“An excellent hotel in the charming old town.”

The Parador Hondarribia is situated in the central square of the old town. As we had arrived during a festival every parking option in the town centre was full and I ended up a kilometre away from the hotel. Having walked to the Parador they confirmed that they had space in their car park and the... more

The Parador Hondarribia is situated in the central square of the old town. As we had arrived during a festival every parking option in the town centre was full and I ended up a kilometre away from the hotel. Having walked to the Parador they confirmed that they had space in their car park and the receptionist very kindly drew directions on a map and told us how to navigate the old city - if necessary, and I add that necessity part because if you do it right, and ignore a no entry sign, there is only one road you have to worry about, and the only really tight bit is just as you turn towards the car park gate. In normal circumstances you might have to drive around the old town to get to the car park, but the roads are one way and perfectly wide enough, so should never be a problem. As I say, the only tight bit is just before you reach the car park gate, but I had no problem in my SUV (Audi Q5). The parking area isn’t huge but the spaces are a decent size and there is plenty of room to manoeuvre. Our Superior twin room (304) was spacious and nicely furnished etc and had an excellent view of the harbour. There was also a kettle with tea bags and coffee which is always a bit of a bonus in Europe. The en-suite was also a good size with all the expected toiletries and big towels. Breakfast at the Parador was excellent with a nice selection of fresh fruits, cheeses, charcuterie etc, as well as little pots of smoked salmon, avocado, grated tomato (for tostada con tomate) and various other tasty looking things. They also do hot food to order and our fried eggs with bacon were a tasty treat after three weeks touring without. Because it’s a relatively small dining room you have to book your slot and although the staff worked hard to clear and reset tables, there isn’t much they can do when a group of middle aged people (English I’m afraid) continue to take up a table simply chatting after clearly having finished their breakfast. Just a tad selfish. Fortunately the second morning wasn’t as busy. The only part about the breakfast service I didn’t like was the terrible choice of background music on our first morning. It was truly awful and I couldn’t help thinking that here in the Basque Country, they could perhaps play some nice, traditional Basque music by the likes of Benito Lertxundi, Pier Paul Berzaitz etc. It was in the old town of Hondarribia that I first discovered this music and play it often at home. I like Paradors and this one in Hondarribia is a fine example of the chain, with the added benefit of being in the delightful old town. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay and will certainly use this hotel again when we return to Hondarribia - as we surely will.

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