Meraki #3 EN - La Nava del Barranco

& Fine Dining

NAVA DEL BARRANCO

LA NAVA DEL BARRANCO

La Mancha dresses in luxury

Thousands of acres in Castilla La Mancha without any visual contamination, a 7 star service and international hospitality concept like very few are some of the advantages that have positioned La Nava del Barranco as one of the most exclusive private properties in Europe.

There are regions we hear about all the time and which we have always wanted to visit; this is the case of Castilla La Mancha, the reason is the masterpiece about the ingenious noble Don Quixote, which always made me dream with this área of Spain where everything is an adventure. And right here, in a much talked about estate and where at last I have arrived with seven other international journalists. The nearest town is called Castellar de Santiago and by car from Madrid the trip lasts only 2 hours.

We see the private jet of some clients take off from the aerodrome of the estate. Yes, there is a landing strip at La Nava del Barranco, and it is not the only one in these lands; within a few months there will be three. Hunting is the reason: this estate is the most valued place on the continent for hunting partridges. But the end of the season is when this property is entirely rented by groups that, probably, have nothing to do with hunting.

A made to measure house

From the route I see the house on a hill; it is a modern mansion not the big ancient house of a large estate. We are received by a retinue of employees, perfectly uniformed, who take charge of the luggage. The adventure begins. The decoration is classic, but whith all the details of current confort, and highlighting Spanish products. The lounge is immense and the pool in front of it, built on the slope, seems to disappear into infinity. We take the aperitif facing an impressive landscape where silence rules; I know that like me, my colleagues are speechless. It seems impossible that something like this exists in Europe. The 16 rooms of the house are large, with great care for details, and people talk of the simplicity of its owners, In all the bathrooms, a shower, and a bath, L’Occitane amenities and postcard views.

I can agree in the world a lot you can o myself that all this has been created by someone who has travelled a lot have an appointment in the evening with a masseuse from the region of whom people talk miracles, and I will enjoy the sauna and Turkish bath if i have time before dinner, because now I look forward to a meal in the country and a unique photography safari in South Europe.

Tablecoths in the forest

An imperial table with perfectly ironed tablecloths appears under a small natural scenario like a fable forest. The decoration is exquisite, simple, without any shrillness and elegant like very few.

We ask ourselves “how can this be arranged in the middle of nowhere?” while we take photographs possessed by the impact of staging in which the Butler rinses out hands in a warm water is missing.

After a meal worthy of applause, home made desserts never seen and a drink, we go to the o ff road vehicles which will take us through fields full of local fauna and flora. We see deer, mouflon, wild pigs, eagles, and our driver says that several lynxes have habitats here. More than one of us have run out of batteries in the telephones and cameras due to all the clicks.

Palatial dinner

Partridge pate and good wine combine for the momento before the dinner in a near like a palace dining room. When the doors open the view is unforgettable. The table service cannot be any better. Dressed for the occasion, we begin an experience worthy of a restaurant deserving a star. The service and quality of the dishes and some exquisite wines complete this top level experience in Quixote lands. The next day, bicycles, quads, horses, and clay pigeon shooting are there for the most daring. La Nava del Barranco is a place for all those escaping form hotels and looking for rest, good attention, and exclusivity: it is, as I understand, the true concept of luxury.

MERAKI

Hotels & Fine Dining

Photos LA NAVA DEL BARRANCO Story #3 August 2020 www.lanavadelbarranco.com

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