The 14 best places to visit in Spain – and where to stay
An insider's guide into the top places and cities to visit in Spain – and where to stay while you're there – including the best for couples and families, in locations including Madrid, Barcelona, the Costa Brava, Seville, San Sebastian, Andalusia, Valencia, Marbella and Pamplona.
Madrid
Madrid has really revamped itself in the past couple of years. The Prado, Reina Sofia and Thyssen-Bornemisza museums have all got bigger and better, while the centre of the city is smartening up with new boutiques, delis, cafés and gastrobars opening up every week. It’s perfect for a culture-rich long weekend or city break, with great food and a lively atmosphere at night. Madrid may be cold in winter – it is one of Europe’s highest capital cities, after all – but the sky is usually blue and the sunshine strong enough to allow visitors to sit at a pavement café sipping a vermut.
Where to stay
Only You Hotel Atocha
Madrid, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
Dazzling design and a clubby vibe combine to make the Only YOU Atocha the new fashionable place to stay in Madrid. Smart rooms, great food and a sense of space create a contemporary luxe environment where guests might just forget to leave the hotel all weekend. Read expert review From £101 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
URSO Hotel & Spa
Madrid, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
The Urso is a smart five-star boutique hotel in a chic, non-touristy area of Madrid with a stylish spa, a buzzy restaurant and luxurious, light-filled rooms. Strategically located for shopping and barhopping, the hotel is a quietly fashionable haven with an in-the-know clientele. Read expert review From £145 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Barcelona
Barcelona is a patchwork of architectural styles, displaying dark, Gothic façades next to the harlequin buildings of the Modernistas and the skyline-piercing constructions of Jean Nouvel or Herzog and de Meuron. A day spent admiring them can be topped off with a sundowner on one of the city’s seven beaches before dinner at any number of Michelin-starred gastronomic temples or humble, family-run tapas bars. Barcelona has a relaxed pace, months of endless sunshine, unbeatable food – with the cultural and design clout of almost any city in the cold north.
Where to stay
Cotton House Hotel
Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Housed in the former headquarters of the city’s cotton guild, this hotel has honoured its origins. As well as original features and antique furniture, you’ll encounter rooms with names like 'Taffeta' and 'Damask' and a small salon with displays of cotton bolts where you can have your very own shirt made to measure. Read expert review From £184 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel Pulitzer Barcelona
Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
You'll struggle to find a hotel much more central than the Pulitzer, sitting just off the Plaça Catalunya. Its lobby and bar area, much used by locals and guests, makes for a cool meeting place away from the hubbub, but better yet is the roof terrace and cocktail bar, which becomes especially lively during festivals. Read expert review From £75 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Costa Brava
The Costa Brava is one of the most romantic, gorgeous, unspoilt stretches of coast in Europe. Gloriously wild in parts and tastefully manicured in others, the Costa has some of the finest Blue Flag beaches in Europe, broad and sandy stretches to elegant horseshoe bays and secluded smugglers’ coves. You’ll also find wonderful, independent hotels and exceptional food. In fact this stretch of the coast is a foodie’s paradise and Catalonia – where the Costa Brava lies – has one of the highest concentrations of Michelin-starred chefs in Spain, not to mention superb, locally produced wines.
Where to stay
Hotel Tamariu
Tamariu, Catalonia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
This family-friendly hotel on the sandy bay of Tamariu has got all the ingredients required for a laid-back beach holiday. Rooms are simple, but clean and contemporary nonetheless, and there’s also an excellent restaurant serving delicious Catalan seafood dishes. Read expert review From £84 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel Aiguaclara
Begur, Costa Brava, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
This converted nobleman’s house in the heart of medieval Begur is arguably the most stylish hotel in town. There’s colonial grandeur with quirky but elegant contemporary styling, an excellent restaurant and a lovely garden terrace. Read expert review From £59 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Valencia
A decade of bold development has given Spain’s third-largest city some of the most striking architecture in the country, adding to the wealth of elegant Art Nouveau buildings that line the streets, as well as Gothic and Renaisssance monuments. With dynamic museums, a flourishing restaurant scene, lively nightlife, great shops and miles of beach, Valencia is bursting with Mediterranean exuberance. And a walkable centre means you can drift from the medieval monuments in golden stone to the avenues lined with elegant buildings, stopping at pavement cafés along the way.
Where to stay
Hospes Palau de La Mar
Valencia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
This chic boutique hotel set within a grand nobleman's mansion is a reflection of Valencia itself, where tradition and innovation combine. Contrasting with the busy city, this peaceful oasis near the Turia gardens has a spa and delightful hidden garden where the horses used to live. Read expert review From £107 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel Balandret
Valencia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
A beautiful boutique hotel on Valencia's magnificent beachfront – it's easy to forget you're in Spain's third largest city with those tranquil sea views and the splendid hospitality. Enjoy a designer-styled stay created to help you relax. Read expert review From £56 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Cantabria
Ask any Cantabrian and they’ll proudly tell you the big secret to their beloved land’s success: "In summer we hit the beach, and in winter we go on mountain adventures". It’s this unique combination of landscapes and lifestyles – of breathtaking coast, quiet country, deep valleys, majestic mountains and characterful seaside towns – fused with fantastically fresh food and tremendous historical riches that makes this tiny region of northern Spain such a pleasure to explore. And yet, by Spanish standards, Cantabria remains relatively undeveloped, apart from the odd minor resort area here and there.
Where to stay
La Casa de las Chimeneas
Cantabria, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
This fabulously converted village farmstead is hands down one of the finest places to stay in the Picos de Europa. Its family-friendly self-catering apartments are beautifully original, the views are sensational and the welcoming Spanish-English owners have absolutely everything covered. Read expert review From £47 per night
Posada San Pelayo
Cantabria, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Hidden in crinkled mountain foothills, this superb family-run country hotel blends beautifully traditional Cantabrian style with contemporary comforts, glorious views, warm personal service and easy access to some of the Picos de Europa’s outstanding scenery and activities. Read expert review From £52 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Andalucia
Divided from the rest of the country by the natural boundary of the Sierra Morena, Spain's southernmost region is larger in area than the Netherlands, stretching from the Atlantic in the west to the snowy peaks of the Sierra Nevada and the arid landscape of Almería in the east. Andalucia has more than 500 miles of coastline with a surprising variety of beaches. On the Costa de la Luz on the Atlantic, La Antilla has 14 miles of golden sand, while the coves of the Costa Tropical on the Mediterranean are flanked by groves of mangoes, avocados and custard apples. The 700 years of Moorish civilisation left a splendid cultural legacy, not only in the great cities of Seville, Córdoba and Granada, but all over the region.
Where to stay
Molino del Santo
Ronda, Andalucia, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
Going strong since 1987, this delightful British-owned rural retreat and long-time riverside walkers’ favourite is idyllically positioned just outside dramatic Ronda. Enjoy the relaxed ambience, rustic-modern rooms and outstanding restaurant, and head out on a multitude of wonderful walking trails. Read expert review From £99 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Chillout Hotel Tres Mares
Tarifa, Cádiz, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
This elegant hotel blends Asian and Moroccan design motifs, standing in lush gardens with weeping willows, bamboo and palms trees. The vibe is tranquil and intimate. The roof-top hot tub is an indulgent spot for sundowners with gorgeous views across the Straights of Gibraltar. Read expert review From £52 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Seville
Compact, rich in history and famous for its flamenco, tapas bars and orange trees, Seville is an ideal short break destination. Stay in the city’s old town to explore the cobbled streets of the Santa Cruz quarter and the breathtaking Alcázar Palace. Soak up the atmosphere on the banks of the Guadalquivir, and admire the views from the ancient cathedral tower and recently opened Parasol Metropol. The influence of the city's Moorish past and Catholic present is visible everywhere, most strikingly in the world's largest cathedral and the Giralda minaret, an exquisite example of Islamic architecture.
Where to stay
Corral Del Rey
Seville, Andalucia, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
A 17th-century palacio in the heart of Seville’s old town has been reinvented as a deluxe boutique hotel by English brothers Anthony and Patrick Reid. It’s a classy affair with fine art on the walls amidst marble, Romanesque pillars, wooden beams and state-of-the-art lighting. Read expert review From £199 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel Sacristía de Santa Ana
Seville, Andalucia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
A boutique hotel in a converted 18th-century mansion with traditional arcade patio, delightfully relaxed considering Seville's hottest restaurant and bar scene is on its doorstep. Quirky furniture, period details and great value make this family-owned spot the top choice in the Alameda district. Read expert review From £46 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Malaga
Eating just-caught sardines by the sea is one of life’s great simple pleasures, and the beaches either side of Malaga are the perfect place to do it – particularly after a morning at the Picasso and Carmen Thyssen museums. Unlike some Spanish cities, it does not wind down in summer, and is particularly lively during the Malaga Fair in mid-August, when even the most reserved visitors might find themselves joining the locals for a twirl in the streets. Although there is plenty to see and do, Malaga is really a place to kick back and just enjoy the laidback Mediterranean vibe.
Where to stay
Hotel Molina Lario
Malaga, Andalucia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
A glossy, family-owned and smoothly sophisticated four-star base housed within two elegant 19th-century buildings overlooking Málaga’s cathedral. Romantic, contemporary-design rooms are splashed with sparkle, and you can sip artisan G&Ts poolside or at the buzzy rooftop bar, with city views all around. Read expert review From £102 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Room Mate Valeria
Malaga, Andalucia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Bold Mediterranean-inspired designer rooms, a spot-on Soho location and a wonderfully chic rooftop cocktail bar and plunge pool make the laid-back yet lively Valeria one of Málaga’s most fashionable hotels – you’ll be seriously tempted to hang out here for the whole day. Read expert review From £79 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Marbella
Celebrities have always flocked to this sunspot (at 300 days a year, it's a dead cert for topping up the Eurotan), with its swanky designer emporia and megayachts in the harbour at neighbouring Puerto Banus. Marbella is as realista as it gets; it is where Old Spain collides with New Spain, and the result couldn't be more fascinating.
Where to stay
Puente Romano Marbella
Marbella, Malaga, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
First launched in 1979, the Puente Romano is one of Marbella's original luxury properties. Its flawless service, sparkling beachfront position, Andalucian-village design and outstanding gastronomic line-up – Michelin stars included – keep it lively, current and immensely desirable. Read expert review From £197 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
The Town House
Marbella, Malaga, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Unless you’re looking for it, you might just miss the unassuming entrance to The Town House – and that’s precisely the point. This serene, adults-only boutique spot tastefully incorporates its vintage Andalucian townhouse charm into an elegant design bolthole in the heart of old-town Marbella. Read expert review From £106 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Granada
Autumn and spring are the best seasons to visit Granada, which can get fiercely hot in summer and bitterly cold in winter – although the sight of snow glittering in the sunlight on the Sierra Nevada behind the Alhambra is well worth wrapping up warmly for. October is perfect for strolling through the intricately decorated rooms and voluptuous gardens of the Alhambra, created by the Nasrid sultans, the last Islamic dynasty to rule in Andalucia. Afterwards, wander down into the Realejo district, where a wealth of Renaissance and Baroque monuments were built following the expulsion of the Moors. Now the narrow streets are packed with tapas bars, too.
Where to stay
Hotel Casa Morisca
Granada, Andalucia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Granada’s original boutique hotel, Casa La Morisca set the standard for how to sympathetically convert a historic townhouse. Now, with its handful of inviting rooms clustered round a stunning patio, it’s still one of the city’s most atmospheric places to stay. Read expert review From £84 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
AC Palacio de Santa Paula Hotel
Granada, Andalucia, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
This atmospheric luxury hotel set within an old Hieronymite convent is home to one of the city’s best restaurants. It's centrally located, comfortable and has a feeling of detachment. It’s also a great choice if the noise and heat of an Andalucian city tour start to become too much. Read expert review From £118 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
San Sebastian
It's impossible not to fall in love with San Sebastián. The food alone, in the bars groaning with tapas, here known as pintxos, and the many Michelin-starred restaurants, is the stuff of obsession. Factor in three bewitching beaches – broad sweeps of golden sand fringed by the clear waters of the Cantabrian Sea – alluring Art Nouveau architecture, pulse-quickening panoramas, exhilarating walks, plus one of the world's most glamorous film festivals, and prepare to become besotted.
Where to stay
Villa Soro
San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
Villa Soro and its 25 rooms sit on the outskirts of the city overlooking a lawn and carriageway, as mansions do. Feel supremely genteel within its walls, thanks to dignified décor, lordly service, and elegant shared spaces with high ceilings and crackling fires. Read expert review From £72 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel María Cristina
San Sebastián, Basque Country, Spain
9Telegraph expert rating
Since the eponymous Queen María Cristina was the first to cross its threshold in 1912, this Belle Epoque hotel has catered to the crème de la crème of guests. The polished service and palatial vibes are flawless. An innovative gastronomic offering and in-crowd buzz keeps things fresh. Read expert review From £184 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Bilbao
This confident, bustling little city – small enough to walk around – is now an international art hotspot thanks to Frank Gehry’s titanium masterpiece, the Museo Guggenheim. The less striking Museo de Bellas Artes also houses some of the finest art in Spain. The rejuvenated port nestles in the green folds of the Euskadi’s coastal mountains on the Bay of Biscay. Besides the exciting new architecture of Bilbao’s renaissance, there is a beautiful medieval quarter, the Casco Viejo, on the east bank of the Nervión river – the heart of the city. And the food is sensational. Forget tapas – the Basque version, pintxos, are epic in variety and taste, with a strong piscine influence.
Where to stay
Gran Hotel Domine Bilbao
Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Luxury is synonymous with design in Bilbao, and the five-star Gran Hotel Domine impresses with its modern décor. It’s only befitting a hotel that boasts the best view of the city’s prime attraction: the Guggenheim. Read expert review From £109 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel Miró
Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
This artsy boutique hotel, the creation of fashion designer Antonio Miró, has simple design-driven rooms that serve as a blank canvas for the real asset: the up-close view of Bilbao’s main attraction, the Guggenheim. It’s a four-star hotel, but with five-star guest service. Read expert review From £73 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
La Rioja
Spain has 69 officially recognised wine production regions spread all over the peninsula, and visiting wineries is an excellent way of discovering little-known parts of the country. La Rioja, the most famous wine area, is also worth visiting for its food and spectacular countryside. Tour through the famous vineyards and villages of La Rioja and sample a variety of wines from nearby estates before venturing to the charming village of Ezcaray for lunch in the Michelin-Starred El Portal restaurant.
Where to stay
Hotel Los Agustinos
Haro, La Rioja, Spain
7Telegraph expert rating
A four-star hotel in a restored former convent in Haro, known as the "wine capital of La Rioja", making a good base for exploration of local bodegas including Roda, Muga and CVNE. Read expert review From £68 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Parador de Santo Domingo de la Calzada
Santo Domingo de la Calzada, La Rioja, Spain
7Telegraph expert rating
This 60-room hotel has a 900-year history of hosting weary travellers despite its quiet, remote village location. It is 'classic parador' with spacious rooms and quaint, traditional Spanish furniture. A more mature clientele makes for a peaceful ambience. Read expert review From £76 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Pamplona
Ernest Hemingway’s account of the running of the bulls in The Sun Also Rises turned Pamplona into one of the best-known cities in the world – for one week a year. But outside the booze-fuelled craziness of the San Fermin festival in July, the mood changes dramatically. For the rest of the year, this elegant northern Spanish city is a different prospect. It’s lively enough – especially when the 30,000 students are in residence – but Pamplona’s lovely old town, its stunning vistas and city centre parks and gardens allow you to dictate the pace.
Where to stay
Gran Hotel La Perla
Pamplona, Navarre, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
Gran Hotel La Perla is classic luxury in Pamplona’s best location, whether one’s priorities are fast-moving bulls or tranquil plazascapes. Its best assets are less tangible, like a discreet, overachieving staff and the chance to stay in Ernest Hemingway’s room, preserved in its original state. Read expert review From £144 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Sercotel Hotel Restaurante Europa
Pamplona, Navarre, Spain
8Telegraph expert rating
A clean, good-value hotel along the famous Calle Estafeta. The rooms are overshadowed by its fabulous restaurant, though both have been in the Idoate family for two generations. The must-try Michelin-starred cuisine of sister Pilar is modern yet rooted in local Navarran cuisine. Read expert review From £57 per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
