Hotel Jazz review: I recommend this to everybody who are going to BCN

When my 17 year old daughter and I were going to have a “girls weekend” in Barcelona last January, the choice of hotel was vital to the success of our stay. We wanted to stay at a modern, comfortable hotel in the centre of this wonderful city, and luckily we chose the Hotel Jazz! The location near everything, the friendly and helpful staff, the beautiful rooms all contributed to make this weekend a weekend to remember. When a small problem in our room (the cistern stopped working on the Saturday) made it necessary to change rooms, we were given a suite! I recommend this hotel to everybody who are going to BCN, and at my next visit I certainly will stay there again.

Hanne, Dec 2011.

Hotel Jazz review

Have just spent 5 days at the Jazz. A great hotel right in the middle of Barcelona. The room was great and the service was excellent. All the staff were really friendly and helpful. Would recommend this hotel very highly to anyone visiting Barcelona. Thanks very much to all the staff for a really enjoyable stay in an amazing city!

Graham, November 2011.

Jazz review: Would recommend and would definitely stay again.

Would recommend and would definitely stay again.Stayed here for 2 nights prior to a cruise we were taking for our 15th wedding anniversary and it was a great experience. We were booked in for a standard room but were upgraded to a larger room on the 8th floor.
English speaking front desk staff all of them were really friendly and helpful and the hotel is modern, clean and comfortable, large bed, large safe, hardwood floors, open window balcony, good working air conditioner, awesome roof top experience. In our room we had a kit too, toothpaste, razor, shaving cream – which was great considering our luggage with our toiletries was delayed.
This hotel was perfect for a short stay in Barcelona. Central location close to the metro station, main strip and lovely restaurants and cafes, but far enough from the nightlife to get a good night’s sleep. Have stayed in another hotel which was a “four” stars-the walls were thin and you could hear people in the hallways. That is not the case at Hotel Jazz.
The 3 days/2 nights we were at the Hotel Jazz, there was a protest happening and a Marathon. Front Desk placed signs by the elevator to advise all guest they would need more time if needing a taxi to get to airport and or port. This was very helpful to plan your day. I also liked the fact to use the elevator you had to place your room card in to access a floor. For security reason only guests had access to hotel.
Note: European outlets – ask the front desk to borrow a converter.

Tonya, November 2011.

Hotel Granvia review: I would recommend this hotel

We stayed at the Hotel Granvia for 4 nights and were very happy with everything about the hotel. It appears to be a smaller hotel than the others that have been commented on. It is located near Plaza Catalunya and the metro at Paseo de Gracia, making it ideal for getting anywhere easily. The room was comfortable and clean. The best thing about the hotel was the friendliness of the staff, particularly Carlos. Because of construction next door, there was loud hammering all day, through no fault of the hotel. When we asked for a change of room, they were very accommodating, moving us to a room on the other side of the hotel where it was much quieter. There was no street noise in our room, even though the Gran Via was in front. We walked to Las Ramblas, the Palau de Musica de Catalana, and Gaudi’s Casa Mila. The metro was very easy to use and fast. The breakfast was very good, with just about everything you could ask for. We had the romatic package for 2 nights, including a bottle of wine and a nice dinner. The dinner was in Hotel 1898 on Las Ramblas, and it was delightful. I would recommend this hotel.

Doris, November 2011.

FC Barcelona vs AC Milan – Champions League

Today Tuesday, Barça will kick off the Champions League with a home match against one of the Italian greats: Ibrahimovic’s Milan.

But this will not be the only première of the night, as Leo Messi might face the Italian team for the first time, and team captain Puyol will be back on the pitch following his injury.

To ensure fans have no problems getting to the Camp Nou, TMB will provide extra metro and bus services in the area.

The metro will run under its usual timetable, until midnight, with extra services on the lines giving access to the stadium: Badal and Collblanc (on line 5) and Maria Cristina and Les Corts (on line 3).

There will also be extra bus services for lines 15, 43 and 56, and two special lines will be launched at the end of the match, between Camp Nou and Plaça de Catalunya and between the stadium and Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer.

Hotel Jazz: Great rooms, great pool, great price

This is our second time spending a week in Barcelona at the Hotel Jazz. For the price it’s unbeatable. Comfortable rooms with contemporary Spanish design. Great rooftop pool – not huge, but not a puddle like at some other design hotels like Cram. The rooftop pool has enough comfortable loungers, enough nice fluffy towels, and a nice little bar.

Very helpful and friendly desk staff. Great central location right in between the main square (Plaza de Catalunya, direct bus to airport, Corte Ingles department store) and the Eixample/Gracia shopping, restaurant and nightlife area.

Experience posted by brianscottgross, August 2011.

Barcelona Walk Against Hunger!

This Sunday 29 May, the Walk against Hunger, organised around the world by the United Nation’s World Food Programme, is taking place for the second time in Barcelona.

A gentle 5 kilometres, it will set off from the Arc de Triomf, on Passeig de Lluís Companys, at 10 am. finishing at 11.30 am at the latest.

The walk will cover the Ronda de Sant Pere, Plaça de Catalunya, the Rambla, Portal de la Pau, Passeig de Colom and Passeig d’Isabel II, Avinguda del Marquès de l’Argentera, Passeig de Picasso, Avinguda de Pujades before reaching Passeig de Lluís Companys again, by the Arc de Triomf.

Just before the walk starts, the organisers will hand out IDs in the marquees located at the starting point, which participants will have to return once they have completed the walk. They will then receive a souvenir gift in recognition of their contribution to the walk.

This idea is to collect money towards eradicating hunger in the world (for every euro collected, four food rations can be given to the World Food Programme) while raising society’s awareness of a serious problem affecting millions of people across the globe. People are free to give as much as they want.

The Walk against Hunger will take place simultaneously in about 250 cities in 70 countries. It is one of the best ways to show solidarity while spending a pleasant Sunday morning in the open air, so it is hoped that thousands of people will take part in this worthy cause.

Source ::: bcn.es :::

Pre-cruise stay at Hotel Jazz in Barcelona

We stayed at Hotel Jazz pre-cruise for several days in April. We could not be more pleased!
The rooms were classy, clean and bed and pillows were comfortable. The staff could not be more helpful and were always willing to call us a taxi or make reservations for us.

The breakfast for 10 euro was well worth it as was the free computer service near the bar on the 2nd floor. It is always nice to check e- mail and print boarding passes without a charge. The complimentary toiletries, a blow dryer as well as a secure safe were nice additions to the room. The hotel is conveniently located to the metro (1 Block) restaurants as well La Rambla and Plaza Catalunya were all within a five minute walk. Great experience, wonderful hotel.

Experience posted by Suzeeque, May 2011.

Hotel Barcelona Universal: much more than what you pay for

The old adage goes; you get what you pay for.

In all things this is mostly true – however there are a few rare exceptions out there and Hotel Barcelona Universal is one of them.

Hotel Barcelona Universal is one of these rare cases where you get so much more than what you pay for – you get true value for each penny spent. I cannot even begin to list how impressed I was with what this hotel provided. We felt truly cared for; and while this is commonplace at hotels such as the Waldorf in New York, the d’Angleterre in Copenhagen, the Mamonia in Marrakesh it was not what I expected from a fairly cheap hotel picked by more or less chance on a vague recommendation from a friend.

The Hotel is located a few minutes walk from the Rambla. A few minutes walk from the Port Vell and the Rambla del Mar, and a mere second away from the closest subway. A walk to plaze Catalunya takes about 10 mins at a slow pace looking at the shops in the backalleys and is quite a charming experience. The Barcelona Universal gives you the opportunity to experience life in Barcelona by making you take a short walk through a few genuine, “untouristy” blocks before landing you smack down in the middle of the Rambla. Or you could simply hop on the metro outside the hotel and go where ever you like.

Inside the hotel itself we were greeted by the doorman every time we came or went, and the staff were always very helpful no matter what we asked for. The rooms were meticulously clean and tastefully decorated. Minibar, TV with USB (Just bring what you want to watch on a USB stick, plug it in on the back of the TV and use the remote) and bathtub was standard as was WiFi albeit it was a bit shaky and up and down at times.

The breakfast buffet deserves special attention since it was on par with the most exclusive hotels I’ve visited (see above) although somewhat smaller. Several kinds of bread, including rye and darker breads, eggs, bacon, sausages (worth trying, they were excellent) quiches, juices, yoghurts, fruits, croissantes, and more where aplenty. Worth mentioning for those of you with a sweet tooth is that at each buffet were atleast two kinds of cake and several kinds of doughnuts and muffins.

As for other accommodations worth mentioning one cannot forget the rooftop pool and the astroturf garden / sundeck on the top floor together with the small but clean and well stocked gym also on the top floor located next to the pool. The surrounding decked area is stocked with comfortable lounge chairs and as made for bringing your own beer and taking in the panoramic view over the city.

All in all – this hotel gives you the most bang for your buck I’ve ever come across. Friendly and helpful staff, clean and tasteful rooms, freedom to move around and simply enjoy the city and your accommodation to the fullest.

Four stars in the guide – I’d give it Four+ and a half

Enjoy your stay as much as we did!

Experience posted by hanning, May 2011.

The 40th Feria de Abril de Catalunya

The 40th Feria de Abril de Catalunya (Catalan April Seville Fair) takes place at the Fòrum from 29 April to 8 May. On Friday 29, human castles from the Minyons de Terrassa and flamenco with the Cadiz-born singer-songwriter, José Anillo, will open and the traditional lighting will go on at 10pm.

The Feria de Abril, which ends on 8 May, will have 70 stands, distributed over a 105.000 square metre site. This year’s opening hours are as follows: from 6 pm to 4.15 am on 29 April; from 10 am to 2 am on week days and Sunday, 1 May; from 10 am to 4.15 am on Saturdays and Friday 6 May, and from 10 am to 10 pm Sunday 8 May.

TMB recommends visitors use the metro network for travelling to the fair (getting off at El Maresme – Fòrum station on Line 4). On 30 April and 7 May the metro will be operating throughout the night, and at specific times, where necessary, TMB plans to boost its citizen-advice service and line 4 services.
A shuttle-bus service has also been planned, connecting Plaza de Catalunya with the Fòrum.

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