Elisa Menendez
BED down in a bubble like Michael Jackson, snuggle up in a snail shell or branch out with a night in a treehouse… If expanding your horizons is one of your New Year’s Resolutions, there’s heaps of wanderlust inspiration on the doorstep.
The Four Seasons and Palladium are the latest hotel giants to invest in Spain but why not try some of the country’s more left-field lodgings in 2019?
For our last property magazine of the year we’ve round up the wackiest hotels in the country where kids can be kids and grown-ups can indulge their inner child.
Miles Estrelles, Girona
Spend the night gazing at the stars inside a giant transparent bubble for the ultimate ‘womb with a view’ experience.
Miles Estrellas, close to famous Banyoles Lake in Borgonya, is a cluster of seven translucent pods named after a constellation.
Some bubbles include chimneys and gardens, and come with heating, wifi and private bathrooms.
Hotel Los Caracoles, Frigiliana
Malaga’s delightful snail hotel is exactly what it says on the tin. The 12 semicircular cave-rooms are designed to blend in with the surrounding nature, with rustic features and charming circular Hobbit windows.
To emulate real snail shells, the dwellings have been built without straight lines, fusing nature and architecture with extravagant swirls, curves and vibrant colours reminiscent of Gaudi.
Cabanes als Arbres, Sierra de Montseny
If you want to reconnect with nature but find camping too uncomfortable, a night in an eco tree house will take you back to your prehistoric roots in style.
Submerged in the forest canopy of the Sierra de Montseny, some 84 kilometres from Barcelona, the Cabanes als Arbres comprises 10 wooden tree top lodgings perched up to eight metres high.
Each named after a different bird, these flights of architectural fantasy are built from natural untreated wood, with a layer of hemp and fir tree fibre for ventilation and double-glazed windows.
Isla Tagomago, Ibiza
The private paradise island of Tagomago is the most exclusive in the Mediterranean and you can enjoy it all to yourself, along with an incredible luxury five-bedroom villa.
The white-washed ultra-modern pad is the sole property on the island. It features state-of-the-art technology, a saltwater pool, rainfall showers and magnificent floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Ibizan coastline, five minutes away by boat.
This castaway island experience can be yours if you can run to the whopping €100,000-a-week price tag.
Hotel del Juguete, Alicante
If you’ve got kids in tow, you are going to score serious ‘cool parent’ points with a holiday to this playful four-star hotel which brings Toy Story to life. Each of the 21 rooms is based on popular toys like Playmobil and Lego, while the Juegaterapia room will transport you to the world of videogames.
It may drive grown-ups mad being surrounded by happy figurines and dazzling colours all day but it will certainly keep the little ones entertained.
Adults can have their fun too in the ‘Back to the Past’ room, which comes with retro games like Pac-Man and Rubik Cube and a king-sized bed.
