Mr & Mrs Smith

What a wonderful hotel. Eight of us travelled to Barcelona and the booking was exactly as we had agreed. We had our four twin bedrooms, all of which were lovely. The hotel is in the most central part of Barcelona and on opening the curtains on our first morning, looked out onto the most wonderful Cathedral. Breakfast we found around the corner in a French looking Bistro, 4 Euros for tea, a bacon roll and orange juice. The fruit market on the other corner is a must, why can we not have fruit like it? We ate in the hotel restaurant on our first night. It was as good, if not better than others around. The French Bistro is also super for dinner but don't eat in the Fruit Market at night, the staff are terrible. Pick up the red open top bus and buy the two-day ticket for 30 euros. Get off at Gaudi Cathedral and take the time to go in the queue (moves much quicker than it looks). Montserrat is another super day out, especially if you can fit in the trip that takes you to Sitges as well Catalonia. Tours were excellent. As for the Roof Top Bar, well just go. An experience. The calmness. And that infinity pool - not the biggest pool in the world but certainly one with the best view. A trip of a life time, and would recommend the hotel, a wonderful find by Mr & Mrs Smith.

We have a couple of recommendations for restaurants in the vicinity of Grand Hotel Central. The first, and definitely best, restaurant we found is Pla, which is a short walk from the hotel in the barri Gotic at CBellafila 5. The staff are very friendly and serve delicious innovative food and there is a great winelist. A hidden gem bathed in candlelight that is worth a visit. Very reasonably priced, too. Ask for a table on the balcony for a more romantic occasion and booking is definitely needed, even on a Sunday. There are a few good pinxtos bars down Cde l'Argenteria, including Sagardi but we also had a non-tapas-based lunch outside at CheeseMe, a lovely little restaurant which was surprisingly tasty despite the name, and very good value. There are great wine bars around this area to sit and watch the world go by opposite the Santa Maria cathedral until 2–3am. Our only other recommendation would be not to eat down by the harbour as the restaurants are very over-priced. Le Boqueria remains the highlight for foodies, we ate at a couple of the cafes inside the market which served good, fresh and thankfully not overpriced tapas. Look for the cafe bars crammed with locals, rather than those with tourists though.

If going for a picnic in Parc Guell there a few great places to get stuff very near the hotel. Formatgeria la Seu (www.formatgerialaseu.com) is an excellent cheese shop on Carrer de la Dagueria. For jamon, the best place to go is Mercat de Santa Caterina, just a couple of streets behind the Grand Central. Los Caracoles (www.loscaracoles.es) at C/D'Escudellers is a great restaurant, where you walk through the kitchen to get to the tables. There is also a tiny wine bar next to the cheese shop on Carrer Dagueria (about 12 people max!), which shouldn't be missed.

Commerc 24 is probably the best restaurant experience we have had - they received first Michelin Star last year - get there quick before they get their 2nd and prices rise. The smaller tasting menu was genuinely epic and rivalled any Ramsay fayre. Top Tip -sit at the bar for great atmosphere and service as the staff are amongst the most engaging and cheerful we have encountered.

Cal Pep - advise people not to ask for a menu and to go with the flow for great seafood tapas - the people on the next table were much more up-tight and insisted on menu's and tried to order non regional delicacies - their experience and food looked a different ball park to ours! Also - gets incredibly busy - would recommend for lunch when exploting Born and to arrive at opening time - otherwise a minimum 45 min wait is the norm

Torre d'Alto - restaurant in cable car tower - has amazing views and good, if expensive cuisine - think Rhodes 24.

Good value tapas favourites at Taller de Tapas in Born - 5 mins from Grands Central - has good outside seating and reasonably priced - gets quite busy as in great spot and is well reviewed in the press

Shopping - must go to La Manual Alpargatera - one of the oldest shoe shops in town and have been making espadrills since the 40s - lots of colours and styles available

Great hotel in a really central location in the Old Town. The pool area gets quite crowded on a sunny day but was appreciated nevertheless. Our only gripe was the lifts which were permanently being repaired!

We found an amazing tapas bar in a lovely square behind the hotel near Mercat Santa Catarina called Cafe Alsur - felt much less touristy and food was delicious. We also liked Cafe des Academie in Barri Gotic. Worth going to see is Casa Batlo which is a short cab ride/walk away.

The recommendation by the lobby staff to visit the Cervesseria de Cataluna was inspired, the tapas there was possibly the greatest ive ever had in my life.

Found a fabulous tapas bar within walking distance of the Grand Hotel Central - a MUST try for local flavour! Friendly wait staff, authentic tapas (with a twist...think seared tuna bites with a wasabi foam!)and inexpensive (c. 60 EUR for TWO bottles of wine and tapas for 2!!) My husband and I are pretty picky and hate dining at the typical tourist joint. This place did not disappoint on local flair and authenticity!
El Rovell del Born

We can highly recommend CDLC by the beach, great oriental / indian / fancy food, in a buddha bar atmosphere, as good for lunch as for dinner. On sunny days, the outside bit is very welcome indeed.
Next to CDLC, you can find Opium, which is a late night bar / night club (not for kids) with a relaxed atmosphere.
Near the Grand Hotel, there was also a tapas bar called Xampanyet in C/ Montcada, 22. Be there before opening time (circa 7pm) as it fills up very quickly, and I recommend standing at the bar/counter for a great experience.

The Grand Hotel Central is cool and in an excellent spot on Via Laietana, you literally walk out of the door and in to the thick of Barcelona life. Las Ramblas is a few steps away and Port Olimpic is a short cab ride away and has some great clubs - Shoko and Catwalk - and some fabulous restaurants including Opium. We were out until 5am each night and wandering around each day. Highly recommended.

The location of this hotel could not be better, we had a view of the vibrant Plaza Santa Ana from our room and everything was right on the doorstep.

Midnight Rose restaurant is situated inside the hotel and we had a fabulous meal there. This was followed up by cocktails in the very fashionable rooftop bar with the most incredible view over Madrid.

Great hotel, so close to everything and central. Fabulous breakfast and rooftop pool (although it can be busy at times). It's also close my favourite restaurants: Cuines De Santa Caterina (+34 (93) 268 99 18) in the Caterina Market and Set Portes at Passeig de Isabel (+34 (93) 319 29 50).

If you are visiting Barcelona, no doubt you will end up at some point at the Boqueria market. While you are there, don't miss a trip to the counter at  for breakfast or lunch. Have a glass of wine or cava and any of the fresh tapas, but you absolutely have to try the garbanzo beans. I never got the name of the dish, so I always asked for 'lo del garbanzo.' In a city full of amazing food, this was our favorite dish, which we returned specifically for the next day. And Juanito, always bow-tied and twinkly, is delightful to be around.

Just round the corner from the hotel is the fantastic Mercat Santa Caterina, a food lover's paradise in a fantastic building. But better still is the restaurant, Santa Caterina Cuines. It takes its produce direct from the market. It feels buzzy and exciting and the food was great. Better still, because people were coming and going all the time we never had long to wait for a seat.

Check out 7 Portes (14 Passeig d'Isabel ll, Barcelona, 08003)
It has a traditional Catalan feel, is steeped in history and the food is delicious! It's popular so reserve a table!

People watching from any of the bars in Placa Reial is a great way to soak up the city.

Plus, no trip to Barcelona is complete without a visit to Park Guell, it's absolutely beautiful!

I was over in Barcelona for the marathon and, after having a great race with a big personal best, a few cavas were in order. In the Mercat de la Boqueria, there's a tapas bar called El Quim (no sniggering please). If you can wriggle your way to a seat, you'll find superb tapas, and a constantly topped-up glass. Of course, that may have something to do with wearing a medal round your neck...

Brilliant seaside dining at Kaiku (+34 93 221 90 82) in La Barceloneta,  just a 10-minute walk from the Grand Hotel Central down to the seaside. The atmosphere is laid-back (including paper tablecloths), but the food is fresh and beautifully prepared. We shared plates, so that we could taste more of the menu and had a beautiful green salad sprinkled with shaved fois gras and a lovely fruity reduction dressing, the most tender calamari, tuna carpaccio...etc. Everything was delicious, and though the menu is in Catalan, the service was friendly, and happy to help with difficult decisions. Reservations are a good idea, especially if you hope to have lunch outside with a view of the beach.