Parador de Santo Domingo de la Calzada

A well situated parador in the heart of an historic town with an intriguing tale about a roasted chicken springing to life

Ideally situated 80 minutes from Bilbao Port. Outstanding public areas. Lovely room overlooking the plaza and cathedral. Secure parking in basement (E17) with lift, or locked car park (E8) 50 metres from the hotel. Friendly and helpful staff.

We spent two nights at this Parador on a half-board basis. It's a good base from which to explore the region of La Rioja. Santo Domingo de la Calzada is a nice, bustling little town with many interesting old buildings. We liked it very much. This Parador is located right in the centre of the town, opposite the cathedral,, so it's very convenient. Our room was comfortable and well sized. We found the staff helpful and welcoming The restaurant offers an appetising dinner menu and even though the restaurant was busy on both evenings the staff were very efficient and service was very prompt. On the ground floor there's a very spacious and impressive lounge area, handy for the bar and the restaurant, with lots of comfortable seating. There is ample parking (for which a charge is made). There's a garage at the hotel itself but about 200 metres away there's a secure car park, owned by the hotel, with ample parking; this costs less than the garage. Although there are a good number of road signs for the Parador we didn't find them ideally clear - and you have to be careful because, unusually for such a small town, there are two Paradores. To add to the 'fun' the signs direct you to use Calle Mayor to access the hotel but just a couple of days before we arrived someone had decided it would be a good idea to put a flower planter across the street, effectively blocking it off to vehicles. Over the years we have stayed at many Paradores and we rate this one highly. The half-board deal is good value.

Excellent location and service. Menu could be more interesting. Service was very good as always at Paradors.