<\/h2>\nJoan Carcereny and Merc\u00e8 Beltran<\/span><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
The Hotel Mireia was one of the firsts hotels in Lloret de Mar, and its origin is in a love story. \nDuring the Civil War, Joan Carcereny and Merc\u00e8 Beltran got married in Barcelona and, afterward, they spent their honeymoon in a rented house right in front of Santa Cristina\u2019s beach, in Lloret de Mar. The just-married couple fell in love with the town\u2019s beaches, the village and its beautiful landscape, up to the point of moving from Barcelona to start their new life there and, at the same time, leaving the war behind. \nJoan would go fishing to Santa Cristina every morning. He was delighted by that sublime lifestyle and thought of starting a family there.<\/p>\n
\nPushed by a shared enterprising spirit, Joan and Merc\u00e8 started several economic activities in Lloret. Firstly, making flour, selling fish oil, and producing bars of soap. Afterward, tanning hides, and finally, they bought a vineyard. In 1957, Hotel Mireia was built in this country estate surrounded by fields, in a modern and Mediterranean style, which also became the family\u2019s permanent residence, which at that time had already had their three kids (Mireia, Enric, and Jordi). The couple\u2019s courageous character allowed them to overcome the most adverse situations.<\/p>\n
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\nJoan loved reading the Occitan poet Frederic Mistral, up to the point of picking her daughter\u2019s name after reading one of the artist poems (Mireia) and also using this name for the hotel. That landscape, mountains, and vineyards perfectly recalled the essence of the Mediterranean spirit of the poem. He also addressed the city council and suggested that the hotel\u2019s street was named Frederic Mistral.<\/p>\n
The hotel was a dream come true and at the same time Lloret having the prospect of becoming a major touristic destination. Merc\u00e8 radiated energy: she learned English, she would supervise all the tasks of the hotel and she made all the bed linen, tablecloths, and napkins. Her daughter Mireia worked as a receptionist, sommelier, and at the bar; she also learned French and English. Her son Enric worked as a ma\u00eetre.<\/p>\n
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Back in those days, Lloret was being promoted in Europe for the first time and, thus, new customs and outfits never seen before surprised villagers. For instance, a swimsuit fashion show took place in Hotel Mireia, and an exhibition of springboard jumps, which was fairly innovative back then.<\/p>\n
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Joan Carcereny was a pioneer of the touristic sector, in the sense that he made high efforts to make the town public and famous around Europe. The most remarkable contribution, as a chairman of the local union of the hospitality industry of Lloret de Mar (Sindicat Local d\u2019Hosteleria de Lloret de Mar) or the cooperative of Costa Brava (Cooperativa de la Costa Brava), was the organization of the second international meeting of hoteliers and traveling agencies of Lloret de Mar (II Reuni\u00f3 Internacional d\u2019Hotelers I Ag\u00e8ncies de Viatges), which meant a decisive boost to internationalize Lloret as a touristic destination. He also organized the sea festival (Festival del Mar), which counted on the presence of some celebrated artists like the Bolshoi Ballet of Moscow, the great pianist Iturbi or the Spanish National Ballet of Pilar L\u00f3pez. Besides promoting Costa Brava as a touristic spot, Joan Carcereny was also engaged in social issues and was a defender of the most disadvantaged groups of people of the village.<\/p>\nMerc\u00e8 at the III Internacional Tourism Meeting<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
From then on until now, the hotel has been growing and changing but without losing its familiar and Mediterranean essence. We (the family) still live in the hotel, so we are very involved in the hotel\u2019s running, with the same eagerness to provide the best service to our guests as the one Joan and Merc\u00e8 had when they started this adventure. Currently, Hotel Mireia has become one of the top-rated hotels in Lloret de Mar, and this is the best way to honor them.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][vc_column][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”3992″ img_size=”medium” title=”Joan Carcereny with the poet Lope Mateo” el_class=”,titolfotos”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”3991″ img_size=”medium” title=”Mireia Carcereny and her father with the pianist Iturbi” el_class=”.titolfotos”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”3993″ img_size=”medium” title=”Enric Carcereny with his mother”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”4033″ img_size=”medium” title=”Joan and Merc\u00e8 at the hotel” el_class=”,titolfotos”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”4034″ img_size=”medium” title=”The Hotel Mireia in 1960″ el_class=”.titolfotos”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/3″][vc_single_image image=”4036″ img_size=”medium” title=”Joan and Merc\u00e8 dancing in the hotel bar”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
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