La Sacristia

Dreamy, old-town boutique hotel with views from the terrace over rooftops of Tarifa

This is a 300-year-old Moorish tavern tangled up in a web of narrow alleyways in the old town of Tarifa. The bells of nearby San Mateo chime on the hour and if you head up to the roof terrace, you can gaze across to the castle and cathedral.

Inside, you find a mix of the ages. Old stone pillars hold up red-brick arches in a courtyard open to the sky. Logs smoulder on an open fire in front of cavernous sofas, and coloured silks and paper lanterns hang from the rafters in the bar. In the shop you can see the old vats that were used to store oil in ancient times; on the roof terrace old terracotta tiles ripple with age. The style is uncluttered and contemporary, and ten airy rooms bask in a sublime earthy simplicity: voile curtains, the crispest linen, hand-woven rugs. Meals are eaten in the courtyard beneath wandering palms, on your lap in front of the fire, or up on the roof with a sea breeze to cool. Everything is for sale (including the hotel), day trips to Morocco are easily organised and belly-dancing lessons can be arranged.

Highs

• The roof terrace for its views across Tarifa
• The big bedrooms at the top with their ceilings open to the eaves and a simple Bohemian decor
• The price: there are no high-season hikes, Tarifa is incredibly popular and the hotel has real style

Lows

• Some of the rooms are small, others get noise from the alleyways that encircle the hotel and the bar downstairs
• The restaurant is closed during the week in low season, but there are lots of restuarants on your doorstep
• There's no off-street parking at the hotel
• Recent reports of rather slow, lack lustre service especially in the bar/restaurant