Comments Parador Aiguablava
The Parador de Aiguablava is situated in the unique Punta D’es Muts enclave, surrounded by pine trees and overlooking the sea.
Here guests can enjoy beautiful beaches, coves and unspoilt landscapes. It is an ideal location for sports and outdoor activities, as well as relaxing walks through picturesque green settings.
Under the distinctive light of the Mediterranean, the hotel provides its guests with a high level of comfort and a range of services both for individual guests and business conferences. There is a gym, swimming pool and sauna, as well as rooms with spectacular views overlooking the sea.
Costal influence is also reflected in the ‘ampurdanesa’ cuisine, whose typical dishes include sea urchins, baked snails and chicken and lobster stew. During the summer, dishes can be sampled on the beach alongside the restaurant.
The Parador has its own restaurant, ‘Mar i Vent’ which is separate from the hotel located in the neighboring cove overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.
Below are some comments of guests who recently stayed in Parador Aiguablava.
Information and reservations at Parador of Aiguablava
we stayed here for four of the most wonderful days and nights of our trip. the hotel, facilities, restaurants and people were all wonderful. the food at the restaurant was other worldly.
i must give a special recognition to one of the wait staff. a young lady from the netherlands who was doing an internship for a hotel management school. she should be hired full time and made a shining example of how to make a persons stay enjoyable
easy to find. My wife hade a smile on her face when we arrived. The scenary was astunning. When we came into the room – the smile was even larger. Wow. What a view; what a stay!
We’ll be back!
We stayed for two nights and everything was just perfect. Our room overlooked the bay; the food was delicious, the staff helpful, the pool just warm enough for swimming (this was in June 2010). We have stayed in many Paradors and this was definately up with the best. The only minus would be a more signs and bigger ones as it was difficult to find. Would certainly stay again.
Public Rooms 7/10
Bedroom 10/10
View 10/10
Location 10/10
Dinner 8/10
Breakfast 9/10
Carparking 8/10
Reception 9/10
Pool 0/10 closed
We had a wonderful stay at this location and would the hotel recomend to our friends. Above all we want to say a great thank you to the woman at La tienda, the gift shop. She does not only speak german excellently, but could show us a lot of places on the beach and the countryside, where we should go for a visit. So the friendlyness of this woman was a great help for our planing-efforts.
Everything was fine at the hotel, even the food, which is – from our point of view – unfairly critized in some of the comments above.
We spent 2 nights at this location and had a wonderful stay. We have always enjoyed our times at various Paradors and this was certainly up to a very high standard with regard to location and room selection. The only disappointment, and it was a major one, was the food. My choice of ‘baby lamb’ was just a collection of bones dumped over a material that I determined might have started off as potato. My wife’s selection fared no better as it was chicken smothered in heavy gravy. However, this was the only downside of our visit. The grounds and the view from the room overlooking the cliffs and sea were heavenly. The staff were attentive and helpful. Highly recommended but eat elsewhere.
We are regular users of Paradors, and found the Aiguabrava one as good as always – helpful staff (we don’t speak Spanish) excellent room with beautiful view, superb dinner and breakfast. A pity we were only able to spend one night on our journey, but we will certainly be back to explore the area in more detail.
Paradors are not cheap, but you certainly get what you pay for – most enjoyable.
My wife and I stayed for 4 nights from 17 October. The setting is wonderful and the hotel was clean and seemed efficiently run. The rooms facing south over the sea rather than the bay are definitely the best because of the sun and more open aspect. It was a pleasant and uplifting experience.
We enjoyed the food. The leisurely long breakfasts were superb with a good food selection including having eggs cooked to order about which few knew. I cannot understand others criticisms on this blog about the service. Dinner was a bit expensive and one might get bored of the standard menu after 3 or 4 evenings and so half board for longer is not recommended. In off season it is a bit of a drive to eat elsewhere and thus one person cannot drink.
One has to accept the classic 1960s style of the building. Internal design is good except there seemed to be alot of wasted space in a large room adjacent to the reception that itself is functionally designed and fairly cold, but not unattractive. It was too cold to go to the beach other than a quick visit. We would return. Recommended.
We stayed in the Aiguablava Parador two different times on our trip. Once in September and finally in early October 2010. The location is absolutely as beautiful as the photos and the service was very helpful. The breakfast buffet is lovely. The walk down to the beach is very easy and the water, of course, was beautiful! I would highly recommend a stay at this Paradore!
My wife and I stayed at Argomaniz, Almagro, Ayamonte, Javea, Mojacar, Nerja and Aiguablava.
Special remark : I am disabled and sitting in a wheel chair.
Reception at the Paradores, the help I received, the kindness of the staff, the accomodations (room, swimming pool and garden with special thanks to Parador Nerja, restaurants) were all outstanding!
Everyone was super friendly and very helpful. First class. I became a real amigo of the Paradores.
Thanks to all.
Johan Steurs
My wife & I have stayed in many Paradores and have been very impressed BUT not by this one. The position is perfect. The hotel is characterless, reception is indifferent, the food is way below par and the waiting staff listless. The room was adequate and the Wi-Fi worked; not much of a recommendation. This has not put me off further visits to Paradors but not to Aiguablava.
The setting is beautiful and the views are wonderful. The rooms were very nice, not lavish. For dinner the choices were the buffet or selections from the menu. We chose the menu. The food was awful. The staff were indifferent when they didn’t totally ignore us. A complaint to the person at the front desk at check-out was met with a shrug of the shoulders. The place is owned by the government and staffed by employees who don’t care.
My family spent 2 nights at the hotel. It was a very beautiful experience. The room was clean and big, the staff was very helpful, and the food was great. I would love to visit the hotel again next year
My husband and I spent 4 nights in this wonderful parador. We booked a top of the building room and we had a fantastic view of the sea. We stayed in many paradores over the years but this one has the best sea view ever.
The staff was pleasant and professional. The room was very large, clean and the terrace immense. The breakfast food was second to none. We also dined at the hotel and even thought the food was simple, it was adequate.
The swimming pool had a good size and the beach below very pleasant.
I definitely intend to return to Aiguablava next year.
The only slight problem was the parking which I did not find easy but it would certainly not deter me from coming back again and again.
Vi har boet to gange på hotellet og begge gange været yderst tilfredse med betjening og værelse. Restaurant tilbyder god og velsmagende mad. vi ser frem til at komme igen i 2011 og har anbefalet hotellet til venner i Danmark.
“We have stayed twice at this hotel and both times been extremely satisfied with the service and room. Restaurant offers good, tasty food. we look forward to coming back in 2011 and have recommended the hotel to friends in Denmark. “
My wife and I spent two nights at the end of May and cannot wait to go back. Our room was on the “beach” side which is important to get evening sun if you like sipping “sundowners” on your room terrace. Breakfast was magnificent, reception staff were helpful and lent out large beach towels. We were lucky with the weather and spent most of the day on the beach, cooling off in the cold sea then later having a decent swim in the good sized hotel pool. We used one of the beach bars for a perfectly adequate late lunch and escape the heat. The hotel and immediate surroundings are so nice that we didn’t use the car there at all, and although we didn’t use it I noticed a coastal footpath sign which might be worth exploring at a future date.
To get to the hotel you need to go to Begur which is the first place that we saw any signs to Aiguablava. There don’t seem to be any signs to Aiguablava in Palafrugell. Once in Aiguablava just keep following the “main” road and the parador is at the end.
We loved the location of the hotel – once we found it. We had an exceptional view, as did all the rooms in this perfectly situated hotel. This was the second Parador we stayed in and the anticipated excellent service and cuisine did not disappoint. The location of this hotel was great for walking along the sea and exploring nearby villages. We simply loved it and hope to return again one day.
Our second stay was better than the first, and that was wonderful.
This time we had a different room type with direct sea views, terrace and amazing room. We got down to the little cove on this trip and just had time to have a beer at the bar. Just a little time warp. We wished we had stayed longer, one night was just not enough. Perhaps next time. All in all just wonderful. Thank you
In the parador was during our stay ( 8 – 15 juni 2010) no atmosphere, no ambience.
The employees were not friendly by the breakfast, maybe they do not understand the english language.
You must better regulate the parking for hotelguests, because a lot of visitors who are not hotelguests occupied the parking places.
The location is very nice.
Our room was also very nice, and clean.
We do not come back because the hotel has no ambience/ atmosphere.
With regards
We had a week’s stay here, end of June, beginning of July this year, we had an excellent time, the staff were always most helpful, accommodation was first class and the choice and quality of the food was amazing with loads to choose from. We found the bar prices amongst the most reasonable we had come across in Spain. We couldn’t fault it and would definately recommend a visit
We stayed at Aiguablava for four days in mid May and had an incredible experience. The building and public areas have a stylish midcentury retro feel and the setting is exquisite. Our room overlooked a small garden with cliffs and the sea beyond. The room was spacious and comfortable with a lovely terrace; and the bathroom (as in the other four Paradores we visited) was very modern.
The setting of this Paradore is unparalleled with a small cove with a beach and a good restaurant on the other side of the promontory on which it sits. It is very good value for the price. And the proximity to Begur, various Catalonian towns, and the small beach towns and coastal restaurants made for a very good choice.
There are some great regional restaurants in the area on the Costa Brava.
Loved the Parador very much. Spent one night in May. Had a great room – big and very confertable with a terace. The view is incredible !!
The food very good and the staf – very helpful !!
Fabulous location for easy access to the best of the Costa Brava. Now a bit dated, seventies built, hotel has good rooms and excellent cuisine. Staff service to a [customary] high standard.
The directions and signs to get to the Parador are very poor at best, and have caused considerable confusion both times we have visited Aiguablava. This could be greatly improved at little cost.
Otherwise, this is a wonderfully situated and operated parador.
Stayed at Aquabrava Paradore 10/3/10. Unfortunately we were shown to a room that had not been cleaned or prepared from the night before. This was a shock at first but after pointing out that the room had been used that day for somebody’s siesta (the bed was not prepared and a used bottle of water was in the room) we were finally given another room. Unfortunately the reception manager did not apologise which surprised us but the cleaning manager was mortified by the reception manager’s mistake in giving us that room. Not a very good start for a nights stay. The evening meal was fine and the restaurant staff very friendly but however after our experience with the filthy room we will think twice before we stay again at a Paradore. I always had the picture of Paradores being spotless. This changed my perception of them.
John Garnett
Début Novembre, séjour de 4 nuits très agréable. Chambre spacieuse avec vue magnifique sur les criques et la mer.
Cuisine correcte.
Globalement très satisfait.
We stayed at the parador in October and found it to be very restful. Paradors offer a respite from language problems and parking issues which are typical of local hotels (although hotels like the Hotel Historic in Girona are worth every difficult turn in the road.). We have stayed in many paradors throughout the years, and prefer those that are in historic buildings with character. The very modern parador at Aquiablava was comfortable (except for the over-hot room) with good service and, as others have mentioned, a GREAT breakfast. We have noted that over the years, parador food has become less typical of the area, and more international in style. If the aim of the parador program is to introduce visitors to the real Spain, a better effort should be made to incorporate local recipes. However, these issues aside, once we stood on our balcony, looked out at the sea, with a cruise boat moving along the horizon as the night fell, all was forgotten. Aquiablava is a beautiful place!
Everything was superb and excellent. First of all the reception desk. A most helpful man welcomed us and gave us a superb room. The supper was excellent too and the service was less “administrative” than in other paradors we went to. The food and wine were again excllent and well presented. The morning breakfast was perfect. A really superb stay.
We still have not understood the billing system but it does not matter as the bill was very reasonable!!
Arriba el parador de Aiguablava!
Our four-day stay at the Parador was one of the most pleasurable we have ever experienced in our many years of travel in Europe. The quality of the facility and the outstanding service of the staff made our stay in Spain one of the best. The older gentleman at the desk should be commended for his outstsanding service to guests. The views were breath-taking. We would recommend this Parador to anyone who is interested in spectacular views and great service. We plan to return to the Costa Brava next year and will plan to stay again.
Had a fantastic stay in Aiguablava. The Hotel is very nice and clean with breath taking views and surroundings.
The reception staff were not always as helpful as they could have been but could speak adequate english for our needs.
The restaurante is very nice with good food, but a little expensive for what it is. There is a large selection to chews from at the breakfast buffet.
Parking can be difficult as the spaces are rather small and close together.
Would highly recommend the hotel just for the location and views.
overall – 9/10
I will definitely be returning to Aiguablava in the not too distant future.
My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our stay at the Parador. Lovely setting, beautiful view, friendly service and a marvelous breakfast buffet.
I was able to use my laptop in our room with no problems.
A lovely stay on the Costa Brava.
Public Rooms 6/10
Bedroom 10/10
View 10/10
Location 10/10
Dinner 8/10
Breakfast 9/10
Carparking 5/10
Reception 8/10
Pool 10/10
This is a great hotel! The setting is stunningly beautiful, better than the amazing website photos showed. The breakfast is worth the 17 Euro cost, with amazing food, well presented. The room was very nice, clean and well equipped. I am not sure if the room is air conditioned but in any case it was not hot enough (27 degrees outside) to require it.
The hotel was very easy to find in the dark with just a Michelin “Spain” folded paper road map, so I am amazed that some others with comments here had problems finding it, even with GPS!
The general Costa Brava area is truly breathtakingly beautiful and a drive to Sant Feliu de Guixols was memorable in the warm September sunshine with the car’s top down.
My Spanish is rusty so I won’t be concerned with any imperfections in the reception staff’s English ability, which was well suited to our needs, in any case.
The less good things were:
1. the lack of broadband wireless Internet access (this is not the fault of the hotel, there seems to be no cable service in the area). I was using the Web to communicate with my family back in Canada, not surfing the web (that would be CRAZY when on holiday!).
2. television. The set in the room was small and old, but considering the limited TV channels received over the airwaves, it would have been a waste to have a better TV. However, Satellite TV would have been nice. However, I did not come to Spain to sit in a hotel room and watch TV.
3. The computers in the common room were good but the date and time were set one week forward of the actual date and this could not be changed, which prevented us from making hotel reservations online for the following day in France, our next destination (the date we wanted to book for “had already passed” due to the incorrect hotel computer date, so we couldn’t reserve online). A very helpful young woman on the front reception counter permitted us to use the computer at the desk to make these reservations. I wish that I had her name; she was very pleasant and helpful to us and should be rewarded for it.
Overall, the stay was a 9.5/10 and I will definitely be visiting this Parador again, as well as some others.
Beautiful setting for a lovely hotel. We found it easily in daylight (it might have been tricky at night). The rooms were very comfortable and views were spectacular from all sides of the building. The staff were very friendly and food excellent. We would certainly return and recommend to our friends. I agree that BBC or some English speaking news channel would be a bonus on the TV, but not having it did not ruin our stay.
We LOVED the Parador Aiguablava. We had originally booked two nights there and were delighted to find that we were able to return a few days later.
We were greeted by a lovely man at reception who taught the Spanish words for the 5 meals eaten daily in Catalonia (desayuno, almeurzo, comida, marienda, and cena) and who was very helpful in showing us the route to Girona.
Our room had a terrace which overlooked a small bay filled with resting sailboats. Perfect for reading and drinking wine. The room itself was spacious, spotlessly clean, nicely decorated, and absolutely soundproof. We slept very well all three nights.
We chose the “half board” option and I can’t say enough positive things about the breakfast buffet, the dinner buffet with cooked to order main courses, and the waitstaff. The variety was incredible and the quality of the fruits, vegetables, salads, fresh seafood, breads and dessert were impeccable.
Likewise, the pool and the outside bar area were unbeatable.
In short, we can’t wait to return!
We brought out parents for my Fathers 80th birthday and started our second week touring Paradors. We spent our final 2 nights at Aigublava and stayed in a special room, (which was superb) Our parents had a standard room, but an absolutely spectacular view. This had the best food of all the Paradors and the best service. Staff spoke good english and it is the sort of place you would go back to…brilliant, thank you.
19-22 June. Location, location, location. A quiet little paradise spectacularly poised on the cliff top with sea views on both sides. The swimming pool, gym and the walks to and from the beach were needed to keep the weight off as it could easily be gained by walking past the restaurant. Excellent buffet available to select your own starter followed by a wide choice of dishes and desserts. Fish lovers in ecstacy either in the restaurant or down on the beach at the Parador’s own seafront fish restaurant. A big thanks to the hardworking team who helped make our stay so memorable.
The Parador is on a spectacular point with beautiful views on either side of the hotel. Rooms are large with nice balconies overlooking the sea and coast. A short walk downhill takes you to a small protected beach. The Parador has a pretty restaurant on the beach and we found the food to be very good. The main restaurant is good too. Reception staff are helpful. The 60s style decor is dated but is already a period piece. During our stay in May the pool was said to be open but was surrounded by ropes and the water was cold. If the ropes are taken down the pool would be great in summer, as it is right on the point.
After a breathtaking drive through the winding highways of costa brava we found the hotel (Don’t leave your map/GPS at home!!). This area is plush with many small towns, beaches, and lots of oportunity to go to open air markets. Just north is Dali’s home town of cadaques and his museum in Figueras.
The hotel is situated on top of a cliff but is a 3 minute walk down to a private beach with restaurants, etc. The water is brilliant turquois and the views are breathtaking. The rooms are very nice. As was the restaurant and the service. We are hoping to go back again next year would work for a romantic getaway or vacaation with kids.
A beautiful parador, magificent view, wonderful rooms.
Comments:
Very difficult to find. No exact address in order for a GPS to locate. Not enough signs on the roads to guide you.
Very poor English at the reception and the dining room. Difficult to communicate.
The Parador was hard to find, we loved the view of the sea & landscape, hotelrooms & hotel itself looks a bit dated.Food & breakfast was absolutely gorgeous!! Barstaff speaks very little other languages, bar is not sufficiently stocked up.We,ve been staying in Aiguablava on our way to Portugal & coming back. Both times my husband ordered a Bloody Mary but they didn,t have tomatojuice, found that a bit odd.
The surrounding area is of a breathtaking beauty. Definitely coming back.
We loved the location of AiguaBlava, and found it handily w/gps. The hike was incredible. The dinner though left a lot to be desired. Fresh seafood covered in a brown gravy, stewlike, very dissappointing. The next evening we decided not to eat at the parador. Although the fresh seafood bar and appetizers were wonderful, as was the breakfast buffet.
When we arrived it was raining and none of the reception staff assisted us with our luggage. As your aware parking is difficult so our arrival was not as welcoming as we expected. The listing says BBC telivision reception but this was no available. Very poor selection of tv channels. Resteraunt staff very helpfull, not so bar staff.
Regards
The hotel is a little difficult to locate but when found it is in a beautiful and very private location.Room views are superb and facilities are more than adequate.Restaurant provided very good local cuisine,with first rate service.Will certainly visit again.
The hotel was a little tricky to locate, since we arrived in the dark. The views were great, the food was good, the rooms were very clean and comfortable. I would be happy to recommend it to friends.