Whether or not you lost a great Airbnb rental for your upcoming trip to Spain, the writing is on the wall: you need to have a backup hotel in mind when you visit the country.
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I sincerely doubt that Airbnb, Booking, and VRBO will lose their footing in Spain. While the Spanish government nixed 66,000 rentals in mid-May, tens of thousands more remain on the market. And many of them have legitimate licenses.
That being said, so long as private rental platforms allow anyone to register their home or apartment without verifying licenses, the problem is likely to recur.
More Airbnbs will be uploaded, then taken down by authorities—meaning your favorite rental in Barcelona or Malaga might not be there forever.
Here’s the good news: Spain has a handful of fantastic hotel brands, including three that you’re always aware of, Marriott, Hilton, and Hyatt. But let’s kick off the list with a few Spanish hotel brands that will set you up for a great vacation.
Best Spanish hotel brands for your next trip
H10 Hotels
When my family visits me in Barcelona, they usually stay at H10 Hotels. This popular chain has 63 hotels in 222 destinations around the country, along with others in Europe and the Caribbean.
These four-star hotels offer a comfortable and familiar setup, with added extras like rooftop lounges and other similar features. Staff have always been very helpful with my family, as well, offering suggestions and information anytime they needed.
That being said, it looks like H10’s reputation internationally isn’t the best. For that reason, I’d recommend sticking to H10 Hotels only when booking in Spain.
Eurostars
Eurostars is the most famous hotel brand of the bunch, and is owned by Hotusa Group. The company runs over 250 properties around the world, from three to five-star locations.
Its properties run a pretty large gamut, so I suggest reading reviews closely before booking a location. Because it’s such a popular hotel chain, you can also search for Eurostars Hotels in cities easily, like in Madrid.
Meliá Hotels
Meliá is the champion of Spanish hotel brands, with the largest number of resort properties and urban hotels. It runs almost 350 unique locations around the world, but I’d suggest looking into their resort properties in Spain. They’re renowned for their luxury resort stays, making them a great pick for beachside vacations.
RIU Hotels
With less than 100 properties, RIU Hotels is a smaller, more boutique brand—one that’s focused on sustainability efforts, in particular. If you’re looking for more elevated and unique hotels for your vacation in Spain, look at RIU hotels first.
While you still need to comb through reviews to avoid dud properties, some of RIU’s hotels have landed high on US travel lists.
Silken Hotels
Silken Hotels runs 35 hotels in Spain, which are designed to be unique, boutique, and geared toward hosting international visitors. That makes Silken Hotels a fantastic pick for any tourists who want a bit more care and assistance throughout their trip.
First-time visitors to Spain will do well at Silken, similar to H10. While all Spanish hotel brands strive to make the landing process easier for visitors, Silken has baked it into their overall mission and programming.
Best American hotel brands that operate in Spain
Marriott
Marriott International operates a few different hotel brands in Spain, including AC Hotels, Sonder, Design Hotels, Moxy, Autograph Collection Hotels, and more. AC Hotels will offer a basic setup, which makes it perfect for anyone who’s part of Marriott Bonvoy.
If you want to pay a bit more for a more boutique and stylish experience, book one of the Sonder or Autograph Collection rooms.
Hyatt
Hyatt operates six locations in Spain—and I’d recommend any of them. The Grand Hyatt Barcelona is the most impressive of the bunch, along with La Zambra Resort in Marbella and the Thompson Madrid. But you also have one Centric and two Regency hotels to choose from, if you want to stay more casual.
Hilton
Like Marriott, you can shop around dozens of different hotels from the Hilton brand in Spain. From luxury Tapestry Collection properties to budget DoubleTree locations, there’s a Hilton in reach in all major Spanish cities.
