Parador De Guadalupe

The rooms are spacious and the staff friendly, and the parador itself is stunning, right in the heart of the city with charming, authentic facilities. Its gardens are beautifully kept. We didn't eat there, but the extensive menu looked well priced, especially next to some square restaurants where value for money is only average. The rooms could use some modernization while keeping the hotel's signature style. In summer, the pool should stay open later, since it currently closes while it's still hot and daylight.

We usually enjoy our stays at a Parador, and this one was no exception. José María Mateos was especially friendly and efficient, and explained in great detail how REPAPALOS were made. The evening dining setting in the patio de naranjos/limoneros was perfect. I also noticed the intriguing six-point-star ventilation holes in the room. Room 4 is best avoided. It has two steep steps to the bathroom, a window facing the street and Parador entrance, so traffic noise can be annoying around 7 am, an ancient-looking 14-inch TV, and a strange A/C device. I couldn't get the strongbox to work with a credit card. Reception seemed overwhelmed or understaffed when we arrived around 1:15 pm, and we waited five minutes for the parking barrier to be raised.

The orange trees in the yard made for a pretty setting, but the stay was kind of mediocre given my expectations. The room furniture was basic, mostly useless, and the sheets were really uncomfortable. Dinner on an ordinary evening was good, and so was the bar. The Christmas meal, though, was horrible, with food that didn't seem real and nothing that felt like Christmas, such as turkey or seafood. We had salmon canelloni.

We had a terrace looking out over the Monastery, though not every room will have that view. The lovely patio under the orange and lemon trees is available to all guests. Sitting in the shade was pleasant even in summer, and with the trees in bloom in spring it must be an amazing sensory experience. Staff everywhere were pleasant and helpful, and breakfast was excellent. Dinner didn't meet the same standard. At other Paradores, the Lingote de cochinillo is so good you can eat it with your eyes closed, but ours had lots of fat and gristle, plus three small bones. We paid over €750 for three nights. A longer stay probably isn't a great idea, since there's little in the small town besides the Monastery.