Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, Autograph Collection: A Hidden Marriott Bonvoy Gem

Without realizing the hotel was brand new, my wife and I stayed at the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, less than a month after it opened. We booked it because of the great value available using Marriott Bonvoy points and the hotel’s fantastic location in southern Spain.

We got much more than expected, as the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, Autograph Collection, provided an incredible stay. Rather than big-brand vibes, this hotel felt like an independent, boutique property, likely because it had just 53 guest rooms spread across its 7-story building.

From fantastic staff and incredible daily breakfasts to an excellent room and can’t-be-beat location, this property in Marriott Bonvoy’s Autograph Collection provided a memorable stay for all the right reasons. If (or when) I return to Valencia, I would immediately book this property without considering others.

Here’s a closer look at our wonderful 3-night stay in early June 2025.

Booking Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia

Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, Autograph Collection, is part of the Autograph Collection — one of Marriott’s many hotel brands. As such, it participates in the Marriott Bonvoy loyalty program.

Guests can earn and redeem Marriott Bonvoy points here, and staying at this hotel presents a perfect opportunity to use Marriott’s free night certificates at high value.

During our 3-night stay in early June, the standard room — a City View 1 King room — cost $470 per night, including taxes. This was the prepaid member rate. Refundable rates were available starting at $490 per night, while Deluxe rooms were available for $507 per night.

The cheapest room available using points was the City View 1 King guest room. A 3-night reservation for this room cost 106,000 points — with 2 nights charging 35,000 points each and the third night costing 36,000.

Redeeming 106,000 points to save a minimum of $1,412 provided a fantastic redemption rate of 1.33 cents per point, well above our average valuation of Marriott Bonvoy points at 0.7 cents each.

For our reservation, I redeemed 2 free night awards — each worth a maximum of 35,000 points — and spent 36,000 points for the third night. I receive a free night award each year on my account anniversary from both the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business^® American Express^® Card. This benefit alone can easily justify the annual fee on either card.

Hot Tip:

If you pay for a stay at the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, or another Marriott Bonvoy property, consider using a credit card with elevated earnings on hotel spend. Alternatively, a Marriott Bonvoy credit card could earn up to 18.5 points per $1 spent on your hotel stay.

Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, Location

The hotel is across the street from and overlooks the main square in Valencia’s old town, the Plaça de l’Ajuntament. You can reach the hotel on foot in 20 minutes from the Joaquin Sorolla train station or in 5 minutes from the closer Estació del Nord. A taxi ride from either will take about 5 to 7 minutes, depending on traffic.

It’s possible to walk past this building and not realize there’s a hotel inside, as the entrance didn’t look overly …. hotel-y.

Moreover, the large logo on the building didn’t even say “hotel.”

Checking In

Hearing “we’re here” from our taxi driver was a surprise. Neither the building nor the door in front of us looked like a typical hotel entrance.

However, a bellhop magically appeared to offer assistance, and we realized we were definitely in the right place. From that moment forward, the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, impressed us.

Stepping through the automatic glass doors, we found a small hallway with 2 desks instead of a large lobby. Multiple employees smiled and said hello as we were offered a place to sit while checking in at one of the desks. The setting screamed “boutique property.”

The employee who checked us in should be cloned and posted at the reception desk of every hotel worldwide. From her contagious friendliness to her efficiency in moving through the necessary steps, she was 6 stars on a 5-star scale.

Beyond taking a credit card for incidentals and checking our passports, she asked where we were arriving from and what we planned after leaving the hotel in 3 days. She ascertained that we’d never been to Valencia before. Without prompting, she began offering can’t-miss elements for our first visit to her hometown. She was equal parts reception employee and city ambassador.

She also said we’d been upgraded to her favorite room at the hotel (because of its views). Does she say that to everyone? Who knows, but it added an endearing element to the process.

After returning our passports and issuing our key cards, she handed us off to a friendly bellhop who would transport our luggage and show us around our room to ensure we understood its amenities and features. I’m not sure if this is a standard element for all guests or was offered due to my elite status; we appreciated it as an excellent service element.

Elite Benefits

We received an upgrade to a Premium City Hall room with a king-size bed on the highest floor (the sixth), thanks to my Marriott Bonvoy Titanium Elite status. Nightly rates for this room were $582 during our stay.

In addition to the room upgrade, the hotel offered several extra perks that we enjoyed. These included a complimentary breakfast each morning at the lobby restaurant and a $10 credit at the bar. We also found a welcome gift and a note in our room because of my status.

If I had paid for the stay, instead of redeeming points, I would’ve received 75% bonus points as a benefit of my Titanium Elite status. Since the hotel lacked on-site parking, complimentary parking wasn’t offered as an elite benefit.

Hot Tip:

Look at our guide to learn how to qualify for elite status with Marriott Bonvoy and whether it’s worth it.

Premium City Hall 1 King Room

We stayed in room 601, on the sixth floor. The building only had 7 floors, and the top floor — the rooftop terrace — didn’t have guest rooms, so we were on the highest floor possible.

Our room was the only room to the left when we exited the elevators, creating a private location and reducing chances for noise outside our door since no one would pass our room on the way to theirs.

We entered a hallway between the bathroom and the bedroom. A digital thermostat was on the wall near the door, as was a control panel for turning the lights on and off or putting them in a “relax” dimmed setting.

The bedroom opened to the left of the hall in an L shape and was bathed in natural light from multiple large windows.

We had great views over the plaza, city hall, and the historic post office. No wonder the reception employee liked this room.

The sleeping area had a subdued color palette, a firm but comfortable headboard, a back-lit frame, and a pair of hanging lights. The room had a hardwood floor, with a gray-and-white rug under the bed.

A round table and 2 chairs were at the foot of the comfortable king-size bed. And we appreciated having 2 types of pillows: ultra-soft and firm. They were huge!

The table held a box of chocolates with the restaurant’s logo and 2 envelopes.

The larger envelope had a letter detailing the building’s history. The smaller envelope had a handwritten note thanking us for our brand loyalty and for coming to stay at this property.

Each side of the bed had a nightstand, lamp, and a control panel for the room’s lights. There were also multiple outlets and a flip-out reading light on each side of the bed.

The side of the bed closer to the windows had a larger panel, including controls for the daytime and nighttime curtains. The nightstand on this side also had a note we could put on the bed to tell housekeeping not to change the sheets.

On the wall opposite the bed, there was a TV hanging above a small marble-topped dresser, which was a great place to keep our suitcase. Admittedly, the TV was pretty far from the bed.

A large, freestanding wardrobe with mirrored doors was between the windows and the TV. It felt very chic.

The mirrored doors opened to reveal space for hanging our clothes, multiple hangers, and a few shelves. Here, we found a pair of robes and a laundry bag.

The center of the wardrobe had a small minibar with a kettle, drinking glasses, coffee mugs, and supplies for making coffee and tea.

The drawers in the center of the wardrobe held interesting items. The top drawer held a small digital safe, a shoe brush, and a shoe horn.

The middle drawer had a bottle of wine, some spreads, chips, and a price list for the minibar.

The bottom drawer was a pull-out refrigerator with beers, wines, and soft drinks.

Bathroom

While the bedroom was to the left when we entered, the bathroom required turning right. It had some great design elements, including the patterned tiles around the sink area.

There was a pair of backlit, oval mirrors on the wall above a pair of black stone sinks. A close-up mirror, a pair of outlets, and a heating rack on the wall were in the far corner.

Fixtures were brass, such as rods for the hand towels and faucets at the sink. Between the sinks, we found bar soap and a pump bottle of lotion. We also had a pair of washcloths and drinking glasses on one end of the counter, while the other end had 2 small packs of tissues. On a shelf underneath, we had a hair dryer and bath towels.

We found 2 cloth bags with fuzzy slippers inside near the bathroom entrance. These were on a shelf under the sinks.

The toilet and shower closets were opposite the sinks — each behind its own door.

A standard door led to the toilet with a small trash bin.

There was a rippled glass door that led to the shower closet.

The shower had a rainfall and handheld option, as well as a small shelf. Again, all the fixtures were brass.

On the wall, we had pump bottles of Typology products. The coolest thing about the shower was its digital control panel. With the push of a button, it turned on, changed from handheld to rainfall, and adjusted the temperature, which appeared on the digital display. There were also buttons for more and less water pressure.

However, water tended to drain very slowly from the shower, and we had to keep towels outside the shower door to prevent water from running into the rest of the bathroom, causing a small flood.

Towel hooks and a conservation note were on the wall near the toilet in the hall leading to the bedroom.

Amenities

As this was a boutique property without a large footprint, the number of amenities available was small. For example, there weren’t any meeting facilities, an elite members’ lounge, or shops.

Rooftop

The seventh floor had an open-air rooftop terrace with tables, chairs, and shade umbrellas.

This space was technically closed during our visit, but we were told we could sit here (and even bring drinks or snacks to enjoy) to enjoy views over the plaza below.

Staff said this space would soon include bar service, opening in “a few weeks,” but without a firm date.

There were also bathrooms available on the terrace.

Plunge Pool

This small pool was available at the rear of the rooftop terrace. There were steps leading up to it and a few steps down into the pool. However, it was neither large nor deep — just 45 centimeters or roughly 1.5 feet.

There were 2 adjustable lounge chairs available near the pool.

Elevators

There were 2 main elevators available for guests, found past the reception desks and in the center of the guest floors.

The elevators were small but were bright and always arrived quickly.

Accessing guest floors required tapping a key card on the sensor, though public floors could be accessed without it.

There was also a third elevator, which we discovered while exploring the rooftop. It was available near the bathrooms on the rooftop, and we rode it to find where it exited on our guest floor. The answer: inside the stairwell.

Fitness Center

On the lower level, a small gym was available. Entering the fitness center required tapping a key card. There were 2 bikes, a treadmill, and an elliptical. On the other side of the space, there was an adjustable bench with several free weights.

There was a minifridge with bottled water available, and the gym’s rear wall held towels, wipes, exercise bands, and mats.

Bottom Line:

If you forced me to say something negative about this hotel, it would be the limited gym offerings. Given the size of the building, I think management did what they could to provide some type of exercise facility.

Lower Level Space

There weren’t bathrooms on the ground level near the restaurant. Rather, guests needed to descend to the underground level, where the gym and public restrooms were. There was also a sitting area down here.

The gendered restrooms were small but clean and had basic necessities.

Wi-Fi

The hotel offered complimentary Wi-Fi for guests, which was available throughout the property. The connection was reliable, and speeds were sufficient for everything we wanted to do online.

Live Music

A piano player took to the stage at Soul of 1927, the ground-floor restaurant, at 7:30 p.m. nightly and played until 9:30 p.m. Tunes were a wide mix, from classical to showtunes and pop hits.

Food and Beverages

Soul of 1927

Most of the ground floor belonged to the sole on-site restaurant, Soul of 1927. The restaurant offered breakfast from 7 to 11 a.m. daily, while lunch and dinner were available from 11 a.m. until 11 p.m.

Multiple seating types and options were available around the piano, along the windows, or closer to the bar, giving everyone something they liked.

The Soul of 1927 also had a fully stocked bar, and doors flanking the bar led to the kitchen. Barstools were anything but traditional, as they had U-shaped backs and an off-white leather material.

We had breakfast at Soul of 1927 daily. The menu’s descriptions used Spanish and English, and allergen symbols were clearly available on every dish.

A complimentary pastry basket, including croissants, rolls, and other goodies, was brought to our table each morning with the menus.

We had this “mmmmm”-inducing pumpkin toast every morning along with the seasonal fruit bowl. It was addictive.

On the first morning, I tried to ring this bell on our table to ask for the check. Turns out it was a cover for the butter.

Room Service

Room service was not available at the hotel.

Service

Service was excellent. It was friendly, efficient, and genuine. It included anticipating our needs, such as proactively offering tourist information about the city when the check-in agent realized we’d never been to Valencia before.

The waiter at breakfast realized we’d ordered the same thing for breakfast 2 days in a row and came prepared on the third day, asking if we wanted the same or wanted to see the menu.

When I mentioned that I didn’t see any mocktails on the drinks list, the bartender said, “Tell me to stop when you hear something you like,” before starting to name all the various concoctions he could whip up for me.

Those were unique points of service that truly highlighted our positive view of the staff at this hotel, on top of the everyday experiences you expect at a hotel that someone says has great service. We experienced housekeeping and front door staff who smiled and said “hello” when they saw us in the hallway, employees who greeted us by name and asked how our stay was going when we passed the front desk, and staff who offered assistance on arrival and departure to make sure our first impression was matched with a lasting impression.

When we checked out, we had another friendly, efficient experience with the desk staff, and this was when we found out the hotel had just opened a month prior, based on something the agent said.

We requested to leave our luggage while we got take-away from a restaurant nearby and mentioned that we would head to the train station when we returned. Staff took things further by saying they would hail a taxi when they saw us approaching the corner. As we’d expected, the bellhop refused to let us carry anything to the taxi waiting for us to get in.

The only negative mark on service was the partially consumed glass of water with a lemon in it we found on the nightstand when we arrived in our room. Perhaps the housekeeper was drinking it and forgot it when leaving the room.

Final Thoughts

Pity the next hotel after our stay at the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia, Autograph Collection, because it will be extremely difficult to match this fantastic experience. During our 3-night stay, we received top-notch service, value-added perks, and a delicious breakfast.

We also stayed in a great location at a really cool hotel, and redeeming points for our stay provided awesome value.

If you’re looking for a hotel recommendation, go here, especially if you have 35,000-point Marriott free night awards to use. I won’t consider other hotels the next time I’m in town. I’ll be booking the Grand Hotel Centenari, Valencia.