Corral del Rey's bedrooms feature wood
beams dating back to the 17th-century
home's first incarnation, Casa Palacio.

Every May, Condé Nast Traveler releases its Hot List, a collection of the best new hotels, spas, restaurants, and nightspots. Check the Daily Traveler every day for a new post from this year's list.

The stylish Corral del Rey proves that small is beautiful, with its six rooms in a seventeenth-century house just a five-minute walk from the Giralda. Though beautifully designed and decorated, the rooms here are snug--in fact, the standard double, delightful for a single traveler, would be tight quarters for two. However, the hotel makes up for its diminutive floor space in a variety of ways--all rooms are well equipped, and there's a roof garden with a Jacuzzi plunge pool and sun loungers. Spanish interior designer Kuky Mora-Figueroa has created rooms with almond-colored walls, bleached-oak floors, battleship-gray window shutters, and beds covered with quilted white cotton coverlets. Rounding out the room amenities are a gratis bottle of La Gitana sherry, an iPod dock, and a DVD player. Best of all, the smiling young staff here takes its hospitality personally, and is quick on the draw with restaurant recommendations and sightseeing tips.

Address: 12 Corral del Rey, Seville, Spain
Tel: 34 954 227 116

When to go: With the city's orange trees flowering, springtime in Seville is bliss.
Which room to book: Splurge, if you can, on the charming junior suite.

Further reading:
* Corral del Rey Web site
* Hot List 2008
* The Seville guide