Review: Marina Apartaments, Barcelona Spain
When we first arrived in Barcelona Spain, we picked up our rental car and headed to our hotel – Marina Apartaments in Barcelona. Richie had chosen this specific property for its incredible view of Basilica De La Sagrada Familia. Plus, it had attached underground parking, something nearly nonexistent in Spain. Moustafa checked us in. He was very helpful and provided us with a recommendation for a great restaurant that serves Paella across the street. (Stay tuned for my Best Paella in Barcelona article coming soon)
Marina Apartaments Barcelona
You may remember (if you read our previous article) that we had a sudden change of travel plans in Spain. Due to historic flooding in Valencia and other town, visiting the coastal areas southeast of Barcelona was not advised. (See link below for more about that.) Our original trip included a scheduled stay to review a resort in Peniscola, with tours to Valencia. The storms forced us to switch our destination completely. So, we chose to book additional nights in Barcelona along with some time in Costa Brava.
Richie was a bit stressed, having to suddenly rearrange our entire trip in a matter of days. Since it was so last minute, I told him to book anything he could find that he thought we would both enjoy. I was on deadlines and just said “surprise me”, when he tried to present me with options.
Amazing View
Richie did an incredible job selecting properties for our entire trip using Booking.com. The two bedroom apartment at Marina Apartaments was spacious and located in a fabulous area. It is about one block from the Sagrada Familia. While the place was not luxurious, it was much bigger than a typical hotel room. My husband was super happy, using the second bedroom to spread out his photography gear. Plus, the apartment had all sorts of amenities that don’t normally come with a hotel room. There was a full kitchen with a stovetop, an oven, a microwave and a good sized fridge.
The absolute best part however was the balcony that offered a breathtaking view of Sagrada Familia. Marina Apartaments has several rooms which include balconies like the one we had. That said, not all do. So, be sure to request that feature when you book.
Best Location
Normally, my personal preference is to stay in a hotel. Yes, the lodging is usually smaller, but I love the experience of staying in an artfully designed property. Of course, I grew up in NYC in an apartment, while my husband grew up in LA in a house. So, he always prefers to have more space.
Marina Apartaments turned out to be perfectly fine for me, especially considering we were out and about most of the time. Yes, it was a bit outdated in design, but for me that view from the balcony was worth the compromise. We ate leftover paella for breakfast and had romantic late night desserts out there. That balcony allowed us to create our own special memories of Barcelona with the best views of Sagrada Familia imaginable. We enjoyed watching the crowds of tourists head towards the basilica, while we kicked back and had our morning Joe.
Marina Apartaments, Marina, 306, Eixample, 08025 Barcelona, Spain; Find out more on the website – https://apartamentsmarina.com/ or visit https://www.booking.com/hotel/es/apartmentsmarina.html
CLICK HERE to read my article about how we had to rearrange our entire Spain trip at the last minute; CLICK HERE for more articles about Spain.
ETG wants to encourage our readers to visit official tourism websites for Barcelona as well as Spain – https://www.barcelonaturisme.com; https://www.spain.info/
