My husband, Max Loong, has been recently working overseas during my pregnancy, and since he was going to be away for about 3 months, we decided I would join him for 3 weeks and make it our 3rd babymoon (1st – Palm Springs & the 2nd – Cabo, Mexico!) =)

I met him at our first stop on the babymoon tour, which was Barcelona, Spain, as he was already there hosting for F1 testing. We only had 1 day/2 nights to spend in this city so wanted to make the most of it. I have visited Barcelona before, when I was studying abroad during law school in Madrid, Spain (my favorite city), but it has been about 14 years since I’ve been back so was very excited to venture out and get myself familiarized with the city of passion again.

Once I landed, my husband met me at the airport and we went straight to our hotel, Hotel Arts Barcelona! I don’t even know where to begin with this remarkable hotel. It was everything we could have asked for and more.

{ THE HOTEL }

<Exceptional Standard> Hotel Arts Barcelona is all about service. One thing that is very important to us and our experiences wherever we may be in the world is the service that we receive. Being a couple that travels to some of the most luxurious hotel and resorts around the world, I must say that the service here was impeccable. I would give it 5 stars just for service alone. Anything you may need or want can be requested and easily accommodated. This peace of mind and ease by which you can obtain help by the concierge and front desk makes travel experience that much better.

<Prime Location> Hotel Arts Barcelona is a seafront hotel that overlooks the Mediterranean. It is just next to some of the more famous beaches, promenades, bars, cafes and local restaurants. You can walk to the city’s historical center and it didn’t take us more than 20 minutes to get here from the Barcelona airport.

<Beautiful Architecture> The hotel was initially built for the Olympic Games in 1993, and as a result is considered a landmark. It is also worth noting that the hotel is a Ritz Carlton managed property. It has 44 stories of blue glass and exposed steel. The hotel overlooks the seafront from high above, and if you can spend a bit extra, the Penthouse Suite gives you the most remarkable of ocean and marina views! This hotel sets the standard for elegance and luxury.

{ ROOMS & SUITES }

Hotel Arts Barcelona caters to 483 luxury rooms, suites and Penthouses. Their room categories are as follows, which you can click on to get more information:

The Penthouses: I will elaborate more on the Penthouse Suite, which Max & I stayed in during our time in Barcelona. To say luxury is an understatement, as we walked into this Penthouse Suite. We were on the 36th floor of the building with panoramic views of the sea, marina and city. It was evident that service is of primary important to their guests, particularly if you are staying in a Penthouse Suite, as you are designated your own butler. My favorite part was the two separate sinks facing opposite one another! My husband and I always bicker over the sink space and who goes first, but to have two sinks that were on opposite sides of the room was just fantastic. I will let the video speak for itself, below.

Signature Suites

Executive Suites

Deluxe Rooms

{SPA}

Hotel Arts Barcelona also has their own spa called, 43 The Spa, which is located on their top floor – you guessed it, floor 43! We were able to experience this spa after our second day in the city as we went up there to unwind and relax. The spa offers open air terraces if you feel like sitting outside and reading a book, or you can simply go into their relaxation room, which has panoramic views, snacks and drinks! The spa also has hydrotherapy pools, saunas and steam baths. My husband took advantage of the steam room, and since I’m pregnant, I put my legs into the wonderful jacuzzi and laid down on one of the bed areas as I read a book and relaxed from the exhausting day of sightseeing we had.

Although we did not experience any of their treatments or massages during our stay, they do provide beauty treatments and massages if you so choose!

{DINING}

The hotel has a 2 star Michelin restaurant, Enoteca Paco Perez. Unfortunately, that particular restaurant was closed during our time there due to renovations, however we did get to experience their
Mediterranean tapas restaurant, Arola. This
restaurant is run by chef Sergi Arola and takes traditional Spanish cuisine and makes it innovative with a flare. The cocktails are definitely worth noting. Talk about mixologist! Not only is the presentation of these cocktails unlike anything I’ve seen before, but everything we had to drink tasted so good! My husband’s had alcohol in it (and mine were mocktail versions), but even the mocktails (which I find at other places to be bland or nothing special), were amazing.

{SERVICE}

From the moment we checked-in, up until the moment we checked-out, Hotel Arts Barcelona staff, butlers and front desk were incredibly attentive to our needs. My husband’s birthday had just passed, and I was not able to spend the actual day with them. I had asked the hotel to help me organize a little surprise upon our arrival to the hotel, which they did. We arrived to a special note typed by me to him, balloons on the couch, a “Happy Birthday” garland and a gift from the hotel in the form of the most adorable onesie for our soon to come son that said “My future racer” on it! Additionally, at dinner, they surprised him with a chocolate cake that looked like a race car (my husband is a host for Fox Sports Asia Formula 1) as well as both our pictures printed on some form of edible sweet (that was also in an edible frame).

{INFO}

Booking: www.HotelArtsBarcelona.com

Address: Marina 19–21
08005 Barcelona, Spain

Hotel Classification: 5-Star

{EXPERIENCES IN BARCELONA}

Since we really only had one full day to experience the city, I will break down not only what we chose to do, but perhaps some highlights we did not get to that we were told were must see attractions and/or places to visit.

Max and I generally love to get the feel of a city when we arrive somewhere. We do this by doing a lot of walking around the local streets, neighborhoods and alleys. We find that you not only come across some hidden gems, local restaurants and cafes that we choose to experience

<Gothic Quarters> Primarily built in the late 19th and early 20th century, this the the center of the old
city of Barcelona. It is called the Gothic Quarter because it used to be the Roman village and there is still some remnants of it’s past. There are many small streets that open out onto squares where you can relax and enjoy your surroundings. The main attraction I would say is the Cathedral at the heart of the district. There is ample restaurants and bars in this area, as well as shopping

<Gothic Cathedral of Santa Eulalia> This 13th century cathedral cannot be missed. It stands on the highest point in the Gothic Quarter. The exterior was renovated in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The exterior is opulent with arched doorways, spires and buttresses. The interior will leave you breathtaking. You can also view ancient tombs in the crypt inside the cathedral.

<Mercat de Sant Josep de la Boqueria> This is one of the most famous food markets and is a must see when in Barcelona! It is filled with beautiful colors, people walking around everywhere and sensory overload. You will find some of the best meat, vegetables, fish and fruits. There are a slew of stalls, different types of food, snacks and fun offerings to take advantage of while there.

<Tens Tapas> It’s the new gastronomic restaurant by chef Jordi Cruz, who has a 2 Michelin starred restaurant for one of his other venues called ABaC. We were recommended this place by a chef friend of ours, and surprisingly have to honestly say we were not that impressed by the food. Some of the preparation was very interesting, and the first dish that we got was a pina colada inspired concoction that was made with some form of nitrogen it seemed. The process of making it in front of us was great and it was very tasty, but many of the other dishes, although good, weren’t very outstanding to us. This was a bit of a disappointment after hearing how difficult getting a reservation is here as well as knowing the chef is a Michelin rated one! The ambience was also a bit more casual than we expected or wanted. We generally like to find a romantic, dimly lit, preferably with view, gem or a trendy/popular restaurant with good vibe and energy. Of course the food is paramount, so regardless of the aesthetic of the restaurant we always can be won over by the quality of food. Perhaps it was just that night, but it wouldn’t be one that I would personally recommend, however I can only presume that his Michelin rated restaurant ABaC is one that might be worth trying.

{OVERALL}

I enjoyed Barcelona greatly, although have to say that Madrid is still my preferred city. All that being said, it’s always difficult to get a good feel of a city in a weekend, however, we were able to do quite a bit given our short timeframe while there. Of course, the best experience for us was the hotel itself, so if someone were to ask me about the best luxurious hotel to stay during their time in Barcelona, I would not hesitate to recommend Hotel Arts Barcelona in a heartbeat!

Now off to Lisbon, Portugal we go! (Suitcase: Jett Black)