W Barcelona

I wouldn't say 5 star luxury. The place stank of weed on the 18th floor. We even had a waterfall of a leak into a wheeliebin. The room was basic, the shower room floods as the drain can't cope with the water from the shower. The coffee machine didn't work, the furniture is very tired in the room. The wow light feature flickered and died. Overall the floor was looking very tired. The staff were nice but the hotel needs to be refitted urgently.

DO NOT STAY HERE – Security Risk & Complete Lack of Accountability. I had a deeply disturbing experience at the W Barcelona that I would never expect from a 5-star hotel. During my stay, legitimate cash was stolen from my backpack and replaced with counterfeit bills - an incredibly calculated and targeted act for a tourist. The theft occurred either while my luggage was held by hotel staff prior to check-in or during housekeeping service. What’s worse than the theft itself is the hotel’s total failure to take the matter seriously. I have made multiple attempts to contact the property, provide detailed documentation, and request cooperation in filing a police report. I have received no meaningful response, no ownership, and no action from the hotel’s management or security team. This was not a simple loss - it was a coordinated theft within the hotel, involving staff access and intent to deceive. I travel frequently and have never experienced something so brazen or mishandled. I am now out thousands of euros and have been met with silence. If you value your safety, your security, or your peace of mind while traveling, do not stay at this property. Until the hotel takes responsibility for protecting its guests and responding professionally to criminal incidents, I would strongly advise against staying here.

Noelia at the reception offered us incredible service and went above and beyond to ensure we had the best stay. We were really impressed with the precise and personalized customer service. A big thank you to Noelia for making our experience so special!

During my stay at W Barcelona, I unfortunately experienced several incidents that left me very disappointed, especially considering this is a five-star hotel. When I first checked in, my luggage—which was right next to me at the reception desk—was stolen. Someone walked in, took it, and left. I had to spend my entire first day in Barcelona at the police station instead of enjoying my trip. What made the situation worse was that no one from the hotel contacted the police in advance or tried to facilitate the process, so I was left waiting for 2–3 hours just to file a report. The main issue is that from the moment I arrived until I completed the check-in, no one assisted us with our luggage. If there had been proper staff to take care of the bags, provide tags, and ensure security, this would not have happened. For a hotel of this level, much more attention to guests’ safety and belongings is expected. Even basic service was disappointing: I requested a towel and a bathrobe, and more than three hours later, nothing was delivered. On another occasion, despite having the “Do Not Disturb” sign on my door, a member of housekeeping knocked and immediately opened the door, which made me feel very uncomfortable about privacy and security. That being said, I would like to sincerely thank Peter, the hotel manager, who tried his best to ease the situation and showed genuine care in handling my case. His efforts were appreciated, but unfortunately they do not change the fact that such serious issues occurred in the first place. Overall, this was not the level of service, security, or professionalism I would ever expect from a W Hotel.

The famous saying: “build it and they will come!” holds true for this landmark property in Barcelona located at Barceloneta Beach. Countless YouTube reviews, Instagram posts and the like make this hotel a magnet for partygoers who can afford rooms with sea views at over USD 500 per night. Intentionally targeted at a younger Gen Y, Gen Z crowd. In all honesty, our 2 night stay was mixed. As many other reviewers have noted here on Tripadvisor, check-in is a zoo. Long lines around peak arrival time and frequently guests arrive after 15.00 and rooms are not ready owing to a combination of late check outs and lack of housekeeping staff. In fairness to the hotel GM, there were no excuses offered just a frank and honest explanation which I acknowledge with thanks. To the details. I’ll start with the positives. Breakfast at Salt on the ground floor is excellent. A la carte options, extensive buffet with high quality food and friendly staff. Avoid busier times around 10-11.30 as the lines can get long The view is hard to beat in Barcelona. All beds are facing the bay so when you open curtains in the morning, you are greeted by a view the Med. Now, the negatives. Check-in. Oh Lord! The hotel has around 500 rooms which is sizeable but I have stayed in 5* hotels with more than 1000 rooms and it was never as slow as the W Barcelona. The hotel needs to hire an operations management consultant to fix the flow/throughout issues. It leaves a very negative first impression which puts pressure on everyone to undertake service recovery. Inconsistent staff. We interacted with around 5 people working at the hotel (4 of whom at reception). I have addressed the issues at check-in with one supervisory staff member already with the hotel GM so won’t repeat here. However, fully cognisant of the fact that check-out may involve a long wait, 3 hours before check-out, I reached out to reception to provide an address for the hotel bill/folio to be added so that the check-out process could be expedited. Three hours later at check-out, it appears nothing had been done by the staff member I gave the address details to in the first place. This is just plain unprofessional and the young gentleman who purposely dropped the ball needs to have a serious talking to. Rooms. The hotel claims it will start renovating the rooms. This can’t happen soon enough. The physical state of the hotel is very 2010. Rooms have damage that have not been fixed (see photos). Hotel premises. Some areas of neglect (self evident from the photos). Overall, a mixed experience at best. The hotel did offer one goodwill gesture to me by virtue of my status as a frequent guest of Marriott properties. Much appreciated! My wife summed it up as we left: don’t make the same mistake again. There are many 5-* properties in Barcelona, so if that’s your budget. Do your homework before booking!