Parador Alarcon
This authentic 8th Century fortress is situated on a promontory above the meandering river Jucar, on the Manchego-Levantinas border.
The Parador of Alarcon occupies the medieval castle of the Marqueses de Villena, which is over 13 centuries old. It was founded by the Muslims in the 8th Century and then taken over by King Alfonso VIII in the 12th Century. 
It was the home of distinguished writer, Don Juan Manuel and has experienced many sieges and revolts. The grandeur of the Parador can be witnessed in the Torre del Homenaje (Tower of Homage) both in its battlements and interior.
Magnificent oak and a mixture of modern and classical styles have transformed this Parador into a new building. The fabrics used within bring out its medieval character; the reds and oranges contrast with the austerity of the space and serve as a backdrop for its genuine art collection.
We had already spent a week, in Spain, with friends. This was our first excursion on our own and our first stay in a Parador. I have already read the other comments and feel that I will be repeating much of what has been said but, anyway, here goes. Difficult to find, the map provided was ambiguos, we spent a good hour ‘touring’ the country side, this was pleasant but we really wanted to arrive. And then we saw the village and castle, and then we realised that we wetre to stay in the castle. Wow!!Alarcon is a beautiful quiet village. But who was the ‘ dodgy geezer’ hanging around in the carpark? He looked a bit official, with his cap and scruffy uniform, he didn’t hassle us but made us feel uneasy. Also a bit a of a trek from the carpark, with the luggage. Man in reception didn’t understand a word of English, but, hey, this is Spain. Hotel beautiful, but our room small, with sort of integral bathroom which would not suit if you were sharing with a stranger. Also would not like to cross the courtyard in a storm. but maybe would not want to cross the courtyard to the restaurant as the food very sub- standard and served by a waitress who appeared to have just received some very bad news. This was at dinner, on our first night, and the news was obviousley getting worse as our stay progressed, she was potentially suicidal by our last breakfast. Must mention the stunning walk round the village, the long route, and the restaurant, up the road, where we had a magnificent meal served by a cheery chappie ( he hadn’t heard the news). So to sum up, fab. location, pretty fab. place, but the food. Oh dear.
We stayed alas only for one night at this magical spot whilst en-route from our home in Portugal to visit our daughter on the Cote D’Azure.The Paradore itself together with the village is truly “old Spain”.Our room in the tower was more than we expected and dinner and drinks beforehand very enjoyable,as was breakfast.The staff, from reception through to the waitresses in the dining room,were a pleasure.Unlike one of the other comments above,we found that the prices for drinks and dinner were more than reasonable for what is after all a top notch setting.
If we have one small criticism it would be the signposting to reach the hotel,
not having the benefit of satnav we found the directions given in our booking confirmation quite ambiguous and spent some 20 minutes driving around before arriving at the Paradore.
All in all this Paradore is a must stay location.
We stayed at Alarcon on April 26th our 30th wedding anniversary and our first Parador, well what a stunning location, a fairytale castle tastefully altered to accomodate semi modern rooms. Slightly small but big enough for one night or two with real slit castle windows, magic. A walk around the village and surrounds shows what a fantastic location this is with much longer trails available if you like hiking. Breakfast and dinner were both great and to our liking although I agree a little late opening for dinner but then thats Spain and thats what the Spanish do so just have another drink. Yes the drinks were a bit too expensive when you know how cheap it is to buy in Spanish supermarkets.
We enjoyed our stay at Alarcon very much. Beautiful location, and very nice trails. We went on a lovely hike one of the days we stayed there, and also enjoyed walking around in the village. Would have preferred to have dinner a little earlier, however, no problem. Will definitely recommend Alarcon to our friends, and hope to stay at more paradors in the future.
The approach to the building is stunning. The staff were good….in parts. The room we had was …….well….pokey, and the breakfast was not too good and served perfunctorily. Probaly the least enjoyable Parador we’ve stayed in.
We have stayed in some 12 Paradors over the last few years and this is one of the most attractive of very many others. The location is stunning. Our bedrooom, on both occassions, was spacious and attractive. The restuarant and menus, excellent. The staff attentive, though, unusually for a Parador, only the younger generation appeared to speak and/or understand English or French- but then we may have had the ” Granny Shift” on duty-twice!
Our advice is to make the effort to stay, you will not be disappointed, we were not so.
It was our third experience at staying in a Parador(all really excellent). Our room was amazing and romantic, at the top of the tower with stunning views from the roof,a thick mist filled the valley in the early morning,giving you a feeling of being above the clouds . It was a spectacular arrival, from driving through rolling agricultural land to the magnificent gorge.we would have loved to have stayed longer,just enjoying the walks around the valley.
The food was enjoyable local fare and reasonably priced, the breakfast served in our room was lovely.
I enjoyed reading all the comments and am glad others had a good experience. Maybe we had a “guest cheif” when we visited. Our son is a chef and owns a very successful SF Bay Area gourmet food distribution company – he creates and distributes organic raw foods, so I am very familiar with excellence and very well traveledas well. Something must have gone very wrong in the kitchen the evening we visited. Unfortunately, we have had so many European gourmet food experiences with which to compare – we must have been really spoiled somewhere along the line. We did ask for chef assistance – but to no avail. Just a bad night at the Alarcon. I’m sure the good evenings others have had were rewarding. Glad to hear it!
The approach to the Parador is magical it takes your breath away. Our room was beautiful with superb views from the windows . We dined in the parador in the evening and the food was excellent and the waiters extremely attentive.We requested the key to the ramparts in the morning and got some fantastic photographs. On the whole we had a lovely time and we are left with wonderful memories.
This was our 3rd stay at a Parador,the approach was unbelievable with the Castle being the first you see, located on the highest part of Alarcon village.We thought the conversion has been carried out very tastefully..Upon arrival our room was not quite ready so we had a drink in the courtyard, the receptionist a very pleasant lady showed us to our room and provided us with various local information of the area, our room was excellant with great views down to the valley, both the damped river & old stone bridge ( room 114 ) The standard of food was good, but we did feel the bar prices rather over the top, during our stay e did not expeience any problems with noise.
Places to visit, we took a trip to the town of Belmonte the castle is under renovation but is one of the best presserved in Spain, along with the local windmills. thoughly enjoyable stay. thank you.
Four of us, my son, his wife along with my husband and myself stayed one night at Alarcon. It was the first of three. The others being Cuenca and Siguenza. We had never stayed in a Parador hotel before and contrary to Marcie plummer’s experience we thought Alarcon had the best Chef. My husband is an excellent cook and we can be a little critical. Obviously something went wrong on Marcie’s night but I think it would have been constructive to have discussed the complaint with the chef.
Both our rooms were superb with reasonable window size. I have no doubt there are rooms with restricted views but not ours.
All three Paradors were great each one had something different and in the future we intend to opt for weekend breaks and stay longer in each. If i have one slight criticism its the menu’s, they are all too similar.
I’ve stayed at many Paradors over the years. The Alarcon was not up to the standard of most of the others I’ve stayed. The food was awful – over cooked. We left it because we couldn’t swallow it. Our room was tiny without a window you could see out – it was high up near the ceiling. We traveled quite a way out of our way to get there. It was a Parador I wouldn’t recommend.
As we approached the Parador we were thrilled to see it high upon the hill ahead – it’s a stunning location. As you drive up through the town of VERY small winding streets you feel like you’ve stepped in to another time. Fantastic! This was our first experience with a Parador and it was a great one at that. Check in was easy, the room was very elegant and quite romantic. The attention to detail was impeccable!
Wonderful building, tastefully converted to provide high quality accommodation but retaining historical feel of old Spain. It was our first trip to the area and the whole setting of Alarcon and its Parador is almost magical. The Parador receptionists were very helpful, showing us personally to our room. Information provided on local walks and trips from the Parador was excellent and proved very useful.
The standard of the food provided (2 dinners and breakfasts) was very good although we would have preferred a buffet breakfast rather than being served (but that is just a personal preference and not a crticism).