La Casa Del Sol Hotel Gracia District, Sonder — Hotel in Barcelona

I have stayed in Spain before in places with no air conditioning. I specifically chose Sonder La Casa del Sol in part because air conditioning was listed as an amenity. I arrived to a thermostat stuck on the heating setting. Although it is November, it was 25 degrees that day, and the room was clocking temperatures of 27 degrees. I spent 2 hours on the first night of my stay in contact with the Sonder team about why the AC was not working, and they told me that they would have it fixed the next day.

The next day, the problem appeared to be solved, but on Thursday night, the thermostat was turned back to heat and the room was clocking 25 degrees. I was offered to switch hotels at 2am but the location of the offered hotel was 15 minutes away, and I did not feel comfortable walking that distance so late; also, the hotel was in a less convenient location. The other proffered solution was to open the window, but as other reviewers have stated, the hotels proximity to a busy square makes it quite loud, even with the windows shut.

My other issue was that the room TV was not working, and when it finally did work, it did not have smart TV capabilities (although customer service informed me that it was supposed to be), nor did it have Cable TV (which was indicated on the provided amenities list), so it was unwatchable. Also, my partner would like me to note that the toilet paper was very low quality.

The hotel was clean, safe, and in an excellent location, but ultimately, they did not deliver on their promised amenities. And, in situations like mine, Sonders lack of on-site customer service is lacking. When I complained to Sonder customer service, they offered me a $25 refund which did not cover the cost of my inconvenience.

I was so pleased with my first experience in a Sonder, at Royal Gardens Edinburgh, that I had high expectations - given my experience in Barcelona, I regret that I will not feel comfortable staying with Sonder again because of the variance in quality between their different...

I recently stayed at this accommodation during my trip to Spain, and it was the most unsatisfactory experience I had. Here are the reasons for my dissatisfaction:

Upon my arrival at the hotel in the evening, I found the main gate locked and requiring a password to unlock. To obtain the password, I had to check-in and provide my information online, which I missed. However, the hotel did not attempt to contact me through any other means, and the online registration process was cumbersome. It took me nearly 15 minutes to complete.

The room was stuffy and lacked proper ventilation. If I wanted to have some fresh air, I had to open the windows. However, due to the hotel's proximity to a bar, it was quite noisy at night, making it difficult to sleep.

The mattress was too soft, and after just two nights of staying, I started experiencing backaches and discomfort.

The shower water was excessively hot. I initially thought it was my mistake, so I kept adjusting the temperature, but the water remained scalding hot. (I usually shower with water at around 42 degrees Celsius.)

On the positive side, there were a few good aspects:

The receptionist, particularly a female staff member, had a friendly and welcoming smile.

The location of the accommodation was ideal.

Overall, I was dissatisfied with my stay at this accommodation. The lack of effective communication regarding the gate password, the uncomfortable room conditions, and the issues with the mattress and shower water temperature significantly affected my experience. I hope the management can address these concerns to improve the quality of their accommodation...

We had a great time in Barcelona. The Gracia area suits our style of travel - local plaza’s and many cafes and bars.

The Sonder was a bit of an enigma for us. The location is fabulous right on the Plaça del Sol with its numerous bars and eateries. Close to Metro station Fontana and easy walking distance to Diagonal and Joanic.

The staff were amazing, Judith in particular.

There were just a few little annoyances to stop us from giving it a higher rating.

The rooftop bar wasn’t operating for the duration of our visit.

There’s not much climate control in the rooms. The hotel’s heating system is season based. We had two unusually hot days, but had no capability to turn the air-con lower due to it being on the winter setting. Only solution was to open the window. If objection to that sounds a bit petty, the problem is that the location IS a noisy one. So the choice was to roast at night, or be kept awake by lively action from the square. Not ideal, not a deal breaker either.

The rooms are basic with little to no storage. A hanging frame and a token set of shelves, mostly taken up by an ironing board. The room was clean and comfortable though and the bathroom was excellent.

Breakfast was included in our deal, but we only used it twice - the food was the same every day and not particularly inspiring. The coffee was awful. The staff member doing the breakfast’s however, was a delight and super helpful.

So mixed feelings. We might consider an apartment next time. But we really loved...