I had mixed feelings about this hotel. We arrived in the afternoon to a polite but unsmiling greeting from the woman and man at the front desk. They did not seem to want to catch our eye, nor make us feel welcome. I was surprised because usually I get on fine with hotel staff, after all it is not hard to do so because it is part of their training to be friendly and pleasant.
Anyway I didn't really mind but then the woman showed us to our room which was up 2 floors, and did not offer to help with luggage. I had to carry 2 bags, my partner had to carry one. up 4 flights of stairs. I did not feel like asking a young woman to help with my luggage. My partner saw I was burdened and loudly asked if I was OK carrying 2 bags. The receptionist took no notice.
Perhaps the receptionist is not able to carry luggage, and if that is the case, we felt the man should be told to escort guests upstairs and take their luggage, if the woman couldn't be expected to do it. I am not young and although I am quite capable of carrying my own luggage, and actually I am quite fit, still, other people of my age group could have had significant problems and I don't believe I have ever been to another hotel where I have been expected to take my luggage up 2 flights without anyone even asking if I wanted help.
Throughout our stay, as we went in and out of the hotel, these receptionists never gave us a smile and seemed to prefer not to look at us. When we finally left they did not ask if we had enjoyed our stay, and watched us go out of the door without offering to help.They did not say goodbye or wish us a good journey, even though there were no other guests there and nothing else for them to do.
Of course they did not refuse help when asked it, and I cannot complain that they didn't do what was asked. But not a single thing more.
I should add that this only applied to the day desk staff. The woman who was on the desk at night was very diferent, she was friendly and nice and did her best to help with any small problems. The cleaners and people at breakfast also smiled and acted in a normal friendly way, said hello in the morning etc. It doesn't cost anything to smile and say hello!
The room was small but rather nice, the bathroom had a very smalll shower, frankly it was cramped but then it is an old character place, and this was okay. The water was nice and hot. The hotel is in an old house and must be wonderful in the summer when it is hot. In winter, Granada gets very cold and so it was a bit chilly to walk out of our warm room into an open air courtyard area.
The breakfast is in a small room off the courtyard, and the breakfast was fine, with some unusual items like asparagus creme and carrot creme. I don't usually have a hot breakfast but I don't think there were cooked items on the buffet. There were some "healthy" foods, like soy milk and bee pollen, too. Another good thing about the hotel is that it offers free tea and coffee every afternoon from 4 pm.
The beds were comfortable and the place was clean. And of course, its big plus point was also a wonderful view of the Alhambra which is just above it on a towering hill. There are narrow alley ways around mostly unfortunately filled with tourist shops, but still it is quite fun, and most things are within a reasonably easy walk.
As other reviewers have commented, there is no car access and you are supposed to leave your car quite a long way away in a public car park for 18.50 euros. The hotel refunds the cost of the taxi fare from the car park, which is about 10-15 mins walk. However, my suggestion is to park outside town, e.g. near the bus station and get the 3 or 33 bus from the bus station because this goes fairly near the hotel, nearer than the car park. You are unlikely to have much use for a car in Granada, as a visitor, because many streets are narrow and parking isn't that easy.
When you want to go to the Alhambra, it looks near but it is a very steep climb because the hill is so high - and could easily take 20 mins or so. There is a little shuttle bus but you have to wait for it. It doesn't matter because it is a really pleasant little trip but just be warned, it may seem near but it's not THAT near!
To sum up.... we felt this could be a very nice hotel, and I can see that many people feel that it is. Perhaps we were just unlucky and the staff were unhappy about something during our visit. But I would have liked it far better if I had felt we were welcome. A smile and a friendly look is nice when you are not at home.
