The Costa Daurada is having its moment. Perhaps that's not quite right, seeing as this is the coastline that includes the city of Barcelona, which is currently staging a revolt against over-tourism. And Soho House has had an outpost since 2019. But, the number of people choosing to move to Sitges has risen again this year. So I checked into one of the small number of hotels that has been there since the 19th century.
If you like art nouveau architecture (Ed: don't you mean 'Catalan modernisme'?), Sitges is your sort of place. But if you're looking for an Art Nouveau hotel to stay in, you have to look a little bit harder, or spend a bit more. Most of the latest five-star additions to this coastline, while offering luxury, could be - architecturally - anywhere in the world. Hotel El Xalet, neatly situated between the beach and the train station, is the perfect place to cosplay as a 19th-century Barcelonian visiting their holiday home in Sitges, or one of the many artists who took up residency at the turn of the century.
Now it's perhaps best that I warn you that this is officially a two-star hotel. If you carefully filter your hotel searches like me, you might miss it. From what I can gather, this rests on the absence of room service. But the loss of that star is more than compensated for by the on-site restaurant, El Xalet, with a reputation for food so good that locals, and those staying nearby, can be heard phoning up for reservations. There are certainly far higher-end hotels in Sitges and the surrounding Costa del Garraf, but they lack the charm of El Xalet.
The rooms are spacious, very nearly bordering on sparse, but with an eclectic-but-tasteful selection of antique furniture appropriate for the period of the building. The pool is positioned well for sunbathing in the day, sitting next to the outdoor restaurant illuminated with festoons and candles for the evening. Both sit under an almost arboretum of tree cover that manages to let the sunshine in and keep the Garrafian heat out.
But the real reason I fell in love with this hotel is the building itself. Originally built as a private residence by the architect Gaietà Buïgas i Monravà, Villa Avelina as it was known then, draws heavily on neo-Gothic and French Gothic styles. Although Sitges is home to many such buildings, the majority are still private homes. Hotel El Xalet is an opportunity to sleep surrounded by painted ceilings, stained glass, and mosaic floors, for under £130 per night.
In the restaurant, the Tuna Tataki is not to be missed. I'm often suspicious of a fusion menu, but Sitges has become renowned for its Japanese restaurants, partly driven by an abundance of premium fish. This coastline offers particularly good Atlantic bluefin tuna. El Xalet's menu retains a catalonian feel, with some welcome Asian flavour profiles.
Sitges is changing rapidly, and more chain-run establishments are opening each year. If you'd rather a taste of the superb seafood that this section of the Mediterranean has to offer, keeping away from the excessively modern décor of other establishments, the quiet majesty of 'old Sitges' can be found in El Xalet.
We stayed in a double room with a balcony, overlooking Carrer de l'Illa de Cuba, for €148.50 per night, for three nights.
★★★★☆ 4/5
Hotel El Xalet
Carrer de l'Illa de Cuba, 35, 08870 Sitges, Barcelona, Spain elxalet.com
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