Hotel Ratings in Spain

Hotels in Spain and all over europe carry a star rating. What can we expect from a 3 star hotel, for example?

Hotels are awarded their ratings according to the facilities and services they offer and this is in no way related to charm, ambience or other subjective criteria. These are merely government ratings based on legal criteria.

It is expected that a four star hotel will be more expensive than a one star hotel in the same town or location, but this is not always the case when it comes to closer differences like three & four star hotels, for example.

The following information is taken from the Spanish Official State Bulletin (B.O.E.) and gives us the information as to what is mandatory for each type of hotel rating. These are the minimum requirements that must be met, depending on hotel rating according to Spanish Law:

One Star Hotel
Air Conditioning: not a requirement
heating: required (see sidenote)
hot water: required
Telephone in room: required (See sidenote below also)
Telephone in bathroom: not a requirement

Two Star Hotels
Air Conditioning: not a requirement
heating: required (see sidenote)
hot water: required
Telephone: required (See sidenote below also)
Telephone in bathroom: not a requirement

Three Star Hotels
Air Conditioning: required in reception, lobby and other 'noble' areas (convention rooms, etc.), but not in the rooms, for example. (see sidenote below)
heating: required (see sidenote)
hot water: required
Telephone: required (See sidenote below also)
Telephone in bathroom: not a requirement

Four Star Hotels
Air Conditioning: required throughout the hotel, including the rooms, along with a separate controller for each individual room. (see sidenote below)
heating: required (see sidenote)
hot water: required
Telephone: required (See sidenote below also)
Telephone in bathroom: not a requirement

Five Star Hotels
Air Conditioning: required throughout the hotel, including the rooms, along with a separate controller for each individual room. (see sidenote below)
heating: required (see sidenote)
hot water: required
Telephone: required (See sidenote below also)
Telephone in bathroom: required

Sidenote on air-conditioning and heating:
Air conditioning and/or heating is not mandatory in places (due to their geographical location) where temperatures do not pose a problem so as to actually need it. Where heating is mandatory, there should be enough radiators or heat sources to provide an adequate room temperature. In complexes that operate exclusively during the summer months, heating is not mandatory.

Sidenote on telephone service:
All telephones are to be permanently connected through a switchboard. There must be a certain number of telephones available for use to guests according to their star rating. All hotels must have (public or internal) telephone availability in common areas (reception, bars, dining room, etc.). In 3, 4 and 5 star hotels, all public telephones should be in a sound-proof booth, but this is not a requirement for 1 and 2 star hotels.

Apartment-Hotels (or apartment complexes) are different from standard hotels in that inside each unit (apartment) there are the necessary facilities to conserve, cook and prepare food.

B.O.E. Reference page: http://www.boe.es/g/es/bases_datos/doc.php?coleccion=iberlex&id=1982/30595&codmap=