Celebrate Christmas in Spain at the Hotel Arts Barcelona
Experience Christmas in one of the world's most exciting destinations, Barcelona, the second largest city in Spain.
There's a spectacular five-star Ritz-Carlton property worth checking out. Called the Hotel Arts Barcelona, it will be offering several special packages over the holidays, including New Years' Eve.
The Hotel Arts Barcelona offers 483 spacious guest rooms, including a variety of suites including 56 executive suites and 28 sophisticated duplex apartments. It also offers a spa on the 42nd and 43rd floors of the hotel that has stunning views of the city and sea below. The spa features eight treatment suites, a separate sauna and a steam room with color therapy.
Enjoy a traditional Christmas dinner at one of the hotel's many fine restaurants. Paco Perez's Enoteca restaurant, which was awarded one Michelin star in the 2010 Guide, will offer festive gastronomic dishes during the holiday season such as truffle and wild mushroom cream soup with foie gras shots and grilled Grouper loin, followed by Turron, a traditional Spanish Christmas dessert made of chocolate, almond and pine nuts with puffed rice.
Sergi Arola's signature Arola restaurant features such specialities as the classic "Escudella" Catalan stew with hot and cold tapas. A Christmas brunch will be offered by Café Veranda, featuring traditional specialties such as lobster "Caldererta" angler fish and wild boar with chestnuts.
The hotel is offering a special "Club Level Experience" package that features one complimentary night for every three paid nights (stay four nights, pay for three) in a deluxe room. The package starts at 579€ per night and is valid through December 31, 2010.
Hotel Arts Barcelona is also offering a special New Year's package, featuring deluxe accommodations for two (rates beginning at 915 €, plus tax). The package includes a complimentary glass of bubbly at the recently opened Champagne Bar, followed by a gourmet New Year's Eve Gala dinner in the Gran Saló Gaudí, featuring classic Catalan signatures such as white truffle caneloni and fresh seafood with seawater, marine algae and citrus foam. Each dish is served with an expertly-paired wine selection, and the meal commences with chocolate, pomegranate and frozen rose infusion for dessert.
The evening peaks with the ultimate Spanish New Year's Eve tradition, the "Twelve Grapes". This Spanish holiday tradition dates back to 1909 in which you eat one grape with each strike of the bell at midnight on December 31st. According to tradition, the ceremony is believed to ward away evil and lead to a year of prosperity. The package also includes a buffet breakfast for two at Café Veranda.
Plan your stay through January 5th, as Spanish families celebrate the end of Christmas with "Three Kings Day" on that date. Everyone exchanges gifts and a parade throughout Barcelona celebrates the arrival of the Three Wise Men as they disperse presents amongst the children of Spain.
Reservations for the Hotel Arts Barcelona can be made online or by calling (800) 542-8680 from the U.S. and Canada.
