Mandarin Oriental Barcelona Hotel by OAB: A Contemporary Hospitality Landmark in Barcelona

The Mandarin Oriental Barcelona Hotel, designed by OAB (Office of Architecture in Barcelona), is a sophisticated transformation of a historic building located on the iconic Passeig de Gràcia in Barcelona. Blending heritage preservation with contemporary hospitality design, the project reimagines an existing mid-20th-century structure into one of the city’s most refined luxury hotels.

Originally constructed in 1955 as the headquarters of Banco Hispano Americano, the building itself occupies a historically significant site once home to the Círculo Ecuestre. The earlier neoclassical building was destroyed during the Spanish Civil War, leaving a layered architectural history that the architects carefully acknowledged throughout the renovation process.

Photographed by Dani Rovira, the project showcases how adaptive reuse can successfully integrate urban context, architectural heritage, and contemporary hospitality design.

Concept: Extending the Urban Experience Into the Building

The design proposal, presented under the concept title “Metropolis,” draws inspiration from the cinematic vision of Fritz Lang and his influential film Metropolis. The architects sought to reinterpret the building not simply as a hotel but as an urban continuation of Passeig de Gràcia, one of Barcelona’s most important commercial and cultural streets.

Rather than isolating the building from its surroundings, the project introduces a strategy that blurs the boundary between public space and interior architecture. The hotel’s entrance and circulation are designed as an architectural promenade that invites pedestrians to enter the building and experience a sequence of spatial transitions.

This design concept transforms the hotel from a closed private environment into a semi-public urban destination, enhancing the pedestrian experience along the boulevard.

Architectural Strategy: A Sequential Urban Journey

A central longitudinal axis organizes the architectural experience from the street to the interior courtyard. This path creates a sequence of spatial moments that guide visitors through the building.

1. Urban Entrance from Passeig de Gràcia

The project begins at the vibrant streetscape of Passeig de Gràcia. The hotel entrance is conceived as a natural extension of the pedestrian flow, encouraging movement from the city into the building.

2. Respecting the Historic Facade

Although the building’s façade differs from the surrounding modernist architecture of Barcelona, the design preserves its structural composition. Unnecessary decorative elements were removed to reveal a cleaner architectural expression while maintaining the memory of the original structure.

3. The Entrance Portico

The ground floor was opened by enlarging the existing windows, creating a welcoming entrance portico that enhances visual permeability between the street and the interior. This intervention invites passersby to explore the building rather than simply pass by.

4. Elevated Access Ramp

One of the most distinctive architectural elements is the ascending access ramp, which replaces the former imperial staircase. This elevated walkway offers a dynamic entrance sequence and provides a more centralized arrival point within the building. The upward movement creates an optimistic spatial experience while improving internal circulation.

Atrium of Light: The Spatial Heart of the Hotel

The ramp leads visitors to the Atrium of Light, a dramatic central space illuminated by a combination of natural and artificial light. A large zenith skylight brings daylight into the atrium, while the corridors leading to guest rooms feature staggered window frames that create shifting patterns of light throughout the day.

At night, artificial lighting maintains the continuity of spatial perception, ensuring the atrium remains visually engaging regardless of time. This dual lighting strategy reinforces the idea of a dynamic and theatrical arrival experience.

Mezzanine and Public Interior Spaces

Visitors arrive at the mezzanine level, which serves as the main distribution hub for the hotel’s interior functions. From this level, guests gain access to lounges, restaurants, and private areas while also experiencing views into the double-height space of the former banking hall.

The architects transformed the building’s former Patio de Operaciones, once used as a financial operations hall, into a vibrant social space. This area now houses restaurants, cafés, and lounges beneath a newly constructed structure that introduces natural zenith lighting.

The transformation demonstrates how adaptive reuse can reinterpret existing structural volumes to support contemporary hospitality programs.

Garden Terrace and Interior Courtyard

Above the former operations hall lies a garden terrace located within the interior block, designed in collaboration with landscape architect Beth Figueras.

This green space offers guests a quiet retreat from the busy urban surroundings while maintaining visual connections with the surrounding architecture. The terrace enhances the building’s environmental quality and contributes to the overall sensory experience of the hotel.

Interior Facade and Walkway Corridors

The architects introduced a delicate “veil” façade system on the building’s interior elevation. A grid of thin metal rods filters sunlight and regulates views while preserving the original building volume.

Guest rooms are accessed through walkway corridors that overlook the atrium, creating a constantly changing visual relationship with the central space. From the ramp, the atrium appears as a complete architectural composition, while from the corridors, it becomes a fragmented and kinetic spatial experience.

Rooftop Architecture and Urban Views

At the top of the building, the roof design consolidates mechanical and service elements within a clean geometric volume, maintaining a minimal visual profile.

The rooftop also functions as a panoramic viewing platform, offering guests views across the city of Barcelona. A reflecting water feature and linear vegetation create a buffer between visitors and the building’s façade, softening the typically harsh environment of high-rise rooftops.

Hotel Program and Spatial Organization

The hotel spans more than 17,000 square meters, accommodating a diverse range of hospitality functions.

• Ground Floor: A grand hall covering approximately 1,300 m², combining restaurant, café, and social gathering spaces.
• Kitchens: Located on both the ground floor and mezzanine level, serving general dining areas and signature cuisine spaces.
• Mezzanine Level: Houses exclusive lounges and private hospitality areas.
• Roof Terrace: Over 600 m² of outdoor space with city views.
• Guest Rooms: The hotel includes 102 rooms distributed across eight floors.

Circulation is carefully organized through separate vertical cores for guests and service staff, ensuring operational efficiency while maintaining privacy and comfort for visitors.

A Model of Adaptive Reuse in Luxury Hospitality Architecture

The Mandarin Oriental Barcelona Hotel demonstrates how adaptive reuse, urban integration, and spatial storytelling can redefine historic structures for contemporary hospitality. By preserving the building’s historical identity while introducing innovative architectural interventions, OAB successfully transformed a former financial headquarters into a luxury hotel that engages both guests and the surrounding city.

The project stands as an important example of how architecture can bridge heritage preservation, modern design, and urban public space, contributing to Barcelona’s dynamic architectural landscape.

Architecture Project Details

• Architect: OAB (Office of Architecture in Barcelona)
• Location: Barcelona
• Project Type: Luxury Hotel / Adaptive Reuse
• Photographer: Dani Rovira
• Landscape Collaboration: Beth Figueras

All photographs are works of  Dani Rovira