The Club Lounge can be found on level A,
To gain entry, you must use your room key card to open the automated sliding door.

Opening hours is from 6.30 till 23 H daily.
The service flow throughout the day:

Breakfast :
6.30 till 11 H morning (served in the club lounge breakfast room annex)

Drinks & Apéritif :
11 H morning till close (alcoholic drinks are out & displayed)

Afternoon tea :
15 - 17 H (cold bites & sandwiches)

Evening cocktails :
17 - 19 H (2 hot items are added)


As reported by the ever knowledgable nicolas75 : the club lounge in its commencing stages had free flow Veuve Clicquot.
From breakfast untill closing, one could help onself to a glass.....
However with tourist spring & summer seasons returning
+ cruiseship passengers coming back in full force, it was observed that guests were helping themselves to the entire bottle...
Usually not a problem but they took out the bottles to their room or poured it in take away cups to go......
citing "in America the club is just a pantry for grab & go"

So management was left with a choice .....
After analysis,
it showed that during spring & sumner cruise season the club lounge is frequented
by 50% revenue guests (payed for access clubroom/suite)
and by 50% guests that have access due to RA or Diamond 40/70N milestone choice lounge pass
deducting the lounge turning from profit centre to cost centre

Only during the winter and off-season is where 85%+ of the club lounge guests are revenue guests
So the lounge turns then back from cost centre to profit centre

Also the American nationality outranks during Barcelona peak summer cruise season,
while normally the UK-nationality is the most foreign nationality in club residency.

Keeping that in mind and noting other hotels in Barcelona with club lounges as competition.

It was decided to enhance away free flow Veuve Clicquot in the club lounge,
only to have it returned during winter / festive season.....

To offer instead only local Catalunyan alternatives in bubbly & wines
And to offer alcohol options more suited to British tastes
and to have both offered non-stop from 11 - 23 H
(instead of only 17-19 H)


Their logic is understandable so with that adaptability in mind,
This must be the first ever honest hotel that admits at peak travel seasons a reduced offering is put out.
While during their off peak travel season and high yielding festive season an improved selection is put out.

FYI BTW:
the local Spanish cava and different Catalunyan red& white wines were fine,
rather prefer the local touch and possibility to sample Spanish delights than
instead of again LouisVouittonMoetHenessy conglomo of Dom/Moet/Veuve/Krug/Ruinart/ChevalBlanc/CloudyBay etc.

So let's go on with the club lounge.
The physical space is divided in 3 rooms:
- TV room
- sitting room (main area ) with entrance
- annex (only open for breakfast)


Breakfast :
6.30 till 11 H morning (served in the club lounge breakfast room annex)


A view into the main seating area
from the breakast room annex
to the front is the television room




The front entrance of the club lounge


Weekdays from 7 - 15 : the lounge is hosted by friendly Eliza
Always takes the time for a chat in excellent English
And very helpful in printing out travel documents and airline boarding passes


Now we go to the club breakfast room annex

A look into the club lounge breakfast room annex (this seating is only open during breakfast hours)






The club lounge breakfast buffet has the same choices as the main breakfast restaurant Arrel downstairs





What's available on the buffet



And what's on the buffet?


All was fresh





The buffet was kept neat and tidy






A dedicated attendant kept everything stocked





About 10 minutes before closing, the attendant will make rounds to announce the last chance for any last servings & orders





The buffet has something for everyone





The cava is free flow at breakfast





All items were fresh tasting





A lot of choice




Allergens were mentioned





More choice





Honey fresh from the hotel's own resident bee population





And what do we have here...
bloggers Milelion & OMAAT approved luxury butter: Beurre d'Isigney
i can't blame you if you were more attracted by the Nutella instead




An à la carte cook to order menu is also available



We tried

Egg Benedict




Egg Florentine




To honour blogger deity god-like OMAAT: the advocado
The comments on OMAAT's hotel reviews are always dedicated to the usual advocado toast choice




The dedicated club breakfast room attendant,
kudos for doing it all by herself AND fetching the hot cook to order items from restaurant Arrel downstairs!
AND stocking the buffet
AND cleaning the tables !




And now onwards to


Drinks & Apéritif :
11 H morning till close (alcoholic drinks are out & displayed)

This is available in the main club lounge seating area



The main sitting area of the club lounge


We have a look first at the left display stand (all day offering)


Nibbles





Choice of teas
BTW: those Haribos are deadly tasty



Nespresso choices in pad for
(the room has the capsules edition)




The coffee machine


And what about the drinks?

The drinks trolley pops out at 11 morning sharp and is locked away at 23H evenings


Unfortunately no Veuve Clicquot but that doesn't spoil the mood at all!

And it is free flow help yourself provided you enjoy it in the comfort of the club lounge



All is good in the world if the drinks are cool

The cold alcoholic beverages of the drinks cart



These drinks are also available at anytime

A lot of choice from the fridge


As Mrs Slocombe would prefer,
These are the choices for a discrete nip:


Catering to British tastes : these options are out from 11 mornings till 23 H evenings



And if you wish to suss it out ...


And it is all very laid back .... you can just recover from jetlag with an early arrival by going directly to the club lounge
or before going boarding your luxury cruise if you need to kill some time and have already checked out



And let's go on to the next stage....


Afternoon tea :
15 - 17 H (cold bites & sandwiches)

Evening cocktails :
17 - 19 H (2 hot items are added)

I grouped these together as the service flow goes in 1 ease from one to another.
The difference is that afternoon tea has only cold items / sandwiches out while at evening cocktails also some hot items are being brought out.
Just a heads up : these are nibbles and do not constitute a full meal substitution but it ought to satisfy if one is feeling peckish.



From 15 - 23 H the lounge hostess will be friendly Paiz,
she has an extensive background in Michelin dining and the local happening food scene,
having colaborated personally with the knowledgable Guia Repsol
https://www.guiarepsol.com/es/soles-repsol/
https://www.gastromasa.com/these-are...ol-guide-2022/
and is happy to recommend and book something that suits your palate / time / budget and interests


And now a look what's on offer from 15 - 19 H


Nibbles 1




Nibbles 2





Nibble 3




Nibbles 4




And yes it is very laid back - as long as you are trousered the bare knee is no problem




Nibbles 5




Nibbles 6



And this pops out from 17 - 19 H

Hot nibbles (rotate daily)


Hope you find this analysis informative...
I had to churn this out in time for Atacama40 's upcoming trip to Barcelona so he knows what to expect and to inform the Mrs.
For those visiting the hotel soon, it might reveal some insights if you are considering a club upsell.
It can be worth it for the extensive breakfast buffet choice,
the ease of having professional Eliza & Paiz handle all related hotel/ Barcelona/travel matters,
and if you need help with Spanish or Catalunyan language barriers,
and for our British friends the sheer comfort of having nonstop a tipple and a quick nosh .....