Mixed feelings about this hotel. The building itself is charming. Tastefully restored without overdoing it. But, the "let-down" feeling was in the details. Big rooms (with no view, on the patio-side) with only one chair. The bathroom, nice and big, but clumsily done. (To turn the shower on, you have to reach underneath it and get wet with cold water at the beginning) The staff at the reception was friendly. It was very quiet when we were there, but there was only the absolute minimum of staff working. Beds were good, pillows awfull. The lighting in the rooms was poor. To read a book, you had to force and tilt a bedlamp which just shed enough light to read. The room in itself was darkly lit. Breakfast was adequate. The breakfastroom -which doubles as the diningroom- was moved to a new location. This new restaurent was very bare too. So bare, that there was no warm feeling whatsoever. this made us go to eat outside the hotel for both nights, eventhough we heard that the food was supposed to be excellent. Just the atmosphere put us off. All in all we think the hotel needs some more eye to detail and this can be a lovely place to stay...

very well-kept and renovated where needed but preserving authenticity and charme. atmosphere is the hotel´s big atout.
big bed with good mattress, spotless bathroom. the common rooms are very spacious and impressing, especially the stilish bar. it seems to be a member of a little "chain", the other is the casas de la juderia in seville.
nice and friendly people there, good standard.
the restaurant was decorated in a way going very well with the building and served delicious food, maybe best in town. highly recommended!

This was a gorgeous little haven in the sleepy town of Palma del Río, Spain. The walls of the monastery are whitewashed and beautiful. Everything was as clean as it could be. The restaurant served the best Bacalao al Pil-Pil I have ever tried. It was spicy and flavorful, but not overpowered by oiliness. It was delicious! The salads were all fantastic, and my companion could barely speak because she was so floored by their fabulous gazpacho. It was wonderful.

The hotel was originally a monastery which hosted many priests on their way to the New World, such as Junipero Serra, founder of the California missions. It's in Palma del Rio, a provincial town of 20,000 on a secondary road about 50 kilometers from Cordoba. This makes a nice off-the-beaten-path trip between Seville and Cordoba. It's a functioning small town where you can escape the tourist hordes, unlike some cities where monuments and tourists are in one area while residents are in another. Agriculture is king here, making for a pleasing drive through cotton fields, orange groves and olive orchards.
Further toward Cordoba on this road there's a restored castle on an outcropping -- a dramatic sight for that photo to impress friends back home.

About the hotel: Not grand luxury, but simple and atmospheric and good price-quality. The rate is the same (a little over 100 euros, inc.
breakfast) but size and quality vary. No. 20 is one of the best and has frescoes on the vaulted ceiling and a small balcony. The room's enormous by European standards. (They've kept the bones of the monastery, but rooms are new.) Quite evocative to stroll through the inner courtyards, hearing the bells from the church next door, on your way to the refectory. This features regional dishes and vegetables grown in the hotel's large garden, which surrounds a pool.