Upper Passeig de Gràcia / Gràcia

Hotel Casa Fuster

★★★★★

Hotel Casa Fuster is the rare chance to stay inside a work by one of the masters of Catalan modernisme. The building, at Passeig de Gràcia 132 where the grand boulevard meets the old village of Gràcia, was designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner — the architect of the Palau de la Música Catalana and the Sant Pau hospital — for Mariano Fuster and completed in 1911. It was one of his last works and one of the most expensive houses of its day, with a gleaming white marble façade, slender columns and a rounded corner tower that crowns the top of the avenue. After decades of mixed use, it was restored and opened as a luxury boutique hotel in 2004, and it is a member of The Leading Hotels of the World. There are 75 rooms, including 21 suites, many with modernista details, high ceilings and views over Passeig de Gràcia or the rooftops toward Tibidabo; the corner suites in the tower are the most romantic. On the ground floor, the Café Vienès, the building's historic café with columns, mirrors and period glamour, is one of the most atmospheric rooms in the city and hosts jazz on a weekly evening, a Barcelona institution. Up top, the terrace with its pool and bar looks across the city to the Sagrada Família and the sea, and is one of the loveliest places in Barcelona for a sunset drink. The location is a quietly brilliant compromise: you are at the top of Passeig de Gràcia, a straight walk down the boulevard to La Pedrera and Casa Batlló, while the squares, independent shops and neighbourhood restaurants of Gràcia are just behind the hotel, and Park Güell is within reach on foot or by a short ride.

Who it suits: architecture lovers, couples and travellers who want character and history rather than a big international brand. Gràcia, the hotel's neighbour, is one of the most enjoyable districts in the city — a former independent town of small squares (Plaça del Sol, Plaça de la Vila, Plaça de la Virreina), bohemian bars, vintage shops and family-run restaurants — and it gives you an authentic local evening without needing a taxi. In mid-August, Gràcia's Festa Major turns its streets into a competition of handmade decorations, a joyous, crowded week to plan around one way or the other.

Living in it: ask for a room with modernista features or a view down Passeig de Gràcia, or splurge on a tower suite. The rooftop pool is seasonal and small — a place to cool off and watch the sunset rather than swim lengths. Book a table for the jazz night at the Café Vienès if your dates allow; it is a beloved local ritual. The Diagonal and Fontana metro stations are close, and the airport is around half an hour by car.

Value: rates sit in the upper-middle to luxury range, generally below the big five-star brands on the lower part of the avenue, and the tourist tax applies on top. The value case is atmosphere: you sleep in a listed modernista building, drink on one of the city's best rooftops, and have both the boulevard and a real neighbourhood on your doorstep. It is an inspired choice for a second trip to Barcelona, or a first one where architecture is the point.