A station hotel like no other, far removed from the InterCity Hotels that punctuate the route taken by business travellers in Germany and Europe. Expected to open in March, the Royal Hideaway Canfranc Estación, part of the Barcelois aimed more at railway history buffs. A hotel housed in a station unique in Europe with its 240-metre façade, 570 windows and a style similar to that of the Gare d'Orsay in Paris; an "international" station, but one that hasn't seen many passengers in the last fifty years or so.
Nestled in the north of Spain, in the Aragonese Pyrenees, Canfranc station had been inaugurated with great pomp in 1928 by King Alfonso XIII and Gaston Doumerguethe President of the French Republic . With the completion of the Somport tunnel, the station represented a major new crossing point between the two countries, in the heart of the mountains. This was the start of the line between Pau, Canfranc and Saragossa, a link with a chaotic history, interrupted by the Spanish Civil War, when the Somport tunnel was walled up at Franco's request, then by the Second World War before being resumed in the 1950s. Unfortunately, the collapse of the Estanguet bridge on the French side in March 1970 was to mark the end of the tunnel. stopping this cross-border rail linkwhich is not very profitable.
Since 2016, trains have been running again on the French side between Oloron and Bedous, where the old station is now home to a family-run hotel, Transhumance & cie. However, its continuation to Spain is still on hold, even though the Aragon and Nouvelle-Aquitaine regions have expressed their support and Canfranc has had a new passenger station since 2021. So, perhaps one day travellers will be able to arrive by train from Pau to Canfranc. In the meantime, to discover this new five-star hotel proposed by the Spanish group Barcelo, they will have to take the line on the Spanish side, from Huesca or Zaragoza.
Owned by the government of the province of Aragon, which oversees the rehabilitation and preservation of this listed heritage site, the Royal Hideaway Canfranc Estacion offers 104 roomsincluding four suites on the first and second floors. The sheer size of the former station makes room for a vast gastronomic offering, with three restaurants and two bars. To blend in perfectly with the surroundings, the gourmet and à la carte restaurants are housed in two restored carriages, in the classic style of 20th-century trains.e century.
The hotel's décor, designed by the Ilmiodesign studio around noble materials - wood, brass, velvet - is also inspired by the aesthetics of luxury trains and the old railway stations of the Belle Epoque. A setting conducive to top-of-the-range relaxation, the hotel offers a 400 m2 with treatment rooms and an indoor swimming pool, but also for meetings and events, as the Royal Hideaway offers three modular rooms which can accommodate up to 130 people. The hotel is set to become a new magnet for luxury tourism in the region.
