Gran Tacande Wellness and Relax

I have been deliberating for a few days over whether to give this hotel a four or five-star rating. In an ideal world, I would give it 4.5 stars, but as that's not possible, I have settled on four. I do want to preface this review by saying that I still really love this hotel and would return in a heartbeat. There is so much that is genuinely excellent here, but there are also a few areas where I think improvements could be made.

So, what is good?

The hotel is simply beautiful. I love the airy, colonial style of the public spaces and the whole place feels incredibly relaxing. It smells wonderful, is spotlessly clean, and is very well maintained throughout. The reception staff go above and beyond and are incredibly helpful and friendly, especially Beatriz. The porters and housekeeping staff are equally lovely. The hotel is located in a really nice part of Costa Adeje, close to Playa del Duque and the shopping centre, and it feels very safe. Personally, I don't like venturing too far towards Las Americas, as there is a definite shift in the atmosphere.

We booked a suite so that our son could be with us while still having his own space to sleep and relax. I like the concept of a suite, but in reality I'm just not a huge fan of these particular suites. We stayed in one last year and mentioned on TripAdvisor that I disliked having a whirlpool bath right in the middle of the sleeping area. To me it feels a bit gimmicky. It takes hours to fill and is not especially practical. The shower is also quite claustrophobic.

The toilet is directly off the bedroom area and does not have a floor-to-ceiling door, so it is neither particularly private nor soundproof. With a teenage son sharing the suite, the layout feels a little awkward and I'd definitely prefer more privacy around those facilities. It is a shame because the rest of the suite is spacious and comfortable. The bed is excellent, the room is quiet, and the blackout curtains work brilliantly.

Our balcony was a little gloomy and overlooked, but that wasn't a major issue. What I did find frustrating was that I had emailed the hotel in advance specifically to ask whether they had any suites with a different layout. I explained my concerns and was told that they did. Naturally, I was looking forward to a better experience this time. However, when we arrived, we were given an identical suite to last year, just two floors lower. It felt as though my request had either been forgotten or ignored. It wasn't the end of the world, especially as we arrived late, so I decided not to pursue it. However, I would hope that in future the hotel might be more accommodating of these types of preferences.

I love the swimming pools. They are clean, tidy, and kept at a pleasant temperature. My favourites are the pool with the jacuzzi jets and the medium-sized pool next to it. There are plenty of sunbeds, so there is no need for a mad rush first thing in the morning, and they are spaced out nicely rather than being crammed together. The towel exchange system is efficient and works very well. There is also a larger pool, a children's pool, and the exclusive San Sebastian Plaza area.

The spa is excellent. We did the two-hour spa circuit twice and found it wonderfully relaxing. It was also exceptionally clean. My husband had a massage which he thoroughly enjoyed and felt was very good value for money.

The entertainment is quite low-key, which suits us. There are various daytime activities such as pool biking and yoga, along with evening performances. The quality of the acts was a little hit and miss. The Elton John tribute act was excellent, while some of the others were somewhat questionable. One singing duo absolutely butchered a few classics, which did make me chuckle!

Breakfast is good, with plenty of choice. However, it becomes extremely busy from around 9.00am onwards, and on several occasions it felt as though certain items had run out and were not being replenished, despite breakfast officially running until 10.30am. I do think this needs addressing.

We also had several occasions where hot drink orders were taken but never arrived. I think this happened at least three times during our stay. In general, the waiting staff are lovely and very efficient. However, there was one waitress who was consistently abrupt and never smiled. On one occasion she loudly shouted "Hey lady!" across the pool when bringing me a drink. She also seemed to have favourite guests and would largely ignore others. Unfortunately, she was not a great ambassador for the hotel.

At breakfast, there is also a slightly odd system whereby managers appear to check guests in. However, they seemed to engage enthusiastically with certain guests while barely acknowledging others. It felt a little tokenistic rather than reflecting a genuine interest in guest experience.

My husband and son really enjoyed the games room. There is free table tennis, two pool tables (€1 per game), table football, and a range of arcade machines. It would benefit from air conditioning, as it gets extremely warm, but it is a great facility.

As mentioned above, there were a few smaller issues during our stay that I think are worth mentioning.

Firstly, there was one evening when the indoor bar was extremely busy and only one barman was on duty. He was clearly overwhelmed, called for assistance, and nobody came. He looked genuinely stressed and upset, and I felt very sorry for him. Guests were walking away because they had been waiting so long. I don't think this should happen in a five-star hotel, and there should always be adequate staffing levels.

Secondly, and this is not really the hotel's fault, there was a large group of guests (I am almost sure they were Russian) during our first week who were extremely disruptive. They frequently took beers into the pool and jacuzzi, sat blocking the pool steps, played videos at full volume on their phones, and allowed their children to scream continuously without supervision. I have absolutely no issue with children playing and enjoying themselves, but this was on a different level altogether. It genuinely spoiled a few pool days for me. I also witnessed some members of the group being disrespectful towards bar staff. Their behaviour was very different from that of most guests, who were generally considerate and respectful. I appreciate that these situations are difficult for hotels to manage, but I noticed other guests moving their sunbeds to get away from them, so I know I wasn't alone in feeling frustrated.

I also had a very irritating experience when I left my flip-flops beside the pool while swimming, as most people do because the ground is so hot. When I came out of the pool, they had disappeared. I initially assumed someone had taken them by mistake and would return them once they realised, but they were never handed in. I reported them, just in case, but sadly they never reappeared. They weren't particularly expensive, but it was more the principle of the thing. Again, it is not something you would expect to happen at a five-star hotel.

There was also one lady sunbathing topless beside the pool one day, which made me feel slightly uncomfortable as it didn't really seem in keeping with the atmosphere of the hotel.

Finally, one afternoon there was a strange yellow substance floating in the middle pool. This was unusual because the pools were otherwise impeccably clean. A guest alerted the lifeguard, who came over and looked at it. I expected him to remove it or take some kind of action, but he simply walked away and left it there. Thankfully it had disappeared by the following day, but it was not the best look.

Despite these issues, and although I appreciate I may sound like a bit of a moaner, we still had a very enjoyable stay and would definitely return. The positives far outweigh the negatives. I simply think there are a handful of areas where the hotel could tighten things up and do a little better. I always try to leave honest reviews because the feedback is intended to help, and with a few small improvements this hotel could be even better than it already is.

Don’t bother if you have kids Pro’s: lovely selection at breakfast and friendly greeting everyday by Ola. Lots of sun beds each day available and complimentary towels Friendly staff Con’s Bedroom layout -open plan bathroom very strange design and impractical and inappropriate for us Dinner not a kids buffet selection no kids pasta or dedicated area meant our kids had French fries and bread each night very disappointing for high season and an allegedly 5 star hotel €10 each time to play tennis seemed madness when you had paid for a 5 star hotel Kids club was CLOSED very disappointing for our daughter Arcade had ping pong but the room isn’t air conditioned so it was unbearable to be in Salt water pools only! Wouldn’t come back

My partner and I have just returned from a 9 night stay and I really wish I could have stayed longer. The staff are all so friendly and chatty, the room was spotless, there was a coffee machine which we never used but nice to have the option! Our room had the whirlpool bath on the balcony which was super cool as we chose the Gold level option. With the gold level you have exclusive access to the San Sebastián terrace which has loads of sun beds, a shallow infinity pool and unlimited drinks plus a lunch meal per person. We still spent some time down by the normal pools because they were cooler (temperature wise), which was nice on the really hot days! The dinner buffet was amazing, I’m not very good at putting together a plate that looks good so I always had a random selection, but everything was tasty and cooked to perfection. Their desserts were unreal too. Breakfast also was always great. The gym is a decent size and lots of machines and weights to use. I did find myself in there once surrounded by only men and felt I couldn’t get my workout done as they were just man spreading so if the hotel ever considered creating a women’s only space, I reckon many women would love that! Genuinely couldn’t find anything to fault, other than the air-con was a bit touch and go. We had to keep turning it on and off during the night as it was making some strange clicking noises, but that was the only annoyance! The roof top bar was also amazing, the cocktails were ridiculously nice. I am such an espresso martini snob and honestly it was the best one I’ve had in a long time! I don’t tend to return to hotels because I like to experience new ones each time I go somewhere, but I would highly encourage anyone who’s looking for a relaxing stay in Tenerife to choose this hotel!