Hotel Mandarin Oriental is located on Passeig de Gràcia, right in the center of the Catalan capital of Barcelona. What used to be a bank has now been transformed into a luxurious designer hotel. On the outside the architects, Carlos Ferrater and Joan Trias de Bes of Studio OAB, have altered very little, merely removing a few ornaments from the limestone facade. The interior, on the other hand, has been changed in its entirety and tailored to the requirements of an exclusive clientele -- from the atrium flooded with light to the generously proportioned lounge area, the spa area, and the expansive pool landscape on the roof deck.

The interior and the hotel rooms are the work of the studio of Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola, with many of the furnishings having been specially designed for the new hotel. All areas of the Mandarin Oriental have been furnished individually. Three suites, including the 200-square meter presidential suite on the ninth floor, are particularly spacious and exclusively fitted out.

www.patriciaurquiola.com (Patricia Urquiola , collaborators: Silvia Scarpat and Rodrigo Izquierdo)
www.ferrater.com (Carlos Ferrater and Joan Trias de Bes)