The Grand Hotel Central is a new city-centre design hotel, just yards from Barcelona Cathedral. They've branded it 'grand' on the basis that it will become a Barcelona institution, echoing the days of the old railway station hotels, where dignified tourists from northern Europe would gravitate on their stately way south. The design hotel is certainly in a grand position, very centrally located. Its attraction is its crisp, minimalist modernity and its location on the edge of the Born. For those in search of a hard-edged, cool design hotel in a central location, the Central will fit the bill.

The facilities

Apart from the small reception of Grand Hotel Central, there's a library and meeting room in the front and a quiet, chill-out lounge area at the back. The breakfast room is light and functional. The star attraction of the design hotel is the rooftop infinity pool, often photographed for magazines, with great cityscape views.

The rooms

As the design hotel was a purpose-built conversion, the 147 rooms are of a uniform and decent size. Double-glazed office windows give them a hermetically sealed, box-like feel, accentuated by the boxy beds and square chairs; Nor is there much in the way of fabrics, just black out blinds without curtains. Stripped wooden flooring and brown/beige walls without decoration give The Grand Hotel Central a minimalist feel. Bathrooms at the design hotel are a little more pampering, with designer toiletries