H10 Madison

Barcelona has been one of the world’s great boutique-hotel cities for as long as such a thing has been possible, thanks in part to an appetite for contemporary design alongside uniquely characterful heritage architecture, as well as an urban environment that’s richly varied and eminently walkable. All of which are attributes to which the H10 Madison, in the city’s ever-atmospheric Gothic Quarter, can lay claim as well.

A restored century-old residential building provides the hotel’s raw material, and what’s inside is a celebration of Barcelona’s architecture and design both old and new; the public spaces, with their focused gem-toned accents, are lively and elegant, while the rooms take a slightly more sedate direction — still stylish, but tending towards neutral tones and warm, organic surfaces.

The Avenue Restaurant & Cocktail Bar is a self-explanatory space on the ground floor; up on the rooftop is the seasonal Terrassa del Gòtic, serving cocktails and tapas with a panoramic view of the city, alongside a heated plunge pools and a selection of sun loungers. No end of restaurants and bars lie within a walkable radius of the hotel’s door, not to mention the 13th-century cathedral and the city’s Picasso museum.