Hospes Palacio Del Bailio

The Palacio del Baílio is the Córdoba branch of the Hospes franchise, and while the word “Palacio” may put some of us in mind of an old-fashioned grand hotel — like the seaside palaces of Cannes, for example — this is a palace of an entirely different kind. More a mansion than a hotel, it’s equal parts hacienda and Moorish manor, with some rooms opening onto ancillary patios, and others in the main building ringing the main courtyard, with its majestic old palms and pleasantly cool outdoor swimming pool.

Plenty of the original structure remains, from many different eras — some rooms feature century-old frescoes or ancient stone arches behind their antique doors. The main building’s atrium looks down through a glass floor into the ruins of a Roman-era villa, which can’t help but lend an extra air of historical authenticity to the Roman baths in the underground spa.

It’s no museum, though — this backdrop of antiquity just serves as a contrast to the crisp contemporary interiors, the sort of thing that’s made the Hospes name one to remember. They’re spare but not minimal, luxurious but not ostentatious, big-city downtown boutique style transported to an Andalusian country town, with cool stone surfaces and as much darkness as you can take — in southern Spain sunlight is plentiful, and shade is precious.

The Palacio is a self-contained oasis, if you want it to be; the spa, as well as a pool set beneath the shade of citrus- and palm trees, invite leisurely afternoons, and there’s a modern-Spanish restaurant on-site. And if you fancy a walk, Córdoba has plenty to recommend it — you’re in the heart of the charming old town, and a fifteen-minute walk from its most famous attraction, the millenium-old mosque-turned-cathedral with its distinctive forest of arches.