Mr & Mrs Smith

Alma Barcelona

Barcelona, Spain

Elegant Alma Barcelona boutique hotel in the upscale Eixample district is a stylish little number, wrapping its minimally chic interior within a fab Forties building. Design fans will go ga-ga for the pared down but poised assets of this Barcelona beauty, from its sculptural staircase to its sexy rooftop bar with Gaudi-glam views.

Need to know

• Rooms 72, including two suites.
• Rates Double rooms from $303.40 (€236), excluding tax at 10 per cent. Please note the hotel charges an additional local city tax of €2.48 per person per night on check-out.
  The price shown represents the lowest nightly rate for a double room available at this hotel over the next 21 days. Any price conversions from the hotel's local currency (€236) have been conducted using today's exchange rates from xe.com.
• More details Breakfast is extra, at €25 a person.
• Facilities Lounge, gardens, free WiFi. In rooms: Loewe flatscreen TV, red Punkt phones, free minibar, Bulgari toiletries. Executive Suites offer iPod docks.
• Check-out 2pm, but flexible subject to availability. Until 3pm, a charge of 50 per cent of the room rate applies; after 3pm, you'll be charged for an extra night. Check-in, 12pm.
• Children Welcome, but Alma is more of a sophisticated adult retreat. Baby cots can be provided for free and extra beds for kids are available in Executive Suites only, for €60 a night. Babysitting with a local nanny can be arranged, and there's a children's menu. More...
• Also Smoking is allowed in outdoor areas only.

Food and drink at Alma Barcelona

• Hotel restaurant

  Helmed by chef Sergio Humada, relaxed Alma restaurant dishes up delectable mod-Med food, which you can munch indoors or out in the swish garden. We can recommend the salmon tartare, Dover sole à la meunière and the chocolant fondant, all of which arrived looking dreamily decorative – or if you fancy something local, order the burnt butter spaghettini with Catalan butifarra (black sausage) and egg. Don't leave without trying the heavenly home-made limoncello. Beautiful blooms throughout are picked by the hotel's green-fingered gardener.

• Dress code Stylish yet subtle threads will sit well with Alma's low-key allure. If you're hitting the bar, a cocktail dress won't go amiss, but bring a cardy for alfresco evenings.
• Top table Snaffle one outside on the terrace or in the garden to make the most of the Spanish sun. Tables are scattered around, so choose your own seductive spot amid the foliage.
• Last orders This is Barcelona, remember, city of night owls, so dinner is served until 11pm, and the house bar keeps pouring until 1am.
• Room service 24-hour room service is yours to command, with à la carte offerings available from the restaurant menu.
• Hotel bar

  Adjoining the open-plan restaurant, Alma's bar offers cracking cocktails, including a moreish kiwi Bellini, with a bespoke soundtrack of chill-out and acoustic tunes. There are plenty of pews for two, or grab a stool at the bar itself to watch your drink being shaken and stirred.

Alma Barcelona Mallorca, 271, Barcelona, 08008