If you are planning a trip to Sitges, I want to show you a very special place to stay: a charming hotel in Sitges that is particularly close to my heart, because I am the host and General Manager of Hotel Noucentista.
Noucentista is a tiny, 11-room charming hotel in Sitges, in the heart of town, set inside a beautiful historic house on Carrer Illa de Cuba. And to understand what makes staying here so special, you first need to understand this street.
A charming hotel in Sitges on a street named after Cuba
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Sitges was deeply connected to Cuba. Many Sitgetans crossed the Atlantic in search of opportunity, and some returned having made considerable fortunes. Known as americanos or indianos, they helped transform the town, commissioning remarkable residences and bringing new architectural influences to Sitges.
That legacy is still visible today — particularly on Carrer Illa de Cuba, literally named after the island. And right here, at number 21, stands the house that today is Hotel Noucentista.
Originally dating from 1881, the building was transformed in 1908 by Catalan architect Gaietà Miret i Raventós into the Modernista residence known as Casa Manuel Planas. More than a century later, much of the character that makes the house so special is still here.
The original mosaic floors, stained glass, wrought-iron balconies, high ceilings, floral ornamentation and its beautiful corner gallery are not decorations added to make a new hotel look old. They belong to the house. That distinction is exactly why I love Noucentista.
Just a few doors away you will find another wonderful example of this period: Villa Avelina, today El Xalet, commissioned by Bonaventura Blay after making his fortune in Guantánamo, Cuba. Its architecture is much more theatrical, with a tower, pointed arches and Gothic influences. The villa is another beautiful reminder of the extraordinary architectural moment that transformed this part of Sitges — I tell the whole story in my guide to the Modernista heritage of Illa de Cuba.
El Xalet, our sister hotel on Carrer Illa de Cuba
El Xalet is not just a beautiful neighbour. El Xalet and Noucentista were sister hotels: two historic houses from the same era, a few doors apart on the same street, welcoming travellers side by side.
That relationship is still very much alive. Today, the two families who run the hotels are like siblings too. We believe in the same things, good service and real closeness to our guests, and between us we support each other and genuinely care about one another. For me, that is part of what makes this little corner of Sitges feel like home.
Eleven rooms, each with its own personality
But back to Noucentista, because this is where I want to host you.
With only 11 rooms, it doesn’t feel like a conventional hotel. Every room has its own personality, proportions and original details. Some have balconies, others terraces; you find old mosaic floors beneath your feet, beautiful windows and little architectural details that remind you constantly that you are sleeping inside a real historic Sitges house. You can see each of them on our page of rooms in a Modernista house in the centre of Sitges.
This is something I personally value enormously when I travel. Modern hotels can be beautiful, comfortable and perfectly designed. But sometimes you could wake up in one and have absolutely no idea whether you are in Barcelona, Paris, Miami or somewhere else.
Noucentista could only be in Sitges. It belongs to the architecture, history and scale of this town. There may be little imperfections that come with a century-old building — but there is also something that is much harder to manufacture: soul.
The human side of staying somewhere this small
I am Daniela, your host and the General Manager of Noucentista, and I would genuinely love to welcome you here.
I don’t simply want to hand you a key and point you towards your room. I want to show you the house, tell you a little about its history and help you experience the Sitges that I know — where I would eat, where I would have a drink, which streets I would wander through and which little corners I wouldn’t want you to miss.
Because I think that when you choose a place like Sitges, your hotel shouldn’t feel separate from the destination. It should be part of it. That is exactly what Noucentista is: a small hotel, inside a historic Sitges house, on a street that tells one of the most fascinating chapters of the town’s history. If you want to know more about why small places like ours feel different, I also wrote about what a boutique hotel in Sitges really means.
Finding our charming hotel in Sitges
You will find us at Carrer Illa de Cuba, 21, in the centre of Sitges. The old town, the church of Sant Bartomeu i Santa Tecla and the seafront are all within an easy walk, so you can leave the car behind for your whole stay and simply live the town on foot, the way it was built to be lived.
I would love to host you and show you my Sitges.
