Hotel Claude Marbella
Marbella, Malaga & Cordoba, Spain
Reviewed by
Guy Hunter Watts
The hippest hotel retreat in Marbella takes its name from the opera singer Claude Devoize who once lived here. At that time the house was a hub for the local intelligentsia, and the dream of its present owners was to hear the house ringing to the sound of animated conversation again, and to see it full of happy guests. Right now it certainly is, and their diminutive 7-room hotel - each one named after a province of Andalucia - has set a new benchmark in the boutique-is-beautiful league of southern Spanish hotels.
The focus of Hotel Claude is a marble-flagged patio where the original columns and wafer-bricked arches, along with a 17th-century well, are juxtaposed by two eye-catching green pouffes. This same ritzy note is carried throughout the hotel: in the library-cum-drawing room where the feel is one of a plush boudoir, in the Art Deco diner where you can take breakfast if the summer sun is too much on the roof terrace, and in its 7 bedrooms, which are among the sexiest in the Costa.
The focus of Hotel Claude is a marble-flagged patio where the original columns and wafer-bricked arches, along with a 17th-century well, are juxtaposed by two eye-catching green pouffes. This same ritzy note is carried throughout the hotel: in the library-cum-drawing room where the feel is one of a plush boudoir, in the Art Deco diner where you can take breakfast if the summer sun is too much on the roof terrace, and in its 7 bedrooms, which are among the sexiest in the Costa.
Highs
- A perfect position on a pedestrian street at the heart of Marbella's labyrinthine old town, yards from some of its best bars and restaurants
- Sumptuous bedrooms come with every conceivable gizmo
- Don't let the 'grotty Costa' image put you off coming: the old town is authentically Spanish and pretty with a capital 'P'
- We loved the intimate feel and distant sea views on the split-level roof terrace
Lows
- Marbella's beaches can get crowded, and the town can feel more international than Andalucian; but as a chic city and seaside break rolled into one, it's hard to beat
- Full lunches and dinners are generally not offered, but there are plenty of restaurants nearby
- There's no parking - but there's a car park 2 minutes away
- Bathrooms have glass doors, which may not suit travellers needing total privacy
Best time to go
Marbella's mild, Mediterranean climate means that any time of year is a good time to be here. But don't consider coming in August: the roads surrounding the town grind to a halt, it's impossible to park and what should be a 10-minute drive can take an hour. If you take a chance and come in winter you may find that it's warm enough to sunbathe and, perhaps, to swim.
Our top tips
Don't worry about running out of reading material - you can swap out your finished books for new ones in the hotel's library as part of their book exchange