We had been looking forward to our stay at Gijon as it was to be our last parador stop before returning to the UK. When we arrived it took a while for anyone on the reception desk to speak to us. During our stay we noticed that the parador appeared a bit tired. In our room the internal door between the toilet and wash area did not close. This is the sort of thing I would expect the housekeeping team to notice and rectify before the next guest was due to occupy the room. The restaurant was understaffed and so the time between being seated, placing an order and each course arriving was far too long. The two waiting staff were rushing around as they also appeared to be responsible for serving in the public bar. The waiting staff were working hard but needed more support. We ate here on both nights of our stay. On the first night we noticed that the table cloth and serviettes were very damp. We told the waiter who seemed to be aware of the problem and offered us paper napkins. The were obviously short of linen. On the second night we experienced exactly the same issue!
A very quiet location where you could walk to the town below. The town was also very quiet but it was a nice stroll before a predinner drink. As soon as we arrived we felt very welcome. The staff were friendly and you felt they had a pride in the Parador. The room was comfortable and the dinner in the evening one of the best we have had in a parador. The restaurant staff made the whole experience feel special.
