Everything runs like clockwork at La Nava del Barranco, a hunting estate in the municipality of Castellar de Santiago, Ciudad Real offering a novel hospitality concept in Spain.
The main house has 16 double, en-suite rooms, with each one decorated with great attention to detail. The rooms combine rustic styles with the latest technology to ensure maximum comfort.
Nothing is left to chance. All the rooms boast magnificent views of the mountains and countryside, and the bathrooms come with a majestic bathtub, separate modern shower and amenities from leading brands for all your needs.
Peace and tranquillity are present throughout the estate. But let there be no misunderstanding: La Nava is not a rural house, nor a hotel, nor a private estate. It’s all that and more!
La Nava is marketed as a package, with its own rules, where lucky customers can book rooms and hunting expeditions. And its charm and originality lie in this new concept. Once your group (minimum of six people) arrives at the estate, everything is taken care of, meaning you won’t have to worry about a thing.
At your disposal, there’s a group of professionals who will do everything possible to cater to all your requirements. Experienced chefs, perfectionist housekeepers and chambermaids, optional masseurs are all at your service to create a family-friendly and attentive environment.
And when we say perfectionists, we mean it in the broadest concept of the word. To give you an example: at mealtimes, guests choose the food in advanced from a wide selection of delicious local produce, and the tableware bears motifs that match the uniform of the staff.
You’ll feel right at home at La Nava from the moment you arrive. However, there are a few things that you might find a little strange at first. You won’t find a TV in your room (unless you request one, of course) and if you’re feeling peckish in the middle of the night, you won’t be expected to go and make your own sandwich in the kitchen.
However, La Nava does have a superb home cinema room to solve the issue of television and movies, and the staff will be only too happy to make that sandwich for you at any time of the day.
The two infinity pools also warrant special mention; both offer excellent views looking out over the mountains, and they also have a sun deck for you to work on your tan.
Everything is prepared to your liking. Not surprisingly, at La Nava, the leitmotiv is “We make the impossible, possible and ensure that miracles happen in five minutes”.
They boast of “never” saying no and have always managed to get what their guests requested.
The main lounge has a large, south facing terrace, and the lounge-library offers you a more intimate setting, making it ideal for long afternoons of relaxation, reading or chatting. Children have their own games rooms, and those looking to relax and unwind can enjoy the complete spa with a sauna, Turkish bath and massage rooms.
La Nava is also the perfect choice for business tourism. There’s no better place to take your employees to a meeting – ideas flow more clearly in paradise. The meeting room equipped with projectors and worktables will make your goals a success.
Cuisine
La Nava is a culinary experience. The very best produce is sourced from local suppliers, wild game, traditional recipes, and the chef and his team will have you looking forward to mealtime with bated breath during your stay.
Dinner at La Nava is also quite an event. Dinner is served in the main dining hall, which is carefully decorated and lit, with beautifully chosen tableware, floral arrangements and exquisite aromas that are truly out of this world.
La Nava also puts on its super popular “country meals” for guests in idyllic settings around the estate, with the team setting up a portable kitchen, bathrooms and of course, a meticulous table. Once you arrive at the chosen location, a butler invites you to wash your hands in a vintage basin, before commencing the gastronomic experience.
Arrive in a private jet
La Nava’s exclusive clientele arrive by private plane. A luxury afforded to only a select few that’s possible thanks to estate having its own runway just 10 kilometres from the main house.
The hunting world
Hunters descend upon La Nava for five months a year. It’s one of the top destinations in the world, offering an exclusive, up-market service with up to one hundred staff working at the house and surrounding areas to ensure everything runs smoothly. Wild boar, deer (the La Berrea experience comes highly recommended), and lynx roam throughout the estate, and their numbers are increasing thanks to the careful control and feeding of the animals 365 days a year.
Another of the highlights for experienced hunters La Nava is partridge shooting.
And then for the other seven months of the year opens its doors to all kinds of groups and customers.
Impact on the surrounding area
One of the great beneficiaries of all the activity at La Nava is the local village, Castellar de Santiago. Everyone works for La Nava, from the local fruit seller who handles and sells the most exotic orders of fruit and veg, to the fishmonger who orders the wildest and most difficult specimens to find. Plumbers, carpenters and blacksmiths are also on the list.
This is something that has served as a catalyst for the village in an area with few employment opportunities.
And the permanent house staff are also extremely grateful for this. A continuous search for excellence by the owners, a discreet family who avoid the focus of media attention, has led them to invest in continuous training for the staff working on the estate. Every year the department heads are sent abroad for a month to do a language immersion course to improve their English, while the messeurs receive lessons all over the year, something that’s essential as almost all the La Nava’s guests come from outside Spain.
These are customers who value discretion above all else. The media have done their very best on several occasions to try and find out the names of the lucky guests and have even published the names of some celebrities who have never stayed at La Nava. But the owners, who are professionals of excellence, never bother to deny or confirm any of it.
