Hotel de Francia y París

Description:

• If you want to be smack in the heart of Cádiz, safe and relatively comfortable, this is an unpretentious, viable choice. Originally built in 1902 and later garnished with hints of both Art Deco and 1950s-era overlays, this five-story white-fronted structure is the most interesting of the very limited number of midsize, cost-conscious hotels in Cádiz's Old Town. There's just a whiff of Franco-era Spain about this place, and a guest list that reads like a who's who of Spanish culture. (Writers and poets Ortega y Gasset and José María Peman both stayed here, along with scads of lesser lights throughout the post-World War II era.) Bedrooms are simple but clean and filled with somewhat dowdy angular wooden furniture. Many of the rooms have small balconies opening onto the square.

• © Frommer's 2013