The Casa Camper is a lovely welcoming and stylish hotel situated centrally in Barcelona making it a great location for exploring all the popular tourist sites. It's a small hotel (40 rooms maybe?) so it wont feel busy and it has lots of great features.

View out to the Casa Camper Terrace in Barcelona

We booked (and paid) for 3 nights in May for my 40th birthday and I highly recommend it. If like me you head to the negative reviews first on Trip Advisor then I will start by saying what I didn’t like. My biggest issue was the pillows which were super soft and offered no support, the exact opposite of what I have at home. To be fair to the hotel I didn’t ask for alternatives so I don’t know if they have more supportive pillows if you want them. You might find it helpful to know the rooms don’t have tea and coffee making facilities or a fridge. This is because you have access to all of this for free on the ground floor, which I loved, but I would have liked a coffee first thing without getting dressed. 

If I was going to be really picky I would complain about the noise from the streets, but it wasn’t too bad and it didn’t go on particularly late. I can’t imagine many hotels in good positions in the city centre are much quieter though.

A room tour

Review Of Casa Camper Barcelona

Arriving at the hotel 

Now I have those out of the way, let me introduce you to the hotel. You could easily walk past Casa Camper without noticing it, but behind the glass doors is a cool and simple hotel. The man on reception was really lovely and checked us in while a lady talked us through the facilities. The reception guy noticed my birthdate on my passport and wished me a happy birthday (this was all in English by the way), later on when we returned to our room after dinner there was a small cake with a candle in and matches left in our room which was such a sweet touch. I don’t know if all the staff at the hotel are as thoughtful, but the ones we came into contact with were all lovely. 

We stayed in a corner suite on the 5th floor which is one of their more expensive rooms. The lady who took us upstairs, showed us everything in our room (including how to work the air conditioning) before leaving quickly so we could settle in. I like that she left as soon as she had finished talking without that awkward hovering where you are wondering if you should be tipping her and how much, tipping isn’t the normal in most Spanish hotels, but the way she left removed it from being a 'thing'. 

Our Corner Suite Room

Our room ran along the front of the hotel including the corner which means we had windows on 2 sides and lots of lovely light (when the curtains were shut, when closed they were good at keeping the light out). The windows were actually doors which opened onto those window ledge style balconies allowing you to let the sights and sounds of Barcelona fill the room. Obviously not all rooms have this and the rooms on the other side of the hotel actually have a view of a wall, but they have covered the wall in plant pots so it’s more interesting, they call this a "vertical garden". 

You know how in some hotel rooms you get slippers? Not here. Casa Camper is part of the Camper shoe family so by each side of the bed they have a pair of their classic Wabi sandals for you to use during your stay. We were left a black pair and a red pair which actually happened to be more or less the right size for us, but again I imagine they have other sizes available if they don’t fit. I nearly asked the gay couple I saw at breakfast if they had been left the same options or whether a second man size pair was swiftly brought up. It wouldn’t have surprised me. If you love them you can buy them at a reduced rate at reception. 

There were also white towelling robes, towels and a hair dryer for our use. Large bottles of hand soap and body lotion next to the sink and shampoo, conditioner and shower gel in the shower. These are refilled and not for taking away, in fact the eco aspect of the whole hotel is great. All bottled drinks were glass, except for the ones on the bedside table, gym and sunbathing area on the terrace, this seems like a sensible safety precaution (and also handy if you want a closable bottle to take out with you). Plastic throughout the hotel was kept to a minimum.

In our rooms entrance hallway was a wardrobe area, lots of coat hooks, shelves with a radio, USB slot, safe and the toilet. The toilet is a closed off room with just the toilet in. The bathroom was at the end of the corridor and had no door. Ours had a large walk-in shower (with separate waterfall, handheld and bidet options) and a separate bath, but smaller rooms don't have a bath. 

On the other side of the hall was our living area, you can separate it off from the hall by pulling a large curtain across, for instance if you want more privacy in the bathroom.

We had a massive bed which was quite firm and comfortable (other than the pillows, but soft pillows might be your thing). A large flat screen TV was opposite the bed, but I have no idea what channels it has as we never turned it on. There was a bedside table either side of the bed and lights which could be individually controlled.  On the other side of the room there was a sofa, 2 chairs, a low table and 2 floor lamps. Some of the rooms have a hammock and a desk, but you would need to check with the hotel on the room type you need if either of those are important to you.

On the table when we arrived in our suite there was complementary a medium size bottle of wine, glasses and some nuts.

I was touched to discover a cake in our room when they discovered it was my birthday

Extras - What Else Can You Accept From Casa Camper?

Wi-Fi

There is free Wi-Fi in the hotel and we were offered (and took) the chance to borrow a Wi-Fi hotspot (for a 50 euro deposit) this helped minimise our data use when out. The quality of the hotel Wi-Fi was good and I could actually still use it when in the restaurant next door (a small Michelin starred restaurant called Dos Palillos) and a cafe across the street.

There is also a "Business Centre" next to reception with a computer and printer you can use if you want to print something out.

Food and drink

While there are no facilities in the rooms (other than the small bottles of water they leave on the bedside tables, and replace when they make up the room) you have free access to hot and cold drinks and snacks 24 hours a day, on the ground floor in what the hotel call "tentempié". 

When not set up for breakfast, the downstairs snack area has two fridges: one with cold drinks including: sparkling water, still water, tonic, Coke Zero, Tonic, Fanta, Juice, chocolate milk etc and the other has various snacks and small meals. The exact offering changes each day, but includes sandwiches, a wrap, fruit, salad, cakes etc. There are then a range of cakes, biscuits, crisps and nuts available to eat, or take back to your room.

During this period you can make yourself coffee using one of those pod type machines or various teas using the kettle.  Did I mention this was all free? And at no point were we made uncomfortable for grabbing something, or a tray full.  

In the mornings this area on the ground floor is their breakfast area. Breakfast is roughly 6.30 to 11.00 so a nice stretched out time which means you wont mis out. At breakfast you can order a range of hot foods which will be cooked fresh (including omelette, pancakes, bacon, sausage, porridge or various types of egg). There is also cereal, cake, cheeses, cold meats, bread etc. A waiter or waitress will take your order for a hot drink and bring it to you at your table. 

There are tables to eat breakfast, but you can take it up to your room if you prefer, or you can order from a smaller menu in advance and have breakfast delivered to your room (there is an extra charge for this).

In the mornings this is the breakfast area, the rest of the day it's a help yourself snack area

Part of the breakfast offerings at Casa Camper

The Honesty Bar, Cocktail Bar and Gym

On the 6th floor there is an honesty bar with a great range of drinks at a reasonable price. This is open from midday. The choices include a range of spirits, wine and beer. Again the soft drinks and snacks are free, but for the alcohol you fill it a piece of paper and it’s charged to your room.

The bar area is part of the Terrace which has an inside section which is air conditioned (when the doors are closed) and an outside terrace area where you can enjoy your drinks overlooking Barcelona. The Terrace area wraps around the rear corner of the hotel, with one side intended for sitting and the other for sunbathing with sun loungers and towels available for use. 

Most evenings there is also a cocktail bar open in the basement "Dos Billares bar". This is a cozy room with comfy leather seats, pool tables and a manned bar where they will make you a cocktail or other drink of your choice. 

The cocktail bar is next to the small gym area. It doesn't have a huge amount of equipment, but it would meet your needs if you fancied a workout while on holiday.

What I Loved About Casa Camper

The staff were really lovely, especially the main guy who checked us in and was there during the day week days. The environment was comfortable and stylish without being pretentious as you can get at some 4 star hotels. 

I loved that you had such a good range of food and drink available at no cost. I think I ate my body weight in crisps during our stay and my partner ate quite a lot of chocolate. My food options were limited due to my dairy intolerance, but there were still a few things I could enjoy. 

Location of Casa Camper

I would recommend this restaurant if you want to stay somewhere centrally in Barcelona within good walking distance to many of the sites. It’s about 5 - 10 minutes walk from Plaça de Catalunya metro station and although the street itself (Carrer Elisabets) is mostly pedestrian taxi’s are allowed down it if you want to be delivered to the door.

Staying in The Raval region on Barcelona you feel right in the heart of the city and surrounded by atmosphere. This is both good and bad. While Barcelona is an attractive and vibrant city there is a LOT of graffiti, it is pretty much everywhere. There were also a few people sleeping on the streets and some of the narrow roads smell of wee. Don’t expect everywhere to be beautiful, but also don’t let this put you off. The city has a lot of charm, graffiti and all.

If you are planning to book then try looking directly on Casa Camper's website via your phone as they offered mobile discounts and it was by far the best rate I could find for the hotel. Our 3 night stay in May in the corner suite cost €792.