Alex Trelinski
A MURCIA City hotel will become the region’s only five-star rated establishment following extensive refurbishments.
The old Hotel Arco de San Juan on Calle Correos will be renamed as the Palacio Real de San Juan under the Royal Hideaway Hotel brand with a provisional opening date of Easter 2026.
Two extra floors are being added along with two new restaurants and a rooftop terrace with ‘panoramic views’ including that of the city’s cathedral.
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With 592 rooms, it will have the largest number of bedrooms of any Murcia City hotel.
The project is a joint venture between Grupo Fuertes who bought the building in 2022 and Grupo Barcelo who are in charge of the refurbishment and will manage the hotel.
Barcelo South general manager, Gaspar Saez, said the changes had been ‘complex’.
“It has not been easy, as in addition to the two new floors, we have to redo the facade, pivot the structures and annex the two buildings that made up the old hotel,” he revealed.
Saez added that the hotel will not just be for tourists but will be ‘open to Murcians’ with separate entrances for the restaurants and the rest of the building.
Earlier plans to gain Michelin-star status for one of the restaurants have been shelved.
Gaspar Saez said that they were now looking for ‘a more everyday concept, so that people can come to eat or celebrate any event’.
The upgraded hotel will have a swimming pool and a conference room with capacity for 80 people.
Speaking on behalf of Grupo Fuertes, Laura Fuertes, stated: “We have bet everything on this because there are lots of things to do in Murcia.”
“We want this hotel to attract tourism, create jobs and a leave a mark on the area,” she added.
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