More about Casa Camper
We loved Casa Camper
by TripAdvisor Member gshore
We followed the recommendations on these pages and spent four days in late December 2005 at Casa Camper. A December reviewer from Hertfordshire, UK describes the hotel well. We stayed in one of the rooms with the living room and bedroom separate. Having friends in Barcelona this gave us a place to visit without them being in our bedroom. I find myself describing this hotel more than any other I've stayed in - it's modern, it's quirky - it's great!
The staff was so friendly and helpful - they found a tour to Montserrat that was perfect and all of the restaurant recommendations were a hit. We loved staying at Casa Camper.
A weekend at Camper
by TripAdvisor Member Jardel33
We stayed for three days at Casa Camper, and we enjoyed it a lot.The rooms are very modern and you have a living room separated from the sleeping room, which is very unique and pleasant. The thing we liked most was the concept of a open bar 24-hour, where you can pick up as much healthy food and beverages as you want. The staff was quite nice and friendly. The hotel is placed quite near to the Ramblas, so it is very easy to go anywhere, and at the same time is very quite and calm. Definitly we will return to eat THE DELICIOUS Jamon sanduich again (mnham....)
Another happy camper!
by TripAdvisor Member cpttraveller
Amen to the previous review - What a magical place!
We would not usually stay in this price range hotel, but after reading many rave reviews decided to spoil ourselves for two nights. The hotel surpassed our expectations. Everything was perfect. Rooms. Service. Food. (The snack bar is fantastic for a light lunch or refreshing drink). On New Years Eve the staff even left us a parcel of grapes to eat at midnight, as per the Spanish custom. The only complain that I had is that the climate control was out of order, but being winter, this was not really a problem.
On our final day we were very sad to leave for Banys Orientals, where we stayed for our remaining nights in Barcelona. The Casa Camper deserves a yearly pilgrimage. Enough said.
A bit wacky, but an outstanding hotel!!
by TripAdvisor Member Paul_Crowhurst
I stayed at the Casa Camper Hotel between the 13th and 17th November 2005 with my wife and two children, one six years old and one just seven months old.
Both my wife and I could not recommend this hotel enough and we have not recommended many hotels in which we have stayed. I was trawling the internet to find a suitable hotel in Barcelona to celebrate my wife’s fortieth birthday and had great difficulty in dealing with ‘on-line’ agencies and not being able to speak to the hotel directly. Bookings were made on-line for family rooms and then cancelled by the agent due to non-availability.
I did, however, manage to contact Casa Camper directly through their web site [---] and found immediately that they could not have been more helpful. Although ‘check-in’ is not officially until 1500hrs, I explained that we had a baby daughter who would need feeding and changing etc and that due to flight times from the UK, we would be arriving at about 1200hrs. This, they said was not a problem and they would have our room ready for our arrival, music to my ears! We exchanged several e-mails to confirm the booking direct with the hotel and to clarify a few queries that I had regarding arrangements for the children. Communication was always quickly replied to and nothing was too much trouble.
Getting There - If walking from Plaça de Catalunya (it’s only a five minute walk), the hotel is situated on Carrer D’elisabets, about 200m down a small side street through Carrer Del Bonsuccés off Las Ramlas (it’s the second small turning on the right and is quite close to the Plaça de Catalunya end of La Rambla, look for a big blue hotel parking sign ‘P’ on the right adjacent to a restaurant).
Although more expensive than many alternative hotels in Barcelona, the extra cost is more than compensated for by the helpfulness of the staff and the quality and standard of the accommodation. It is ideally situated close to La Rambla, the main tourist street in Barcelona, but far enough away to be quiet in the evening and at night. It is only a five minute walk to the Plaça de Catalunya, where you can pick up the tourist bus on the Blue and Red routes which will take you all over the city and enable you to get on and off as often as you like. We paid about 52€ for two days for the four of us - highly recommended.
The hotel itself is very modern and stylish with a credit card key entry system for the duration of your stay. The reception (complete with bicycles hanging from the ceiling!) is manned (or womened!) 24 7 and the staff are more than willing to help with suggestions for day trips or restaurants etc.
Your stay will be on a bed and breakfast basis. The rooms have no tea or coffee facilities, however, the hotel does have cold snacks or ‘Tentempie’available from 1200hrs to 0700hrs (‘til breakfast time) which consists of various ‘healthy’ options such as cuscus or asparagus and cream cheese sandwiches and a number of deserts in plastic containers. These are replenished throughout the day. The portions are very small so don’t get too excited, but are enough to keep you going. Soft drinks are freely available as is tea, coffee and mineral water. Breakfast consists of traditional continental options plus omelettes of your choice cooked to order.
We opted to stay in one the suites on the recommendation of others from this web site. The choice was well worth while, especially with the children. Although not palatial, the living area is more than adequate for the short time that one spends there. The hammock in the lounge was a hit with our six year old son! It was very nice having a 42” plasma TV, but unless you can speak Spanish, there is only so much BBC World Service that one can take. I did hear that the hotel were going to make DVD players available, which would have been excellent for keeping the children amused.
The bedroom consists of a very large and stylish bed, plenty of storage space, an excellent radio and a safe to protect those valuables. We also had a brand new travel cot for the baby. Both lounge area and bedroom have individually controllable air conditioning units.
The bathroom is very spacious and fitted with very high quality fittings and the biggest shower-head you ever seen in your life, about the size of a dinner plate! Excellent for waking you up in the morning. The bathroom window looks out on to the famous vertical garden consisting of 117 Aspidistra plants, a bit wacky but it works. The rooms have excellent sound-proofing; we heard nothing from adjacent rooms.
On level 6, there is a terrace with tables and chairs complete with views over the local area. Although not immediately appealing due to the run-down look of most of the buildings, it does tend to grow on you, especially in the sunshine.
All in all, we had a great time which was made more special by the staff at Casa Camper. If you can afford that little bit extra and you have children, book one of the suites, it’s well worth it.
To know that where you are going you are going to stay and especially with small children is of such a high quality and standard of cleanliness is priceless and we would not hesitate in recommending this hotel to both couples and families alike.
Well Done Casa Camper, now my favourite hotel in Barcelona!
Superb!
by TripAdvisor Member EuroJustin
My wife and I recently stayed at Casa Camper to celebrate our second wedding anniversary (Nov 05). We immediately feel in love with it. It’s just a short walk from the top end of La Rambla, via a cute pedestrian lane. The hotel itself is in an unassuming building you would hardly notice from the outside. The staff were extremely friendly, spoke excellent English, and went out of their way to make us feel comfortable. The tentempie was one of favourite parts of the hotel. It is open 24hrs, and is stocked with great quality food. Yum sandwiches and salads during the day and evening, and a choice of eggs dishes for breakfast. The room was well appointed with a massive king size bed. We had a standard Camper room, which had the separate lounge area. It was a nice touch, but we did feel that we had to remember to use it, or otherwise we would tend to relax on either the terrace or in our room. However, lying in the hammock with a drink was a nice way to pass an hour before we went out in the evening. Flat screen televisions in both rooms, with DVD players and internet access in the rooms to be added with in the month (so we were told). I could go on forever about the great things like the showers with three different shower heads, the vertical garden or the fantastic fittings and furniture… I finish by saying that it is in a great location, has fantastic staff, and is a beautiful thoughtfully designed hotel that was a pleasure to stay at. Would definitely recommend it to others.
Perfect location, fun stay
by A TripAdvisor Member
The hotel is in a perfect location - a minute's walk from La Ramblas (the main street) and Placa De Catalunya (the main square) but tucked away in a side street away from noise.
The hotel staff are very friendly; on our first day the daytime receptionist gave us a map which was invaluable to us during our stay and recommended places to eat and suggested areas to visit which was really helpful.
We decided to opt for a suite rather than the standard room. The standard rooms have a bedroom and bathroom on one side of the corridor and another room comprising lounge with sofa bed, hammock, table and on the other side of the corridor. A weird concept. We didn't fancy the idea of crossing the corridor to get to our lounge, and probably wouldn't have used it so booked a suite which was all-in-one. The suite comprised a bathroom at one end with a rainfall shower (bliss) and a handheld shower attachment both inside the bath. Fixtures are modern (chrome by Brabantia) and decor relaxing; walls are blood-red, floors are charcoal slate and furnishings are stark white or red.
From the bathroom you enter the bedroom, with a king-sized bed in the suite. There are sliding wooden doors between the bathroom and lounge which when closed you feel 'cocooned' in the windowless bedroom - all sense of time evaporates; there is no clock in the bedroom so it would be wise to take an alarm clock! There is a safe and digital radio in the bedroom - I'm not sure if this is unique to the suite or provided in standard rooms too.
The lounge consists of a hammock (which I loved having an afternoon doze in!), flat-screen TV on which you can receive BBC World and CNN, double-sofa bed and table and chairs. There is air-conditioning and heating, however it seems to default to a particular temperature after a period of time, although is quick to warm up again.
The lobby area houses a canteen area - the hotel says it doesn't believe in mini-bars so provides a self-service area where sandwiches, pastries, drinks, fruit, salads are provided free of charge to guests, which on first thought seems hugely generous...however on reflection the hotel is probably saving a fortune by not having to fund a hotel restaurant and staff. However it's a pleasant and quirky addition to the hotel...the food is basic and isn't anything to write home about, but serves well as fuel.
There is a 'restaurant' next door owned by Camper called FoodBall. This is just odd. The seating is reminiscent of stadium bleachers and your chair is a wicker mat, and your food compressed into a ball. Hence the name. The 'restaurant' is a room covered with posters and graffiti. So unless you're anything but an ageing hippy or staunch eco-warrior type, I would suggest this is not the type of place you would want to spend your Saturday night in! However, we didn't try it and the 'ball' could well rise above it's surroundings.
For women with long hair, I would suggest bringing your own hairdryer...there is one in the bathroom although it is so weak it would take hours to dry anything....although I must say this is not unique to Casa Camper and is the case in most hotels I've stayed in. The light in the bathroom is stark and unforgiving and with mirrors on both wals you get a 360 degree view of yourself which can be a shock!
We decided the take the Metro to Sagradda Famille and it was really easy to use - the ticket machines display Engish instructions and a single journey cost 1.15 Euros.
We found a few great restaurants while we were there and can recommend the following:
For a basic, low-cost Spanish meal - try the restaurant on the right hand side of the road if you are walking from the hotel to La Ramblas - it has ham hanging in the window. I am veggie but the carnivores told me the meat was fab...for 4 of us the entire bill came to 39 Euros which included wine.
El Pintor - tucked away off Place St. Jaume in the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarter) - perfect for a romantic meal...expect a good meal, but not a cheap one. The best we ate at. My carnivore boyfriend was in heaven with the cured ham.
Cerveceria Catalana - Tapas place on Calle de Mallorca - the hotel receptionist recommended this to us...it is always hugely busy...a real mad house but frequented by locals and the Tapas is fantastic.
Overall, we would highly recommend Casa Camper to anyone wanting to experience a quirky and fun stay and if we were to go back to Barcelona would not hesitate in staying there again. It is not in the same league as the luxury hotels of Barcelona - do not expect sweeping staircases and chandeliers - it is a different concept to those hotels. The hotel's main benefit is probably its location - it is perfect.
Top pick
by TripAdvisor Member ErwinFromBelgium
Plus:
- great location
- unique amenities (like the on-going free mini bar)
- super friendly staff
- smart interior design
- overall philosophy (ecology etc.)
Minus:
- sound isolation is lacking
Conclusion:
- ideal hotel for a week-end in Barcelona
Cool hotel, shame about the noise!
by TripAdvisor Member JMcB2
We too had read the excellent reviews about this hotel and had a really good 3 day stay in October. Great breakfasts, excellent location, friendly staff, cool concept of having free cafeteria for snacks and drinks. The hotel reminded me of being in Ikea:modern, clean, bright, D.I.Y. but definitely not for the chintz-lovers.
My main gripes with the hotel were the painstaking half an hour check in process plus the lack of sound-proofing, which meant noise levels were a bit excessive. (As floors are stone-covered, you can hear the person in the room above you walking around, having a shower, etc. and the noisy water recycling system they use.)
Forum Posts
Restaurant Advice???
by MartyAP
Have not read that many recent restaurant reviews. Any advice on restaurants that
are not "tourist traps?" Possibly in the Gothic quarter or in El Born. More
interested in moderate priced restaurants.
Thanks,
Karen
RE: Restaurant Advice???
by arlequin_g
Hi there,
Here you can see some of my favourite restarurants in my city:
http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3d75c/430de/2/
Among them I do recommend "La Rita" wich is good and not expensive.
If you need more information don't hesitate to ask.
Greetings from Barcelona
Jose
RE: RE: Restaurant Advice???
by MartyAP
Thanks Jose,
La Rita sounds great....will give it a try.
Many thanks,
Marty
RE: RE: Restaurant Advice???
by Jetgirly
What's your idea of "moderate"?
I would highly recommend Organic for lunch (I say lunch because the same meal costs twice as much at dinner). Check my tips.
Gran Cafe (again, see my tips) is fairly well-known for "moderately-fine" dining and not too expensive. Unfortunately I went there for a light dinner (on the recommendation of my hotel) and it would have been better for a big meal.
RE: RE: Restaurant Advice???
by Belsaita
Even not in Gotic or Born, I always reccomend "taverna can margarit" for its athmosphere and its great food at wine at cheap prices. You have more of my favoutites at my tips of course :-)
Using the VT travel guides, did you tried to order by "most recent" tips to get the recent reviews?
RE: RE: Restaurant Advice???
by georgiagirl2006
Hi
We are here - staying a Casa Camper - was searching for a restaurant and saw your name
thanks for all your help so far
fyi - the hotel is awesome
RE: RE: Restaurant Advice???
by Jetgirly
Well if you're staying at Casa Camper you can eat at Foodball every day! Mmmmmm!
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