locals call this four-star newcomer a "hotel within a museum" because of its location inside the Tabakalera cultural center, a hotbed of art and innovation inaugurated in 2015 that's located 12 minutes on foot from the Parte Vieja. Expect eclectic modern decor, thought-provoking photography, and sculptural light fixtures in the guest rooms, which range from conventional doubles to airy, designer-appointed suites.

A trendy, youthful hotel, Only YOU Atocha has a big and buzzy lobby, a rooftop restaurant, spacious gym, and industrial-chic accommodations. Rooms with smart TVs, cushy armchairs, exposed brick walls, and vanity mirrors are by Contemporain Studio, the Catalan design firm behind Barcelona hot spots Boca Grande and Soho House.

In this luxurious urban oasis with an expansive courtyard tucked behind Gran Vía, reproductions of famous Diego Velázquez paintings feature in every room. Don’t let the Elizabethan facade and Golden Age paintings fool you: Palacio de los Duques is a state-of-the-art property complete with Nespresso machines, Bluetooth speakers, and bedside thermostats rounding out the digs.

Located in the center of the city, this palace was built by aristocrat Francisco Navas in the 16th century and later became the Casa de Moneda (the Mint). Its original architectural features blend well with modern ones. Guest rooms, set around a traditional columned inner patio, are decorated with understated elegance. Enjoy breakfast on the outside terrace on warm days. Complimentary tea and infusions are available on the second floor.

This four-star hotel occupies a beautifully restored 16th-century palace in the heart of the city next to the cathedral, an ideal spot if you like to relax between sightseeing. Rooms incorporate both modern and traditional Castilian design elements. 

This 18th-century palace in the center of town has been restored to its original grandeur with wooden ceilings, Victorian furniture, and a grand staircase. Even the collection of carriages of the counts of Guendulain—who continue to live in the building—is on display and many of the sumptuous rooms have antique chairs and detailing. The property also has two suites.

In a renovated convent, this contemporary hotel steps from the cathedral offers a great value. The dependable restaurant in the converted chapel and simple, modern rooms make the property a practical base. (Note: prices quadruple during San Fermín.)

This parador has superb views from its hilltop position among the ruins of Pedro the Cruel's summer palace. The public rooms surround a central, Moorish-style patio and include the vaulted dining hall and adjacent bar that open onto an outdoor terrace overlooking the sloping garden. Of the spacious guest rooms—decorated in light-gray tones—all but six, which face the front courtyard, look south over the valley (the best rooms are on the top floor). The restaurant serves local specialties such as partridge and spicy spinach.

In the geographical center of the island, this is the perfect spot to get away from it all and to take in some of Gran Canaria's best views. The hotel, part of Spain's Parador chain, has a rustic exterior that echoes traditional island architecture, with whitewashed walls and black volcanic rock details. In contrast, most of the rooms have a distinctly modern style, and they all boast south-facing patios for magnificent views of the peaks. The restaurant serves traditional Canarian cuisine, including the house specialty, baifo con almendras (goat with almond sauce).

Within a few minutes' walk of the historic center, this parador provides a welcome oasis of calm for relaxing after sightseeing, and panoramic vistas of the Peña de los Enamorados can be seen from the gardens, restaurant, and some rooms. The style is reminiscent of a typical Andalusian estate, but with a modern edge, with steel and sharp contour details. Rooms are spacious and minimalist, with white and beige touches. Plenty of lounge chairs surround the pool in the manicured gardens.

Expect a spectacular view from the terrace, as this parador clings to the cliffside, overlooking the rolling valley of the Río Guadalete. Public rooms include a popular bar and restaurant, Mesón del Corregidor, which opens onto the terrace and an enclosed patio. The best guest rooms are numbers 6–9 and 15–18, which overlook the valley (well worth the €40–€60 premium). Spacious guest rooms are furnished with dark Castilian furniture, reed rugs, and abundant tiles.

This 17th-century palace has panoramic views over the Álava plains and feels like a time warp with its long stone hallways decorated with bulky, opulent antiques. It's said that Napoleon's forces rested here before attacking Vitoria. Rooms have polished wood floors, and some have glass-enclosed sitting areas or hot tubs. The wood-beam dining room on the third floor makes each meal feel like a baronial feast.

Once the house of Gaspar de Portolà, the military officer who colonized California, this modern parador with friendly staff and an outdoor pool (seasonal) has views of the Pyrenees and is handy for exploring the Romanesque sights in nearby villages. Vielha is 2½ km (1½ miles) to the north, and the Baqueira ski slopes are 7 km (4 miles) away. The restaurant ladles out a mean civet de jabalí (wild boar stew).

Post up in a 16th-century medieval castle attached to the massive town walls at this parador whose standout feature is its lush garden containing archaeological ruins. The interior is unusually warm for the hotel chain, done mostly in tawny tones, and guest rooms have terra-cotta tile floors, leather chairs, and four-poster beds.

This 14th-century palace in the old town boasts elegant public spaces filled with antiques. Guest rooms are surprisingly austere and basic, though the building's bones—stone walls, arcaded ceilings, and heavy wood beams—are stunning. The restaurant is overpriced for the area, but it's worth a visit for an afternoon coffee or glass of wine in the idyllic outdoor garden.

With a privileged position overlooking the bay, this parador has spacious public areas and large modern rooms, most with balconies facing the sea. It combines wood, steel, and marble with black and white furniture for a modern edgy look. The pool, with panoramic ocean views, is one of the highlights.

This airy mansion's rooms are warmly furnished with wrought-iron lamps, area rugs, and full-length wood shutters over small-pane windows. The bar, offering an excellent selection of local wines, is large and inviting, with natural light and wooden booths. The kitchen's Albariño-poached mussels are terrific; so are the hand-crimped empanadas stuffed with seafood. 

You'll find this modern parador isolated in a valley at the edge of the nature reserve, 26 km (16 miles) north of Cazorla, in a quiet place that's popular with hunters and anglers. Despite the disappointing exterior, the setting is bucolic, amid a pine forest on a hillside, and inside there's a small exhibition space with life-size reproductions of animals. The excellent restaurant serves regional game dishes such as wild boar in red wine and fillets of grilled venison.

On the slopes of the Sierra de Córdoba, on the site of Abd al-Rahman I's 8th-century summer palace, this modern parador has sunny rooms and nice views. Rooms have wood or wicker furnishings, and the pricier ones have balconies overlooking the lush peaceful garden or facing Córdoba. The restaurant serves typical local dishes including salmorejo, the chef's specialty.

This is one of the most dressed-down and inviting paradores in Spain, and most rooms have wonderful views over the lake or park. These compensate for the small, plain interiors (wood floors and pine shutters). In the restaurant, try specialty cheeses from Asturias, meat and seafood brochettes, or stewed fabes (white beans) with sausage and pork. The property is a bit of a hike from the old town and occupies an old water mill in a park not far from the San Lorenzo Beach.

This exquisite estate, once the 15th-century palace of the Marquis de la Romana, now houses one of Spain's finest paradores. The sprawling building combines Mudejar architecture, exotic vegetation, and Moorish-style rooms, the best of which look out onto the monastery. There's a secluded swimming pool and a cozy fireplace room—a perfect place to enjoy an evening glass of wine. The restaurant serves simple local dishes such as bacalao monacal ("monastic" codfish, with spinach and potatoes) and grilled lamb chops.

These comfortable quarters in the center of town are built into the 14th-century convent of Sant Domènec. The interior patio—the cloister of the former convent—is a tranquil hideaway, lush with vegetation. Rooms are spare and simple but appointed with high thread-count bedding, and some have mountain views.

This mountain retreat may be an eyesore, but it occupies a privileged position as the only hotel located within the park. Guest rooms, outfitted with dowdy traditional furniture, make up for their interiors with views of the intriguing rock formations of Las Cañadas plateau, at the foot of Mt. Teide. Log fires burn in the lounges in winter. At the mountain-view restaurant (not at the tourist-packed snack bar/terraza, whose food is overpriced and borderline inedible), friendly waitstaff in folk costumes serve tasty Canarian cuisine. Try the puchero canario or the conejo en salmorejo.

This peaceful, modern parador stands on a cliff surrounded by pine groves (gradually recovering from a large wildfire in 2017), overlooking a sandy blue-flag beach 3 km (2 miles) southeast of Mazagón. The hotel was renovated in 2019. Most of the spacious and comfortable rooms have balconies overlooking the garden (second-floor rooms have sea views), and the restaurant serves Andalusian dishes and local seafood specialties, such as fried cuttlefish and white shrimp.

This spacious hotel exudes Andalusian cheerfulness with hints at its Roman and Moorish past—it was built over the remains of a Roman temple, later became a baroque convent, and then served as a prison. The whitewashed building has bright guest rooms with traditional dark wood furniture, and the brilliant white interior of the convent's former church has been turned into a restful lounge.

In a 15th-century Gothic convent, this parador truly feels medieval with majestic and somber common areas and spacious guest rooms decorated with monastic motifs and heavy wood furniture. But there are plenty of modern comforts such as well-appointed bathrooms, room service, and on-site parking. The airy restaurant—housed in the former convent refectory—is almost intimidating in its architectural magnificence.

A 16th-century manor house in the heart of the old quarter, this parador has guest rooms with recessed windows embellished with lace curtains and large wooden shutters; some face a small rose garden. It was built on the foundations of a Roman villa and has a baronial stone stairway winding up from the front lobby. The restaurant, which serves fine Galician food, is full of antique mirrors, candelabras, and portraits.

Most rooms in this low-slung former country house have glassed-in sitting areas with views across the ría to Asturias (No. 208 has the best). Parquet floors and harvest-yellow walls are accented by watercolors of the area. In the dining room a cornucopia of shellfish is served, much of it swimming around in a holding tank before you make your selection. Try the sopa de mariscos (seafood soup with a pastry top) and the ice cream flavored with O Cebreiro cheese and drizzled with honey. Fishing, horseback riding, and boating can be arranged.

This stately granite-and-chestnut hotel on the bluffs overlooking the Miño is filled with local art, and the rooms are furnished with antiques including four-poster beds. Views of the woods surround the dining room, where specialties from the region are served including local mushrooms, beef tenderloin, and shellfish stuffed canelones. 

The shining star at this modern granite parador is a semicircular salon with huge windows and spectacular views over the Maladeta peaks of the Vall d'Aran. Many guest rooms also have a decent mountain view and a terrace, compensating for the somewhat plain functional design. The light-flooded restaurant serves Catalan and Pyrenean cuisine including dishes such as olha aranesa and civet de jabalí (wild boar stew). There's also a spa with heated indoor and outdoor pools and a variety of treatments.