Committed to celebrating the many facets of Catalán culture, the hotel's owner and developer, art collector Jordi Clos, named his hotel after the 19th-century Catalán writer Pau Claris. Since there, Hotel Claris has become one of the most unusual hotels in Barcelona.

This post-modern property is the only five-star grand luxe lodging in the city centre. It incorporates vast quantities of teak, marble, steel, and glass with the historically important facade of a landmark 19th-century building (Verdruna Palace). Its seven stories include a garden on the roof, also with a pool being a great end-of-day relaxation spot. There is also a small museum of Egyptian antiquity from the owner's valuable collection on the second floor.

Each of the guest rooms is painted an iconoclastic shade of blue-violet and combines unusual art objects with state-of-the-art electronic accessories and beautifully maintained bathrooms with shower-tub combinations. (Art objects, depending on the inspiration of the decorator, include Turkish kilims, English antiques, Hindu sculptures, Egyptian stone carvings, and engravings inspired by Napoleon’s campaigns in Egypt.).

Finally, there are three restaurants: the exclusive East 47 Bar & Restaurant for contemporary cuisine, La Terraza del Claris Restaurant on the rooftop for lunch and dinner during the summer, and the Claris Restaurant for banquets and where breakfast is served every morning.