Room Mate Anna — Barcelona, Spain
![Close up of guest bed in green room](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/HxVzyNrJekswKLSWetqLjK-415-80.jpg)
We’ve said it before, but the rate at which the Room Mate group is expanding should give even its most aggressive competitor cause to pause. Its newest property is one more example of its talent for scouting prime locations in agreeable neighbourhoods. Steps from Barcelona’s golden retail strip of Passeig de Gracia, the 81-room Anna is contained within an early 20th-century Modernist pile that was, till a few years ago, the University of Chicago campus and venue for the 20th anniversary of Casa Décor.
Interior designer Lorenzo Castillo has parlayed previous outings with Room Mate on their New York and Florence hotels, into an assured, grown-up bolt-hole where breakfast is served till noon and the circular rooftop pool features views of the Agbar Tower and Gaudi’s Casa Batlió.
In keeping with Barcelona’s proximity to the sea, turquoise and aquamarine hues dominate, alongside bespoke timber furniture, brass finishes, and the occasional maritime tchotchke by way of red Trapani coral and shells. Castillo says his design scheme is a deliberate move away from the contemporary penchant for neo-industrial Nordic chic in favour of a return to Barcelona’s Catalonian Mediterranean roots.
And just in case one needed more proof of Room Mate’s ambitions and bullish optimism for Barcelona, the group has plans to open two more properties in the city by next year.
ADDRESS
Carrer Aragó 271
Wallpaper* Newsletter + Free Download
For a free digital copy of August Wallpaper*, celebrating Creative America, sign up today to receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
Phaidon’s new Graphic Classics is a lavish greatest hits of graphic design
Graphic Classics is a compendium of seven centuries of visual culture, from the everyday and ephemeral to visionary works that reshaped our world
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Birley Chocolate hits the sweet ’n’ chic spot in London’s Chelsea
The new Birley Chocolate shop, a sibling to Birley Bakery, is a confection of colour as delicious as its finely crafted goods
By Melina Keays Published
-
Feel at home at Auberge, Château La Coste's new inn for culture lovers
Auberge La Coste sits at the heart of the art-filled estate, minutes away from the joyful town of Aix-en-Provence
By Harriet Thorpe Published
-
Retreat to Casa Montelongo, a modern Fuertaventuran guest house filled with Canarian warmth
Courtesy of Spanish architect Néstor Pérez Batista, Casa Montelongo is the perfect contemporary shelter to enjoy Fuerteventura
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
Soak up Barcelona vistas from the redesigned Grand Hotel Central's rooftop pool
Grand Hotel Central, designed by Sagrada, opens its doors in the heart of Barcelona’s old town
By Agnish Ray Published
-
Madrid bars: a local’s guide to sipping in style
Discover the best design-led Madrid bars, as sampled by local travel and culture writer Agnish Ray
By Agnish Ray Published
-
Tour the new Mondrian Ibiza, chic sophistication by the Balearic Sea
Mondrian opens in Ibiza with a bold and inventive design by Madrid-based Cuarto Interior
By Lauren Ho Published
-
It’s a Paul & Shark summer at Juvia restaurant in Formentera
Paul & Shark dresses Formentera restaurant Juvia for the summer season, with suitably nautical nods
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
The free-spirited Hyde brand opens its first European outpost in Ibiza
Hyde Ibiza is a laid-back, modern hideaway right by the locally-loved beaches of Cala Llonga Bay
By Lauren Ho Published
-
Brutalist restaurant opens at The Cantabrian Maritime Museum
The restaurant at The Cantabrian Maritime Museum is a concrete-garnished space designed by Zooco Estudio overlooking Santander Bay
By Sofia de la Cruz Published
-
Still got it: Marbella Club celebrates 70 years of uninhibited glamour
Marbella Club announces a summertime of parties, retreats and collaborations to celebrate its platinum anniversary
By Tianna Williams Published