Cotton House
Barcelona, Spain
Renowned designer Lázaro Rosa-Violán has worked his theatrical, baroque magic on this neoclassical, 19th-century building, once home to the cotton-makers’ guild. Artfully desilvered floor-to-ceiling mirrors reflect vast sprays of cotton bolls and white sofas, and a majestic 1950s suspended spiral staircase rises from the vestibule. In a year, the Cotton House has set a new benchmark for hotel design and immaculate service. In L’Atelier, a salon lined with bolts of cotton, guests can choose from swatches of super-soft fabric and ask that a tailor measure them up for a shirt. Next door, in the coffered, frescoed library, they can pull up a turquoise armchair by the fire and request a cocktail from a discreet navy-clad waitress. The Batuar restaurant does not disappoint, either, with Catalan-inspired dishes given creative pizzazz and served, in summer, on a colonial-styled terrace shaded by date palms and parasols. Upstairs, a plunge pool and daybeds offer an oasis from which to admire the spires of the Sagrada Família. Double rooms from £175.
