I don´t remember where I learned about this hotel, but I am glad I did. What a beautiful oasis right in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps that is wrong to say, because the area has plenty of small and beautiful towns, but I would never have guessed that such a pearl would show up in front of us when we first got there.
Castell d´Empordá and their great restaurant is a mix of modern design and artifacts from the middle- ages and Spanish history. Velvet cushions up against the rough walls of stone and art from various decades, styles and types comes together and creates a stylish hotel with a lovely atmosphere.
From the beautiful reception area you take the stairs up to the restaurant, which is both inside and outside. Both wonderful. Through the garden, right next to the lavender plants, an elevator pops up and if you decide to stay in the garden suites, you take the elevator down as far as your key tells you to. The hallways are dark, mysterious and rustic, and the rooms are modern, light and very cool looking. The bathrooms are almost as big as the living room/bedroom, and there is an enormous bathtub by the window that reaches from the floor to the roof, offering a green and lovely view. I would love to take this bathroom home with me.
You can also stay at the tower, in the old part of the castle or in a suite. The hotel was full, so I didn´t get to look at any of the other rooms, but it is difficult to imagine that any of the other rooms would be any less wonderful than the garden suites.
To get to the pool area you could walk up the cool iron stairs, passing more cool artifacts and statues. The pool is big enough and surrounded with large lounge matrasses, parasols and sun chairs. It is very nice and equipped with a hot looking Spanish guy serving your every need.
Being at a relatively remote destination, we were happy to find out that their restaurant was top notch. They are mentioned in the Michelin restaurant guide, which is always a good thing. The restaurant served both a good breakfast and a wonderful lunch and dinner. And one of the best things about it was the people working there. Both the hostess and the sommelier knew their stuff and were just the right amount of polite, funny and knowledgeable.
