Hotel Rural & SPA Mas Prat de Castellar — Hotel in la Vall de Bianya

The stay at the place was a big disappointment in several ways.||The short version: The only impressive thing was the view.||||The details:||We booked the room "lila" for one night on a weekend for two adults, a kid and a dog. On the booking.com website we got the impression that this consists of two separate rooms, just to find out, that this is all just in one quite small room. The photos on the website were somewhat misleading but if it would have been only this, we would just have taken the error on our side and said that we should have looked more careful before booking.||||But things got worse.||||Arrival and check in:||||At arrival we did not see a clear sign that pointed out the way to reception, so we were wandering around the building, checking several doors, until a cleaning lady pointed out where we should go.||While check-in was quite friendly, we missed an explanation of the amenities and services the hotel has to offer, where to find them, etc. The only information that was pointed out was that we would need to tell in advance if we want to have dinner. ||||Room:||||As mentioned, the room was much smaller as we expected from looking at the pictures and it had quite a strong smell, probably caused by some cleaning agent that had just recently been used.||The bathroom was very uncommon as it had a glass door that gives a strong feeling of missing privacy when using it, as well, the bathtub had quite some moldy areas and the way the light was installed did not look very safe. ||||Lunch service:||||Since we arrived about lunch time, we asked if we could order some lunch. While this was possible, our request to have it in our room or take it there was denied without reason. As a second option we asked if we could have it outside at a table but the staff insisted we had to go inside the building. Since the whole restaurant was totally empty at that time we could not see why that was the case and expected some more flexibility.||||We were not very hungry, so we just ordered a small lunch for one with three plates. Not being sure if our request was not understood very well or lost in translation, we ended up being served two portions at a small table. When we requested if we could have just a third plate for the kid, the staff was quite unfriendly and instead of just fulfilling our request, moved all our food and plates to a larger table making us move. As mentioned, all this happened in a totally empty restaurant, where it would have been easy to just move a chair and add a plate. Being very unhappy with the way we were being served, we got up and left.||||Spa:||Considering the price that we paid, we expected that it would be already included in our booking, just to find out that there is an extra fee for it, which we consider way to high, when you look at the size of the area and services offered. When the kid entered the - again totally empty - spa area just to look around, she was told off to leave because it is not free. A litte more empathy towards a kid would have been a better approach. ||||Outside area: ||While on the first look things looked reasonably well maintained, there are a few things that need improvement. Among this was the railing close to the pool, that did not seem very stable but even more important there were some swivel chairs made of metal that were not properly attached to the ground. So when the child was playing in one, the chair just fell over. While it luckily did not cause any injuries this could have ended badly. ||||Customer service:||After all these things we decided not to continue our stay and to leave the place. Mentioning the things that we were not happy about, the receptionist either did not understand all of it, or did not really care about what was wrong. Instead they insisted on charging us for the nearly untouched lunch.||||Since this place presents itself on the internet as an upscale place and charges prices in that level, I would have expected a way more superior customer service, consisting of at least an apology, an offer to upgrade us to a different room, a voucher or even a refund, but nothing of this happend and the receptionist did not seem to be even a little uncomfortable in letting us go.||||A final thing that looked a little odd to us, is that while booking that place it showed that we were booking the last available room, but during the few hours of our stay, we did barely see any other guests on the premises. ||||I cannot recommend this place at all and would advise the management or owners of the hotel to invest in some customer services training for the staff and check the safety of their...

We were looking for a base camp to tour around the beautiful Garrotxa region and its Medieval villages (Beget, Rupit, Besalú, Castelfollit de la Roca, etc.) and we found this place not through the usual websites but on Google Maps. Lucky us. And lucky our dogs too (they welcome well-behaved dogs for a small fee and they are free to roam around except on the dining areas; ours ended up good friends with their's, the gorgeous Pellut). Our stay was nothing short of wonderful. This mountain lodge is situated on a terrenal paradise situation, overlooking the Bianya Valley range, where sunrises are to die for. The infinite pool was too cold to use in winter, but it added a magical mirror effect to the terrace. Two horses grazed in the park, adding to the picturesque effect. Room heating was excellent and water pressure also, the latter not all that common among mountain lodges. Cleanliness was great too. But asides from the natural peace and beautiful surroundings, two things make it stand out: one, the food, which wouldn't pale in comparison to any great city restaurant (and based on proximity/eco ingredients). Breakfast invites to loosen your belt a couple notches, and dinner is just awesome. There are many options to choose from, but the Granny-style free range chicken, the vegetable terrine and the carpaccio of Garrotxa veal were something to write home about. And the other factor that makes this place special, obviously the most important one, is the attitude and charm of the owners/managers, Roser and Héctor, who love what they do, making each guest feel at home from the very moment they step foot on the property. I guess the word "care" is what describes them best: they care for the visitors, care for the property, care for the food and care for the environment. If you want to disconnect while not giving up comfort and really feel welcome, this...

Roser and Hector are amazing, nothing is too much trouble. The hotel is located 5km from St Joan up a hill, but it’s remoteness is it’s charm. Surrounded by amazing scenery and hiking paths, it’s an oasis of tranquility. The hotel has a spa, which can be reserved and is large enough for 2. We had massages in the spa - Jordi was great. Rooms are also great, our patio was huge and we could just sit there and watch the surrounding beauty. Bed was comfy enough and the bathroom had a bathtub, which we used to great effect after our hiking. Cleaned daily. There’s also a shared living area - every set of 4 rooms basically has a living room/kitchen area that is for the use of guests. There’s a fridge, stove top and a fireplace (that Hector lights every night) with a couple of sofas. There are horses and cows in the fields below and the hotel dog Pelut mills around looking for things to bark at. All in all, we were here 5 days and had the entire hotel to ourselves on 2 of the 5. Was quite blissful. Even with all rooms full, there would be plenty of room, as there’s a pool and various different chill out areas. |Lastly the food - free breakfast every morning, ready cooked by Roser (bacon and eggs please!) and dinner, while limited, was excellent every night. Add to this a reasonably priced wine list.|Excellent stay that I’d highly recommend - Roser and Hector go above and beyond and we’ve already decided to go back. We live in the center of Barcelona, so this place is just the ticket for some fresh mountain air....