Serviced apartment Arrels d'Emporda (Palafrugell, Spain)

The style and design of the apartments is a hit with guests, who enjoy both the layout and the space on offer. It's a home from home experience, with enough contemporary chic and minimalist style to make you feel utterly relaxed.

There's plentiful free parking on the roads around the hotel, according to guests, so you don't have to pay for parking in the hotel's secure parking garage if you don't want to. Either way, bringing or hiring a car is no problem here, and allows you to get out and explore.

Guests receive excellent customer service at this hotel, from a smooth, professional check-in, to daily housekeeping which keeps the place spotless. The front desk is open 24-hours a day, so there will always be someone around.

You might find yourself struggling when you want to open a bottle of wine or dry the dishes, since guests say that the kitchens are missing some basic equipment, like tea towels and bottle openers, and have had to go down to reception or even buy their own supplies.

While the location isn't too much of a problem if you're looking for a quiet retreat and you have your own car, guests say that it is a bit far from anything, with little to admire in the local neighbourhood. You'll have to drive everywhere, including to get to the beach.

You might think that the best time for a bar to be open is in the evening, when you can enjoy a pre-dinner aperitif or a nightcap by the pool. Not according to Arrels d'Emporda, which operates by some other logic - guests say the bar closes during the afternoon each day.