Want something special? We were celebrating.
Fifty years of marriage. Plus my husband's birthday.
Our hiking group held its annual walking week in June in little La Palma and we flew into larger Tenerife a few days earlier before catching the Fred Olsen ferry to La Palma.
I had tried only three of Tenerife's top hotels. The southwest corner has many grand hotels. Here is a quick look at what I liked most and what might be added by you as visitor or by the management to turn your trip into a seven stars experience.
1 The Melia
Lovely hotel. Smiling reception. Top features:
Outdoor pool. Lots of reciner loungers by the pool. But the small number of four-poster style Thai style loungers for two must be booked.
Optional extras : Free A 45 mînute session in the upstairs indoor pools spa with loads of massaging water jets. The sauna must be booked.
When I returned the straw slippers, the assistant smiled. She declined to take them. She said they were her gift to me.
Buffet, lots of basic stuff, although no great flavours.
Join their loyalty scheme.
Upgrade to ́Level’.
But pay a bit extra and you get access to a private lounge, Level, with a smaller selection of tastier items.
Level had odd sounding hours but we found it convenient. The best part for me was help yourself to unlimited free drinks including cans. Also white slightly sparkling Cava, which is Spanish, meaning Cave, cheaper than Champagne, (and close to Italian Prosecco, the great British popular favourite).
Toothbrush and toiletries on request from reception.
In June they were charging €200 for 2 people in a sea view junior suite, bed and breakfast. That included only one 45-minute introductory spa voucher per person for a multi-day stay.
2 Parador de las Cañardos El Teide
The paradors. Paradores is te plural in Spanish.
Top features:
a) Close up view of Mount Teide, the landmark pointed peak and symbol of Tenerife. From the restaurant, and some bedrooms.
b) Picnic (breakfast with enough food for lunch ). An alternative to breakfast if you need to drive off for a flight or ferry before breakfast.
The picnic came in a handy light drawstring bag. It contaîed 2 huge buns, 2 per person. The filling choices: can contain smoked salmon, ham, tuna or other fillings. Confusingly, tje savoury buns were listed as bagels but didn’t have holes in the middle nor crisp outsides, nor soft, suckable chewy insides like New York bagels.
Challenges
Swimming pool closes early. You must carry back to reception your large, heavy wet swimming towel. You need to learn the way back into the building.
For day visitors there is an adjoining shop. Also a self serve cafeteria, seats with great views of Moint Teide.
Best, Most Memorable Local Dish
Hotel guests. Try cold mango soup.
3 Joia El Mirador
Fantastic, opulent decor.
Loads of freebies. Convenient - comb and toothbrush in public ladies toilet on ground floor. More in bedroom.
We received a free birthday cake and greetîng card in the bedroom.
Challenges:
If you arrive a day or two in advance staying elsewhere on tje island, you have difficulty getting into the hotel for a cup of coffee to suss out the hotel location.
Small steps impede wheelchairs, and are trip hazards in the bedrooms. Not so good for anyone with arthritis and walking problems.
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