Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona

This is a great hotel, new rooms, good sizes, nice firm beds. Get an excutive room, and you get a bath with a view! You actually sit in the bath with a sliver of a window, just enough for you to look out (at the sea if you're at the right side), but don't worry, nobody can look in! Modern looks all around, no quaint charm, if you're looking for that, go elsewhere. Ask for a high floor seaview, cityview you can see from the wait area at the elevators, you can really see the whole city from here.

The lifts (elevators) are quite slow for a 23 storey building, but there are 4 to choose, so you'll never have to wait too long.

If you want to use the pool, you'll have to arrive between April and Oktober, as it is an outdoor pool, and temperature can drop in the winter to near freezing, so seems fair enough.

Staff seemed friendly enough. But then I didn't encounter many of them.

The location is quite good, next to a big shopping mall, and more or less across from the beach. BUT, if you want to get into the tourist areas by public transport, you'll have to change subways, or take a bus. Really cheap transport, take a T10 card, whitch gives you 10 rides for under 7 euro (about USD 8,50) and you can share the card with multiple people.

Walking into town is really NOT an option, its more than 1 hours walk into the old town.

Then again, the taxi's are more than reasonable, hotel to towncentre is 7,50 euro. To the airport is about 30 euro, and takes about half an hour depending on traffic. More than enough taxis around. Take your hotel adress (on your keycardslip) with you, and show it to the driver, as you might end up at the other Hilton, or just say Diagonal MAR, stress the MAR part as that is the area you need to go to.

Still some building works around, but pleasant enough area. Have a lunch at the Marina, just down the coast, 5-10 mins by cab. (High speed highway next to the hotel, its underground so no noise!) And continue into the town from there.

Great city, great hotel, go, now!

My last destination in Spain was barcelona and our family chose the Hilton when it had just recently opned. Everything was brand new. The people there were very freindly and the rooms are very comfrtoble. The buffets had an excellent selection and the waiters were very helpful. I would say it is one of the best hotels I have stayed in for a while.

There are two Hiltons in Barcelona. The still-shiny-new Diagonal Mar, one block from the sea and the decrepit one on the Avenida Diagonal, more towards the city centre.

We, sadly, opted for the old decrepit one. Despite booking a room on the recently renovated Executive Floor (such good value), we realised when we opened the door to our tiny room with its "Queen-size" bed that not much else of the hotel had been touched apart from the common areas. It looked like a dark and dingy B&B in a northern seaside town.

After deciding to move to the new Hilton - the Diagonal Mar - things improved. While they're not the most beautiful of hotels in the world, they are incredible functional, and this new-build's modern glass design is certainly impressive.

Service is generally quite good. The Executive Floor offers free food and drink all day (to be consumed in the lounge area - boo!), and over New Year's the guests certainly made the most of it. They forgot our speedy check-out option, but hey, it was New Year's Day, and the staff are very sweet.

Food-wise, room service was edible - nothing mindblowing, but OK. However, the views from the rooms and from the lobbies certainly make up for it, with stunning views out across this beautiful city and the Med.

A good, affordable, modern option if your budget doesn't stretch to Hotel Omm or Hotel Arts.

Lisa Richards

Caché Magazine

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We stayed at the Hilton Diagonal Mar for 4 days in Mid December 2005.

We had a nice Deluxe room (we were upgraded) in the 16th floor with a great view of Barcelona.

Because we got a special oppening price, we paid less than 450 Euros for three nights for two persons.

Service and hotel staff were very friendly and attentive.

The room was spacious and everything was okay. Breakfast was Hilton like which means very good quality and a good choice of food.

Transportation with public transportation Metro L4 (Station Maresme Forum) or Bus nr. 41 is very good and we found it very safe and comfortable.

So, if you can get a good price then this hotel is worth the money.

I am a Hilton Gold Card member and I was very disappointed with the new Hilton Diagonal. The staff was unfriendly and seemed put-out by any requests - they forgot to give us towels one evening and took 20 min to bring some up even though we told them it was a rush (my sister was IN the shower when she noticed the lack of towels).

The breakfast buffet was tasteless. Most of the food was dry or overcooked.

Also, the location is not good for sightseeing - you must hop on the metro about three blocks away and ride for 20 min to get to the good areas.

This hotel was very nice, beautiful decor and friendly staff. I am a HiltonHonors Gold member and have learned to be very cautious of the Hilton brand -basically a Hilton can be very nice or a crap-hole, one never knows.

The Hilton Diagonal Mar in Barcelona is a great place to stay if you are traveling for business - it is next door to the convention center as well.

One thing that was a bit odd was how long it took to do anything with the front desk (call cabs/check-in/ask a question/check out/etc...) I was there on business for 4 days and the hotel was packed so my experience may differ from most.

We stayed at the Hilton Diagonal Mar both before and after a cruise. The Hotel has only been open about three months but the service and accomodations seemed to be those of a well polished machine open for much longer.

We were upgraded to the Executive level on both stays and the lounge was very nice. Great food and beverages and a professional staff.

The rools are modern and well equipped including a plasma screen TV. the first stay was in corner room that had both a separate shower and bath while the second stay we had a room with just a bath/shower combo.

The staff were excellent and very helpful. Everyone spoke excellent english and quick to offer assisstance and advice when asked.

Across the street is a new shopping center with stores such as Zara, H&M and FNAC. The center also has many coffee bars that are usually full of Catalunyans enjoying the start of the evening.

The Metro is about a 10 minute walk and offers quick access to downtown, about 15 minutes away. Cabs are readily available and reasonable, about 25 Euros to the Airport or 30 Euros to the Cruise Terminal.

Even though the Hotel is removed from the downtown area, it is an excellent base of operations or to relax before or after a cruise.

Stayed at this hotel end of oct for three nights,the staff we found to be friendly and helpful,the rooms were first class,we had a room with a sea view, metro within a five min walk and very cheap,bus stop right outside hotel number 41 takes you to the centre remeber to buy your t10 tickets 6.30euros for ten journeys would recomend this hotel

Stayed here for two nights - "introductory rate" but still pricey compared to other hotels. Location is away from tourist center but transportation options are available, including subway and tram stops nearby. Hotel was nearly brand-new at the time of stay, having been open since Aug 2005. There is a nice mall across the street that has restaurants and a grocery store.

The good: Everything was new, clean, and modern. Excellent water pressure in shower, bathroom fixtures were nice, bath towels are HUGE! Plasma TV is a nice touch and the fitness center is impressive yet on the small side.

The bad: Customer service could have been a lot better, esp since this is supposed to be a top end hotel. As a Hilton HHonors elite, I was denied benefits that are standard for Gold VIPs. Breakfast in the restaurant was average but service was rushed. Our roomkeys needed to be replaced every night, due to some glitch with the door lock. Housekeeping staff were very intrusive.

Overall, I liked this property but unless the rate was good, I would hesitate to stay there again.

New Hotel. Excellent service, very nice staff.

This is all you can espect for a Hilton Hotel.