Half Term family Sunshine in Tenerife
We visited the local area of Santiago del Teide on the West Coast which incorporates three small resorts which we visited. • Playa de la Arena • Los Gigantes • Puerto de Santiago
We arrived on time at Tenerife South airport after a 4-hour 50 minutes flight from Newcastle. After collecting our luggage, we left arrivals and met our private transfer to the hotel which took only about 40 minutes. A minivan ideal for a family of 4 with luggage – our own space and direct transfer, travelling past the many Banana plantations on route.
Hotel Costa Los Gigantes On arrival at the hotel Costa Los Gigantes the reception staff were very helpful and informative giving information on the room, hotel, and local area. The bell boy then took us and our luggage on the buggy to our room which was an Ocean View Suite.
Our room was very spacious with a separate bedroom with twin beds, a lounge with two-piece sofa bed making two beds, a bathroom with walk in shower and a terrace with amazing sea views across the Atlantic Ocean and of the cliffs of Los Gigantes. You can also see the Canary Island of La Gomera across the ocean. The hotel caters well for all age children and adults with excellent on-site facilities and a wide variety of food, so much so that you could easily not even leave the complex and not get bored or hungry. The complex is gated and entry at all gates is by room key card.
Just a brief overview for you on the hotel – If you would like more information please get in touch. • Facilities – spa, massage, gym, hairdressers, mini market, kids club, soft play, high ropes, darts, basketball, football, zip wire, tennis, mini golf, volleyball, water polo, yoga, aqua aerobics, wine tasting, day & evening entertainment and mini disco, children’s playground and more….
• 5 Outdoor freshwater Pools (2 children’s) plus a water slide, children’s splash area and a massive indoor Spa area with pool. 1 pool is quieter with no inflatables, balls or music and the other is more active with music, games and inflatables / balls allowed.
• Food and Drink options – Two buffet restaurants serving breakfast and dinner, outdoor snack bar area for drinks and food, outdoor dining area serving buffet lunch and evening a la carte options in The Grill or Italian, Outdoor bar, show bar serving evening drinks, main bar in the main reception building and garden bar area. All serving a wide variety of food for adults and children and a range of hot, cold (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) drinks.
What is there to do here? We really enjoyed our stay in Tenerife. • Enjoy the hotel facilities - relaxing around the pool, we had a day at the Spa, a day doing mini golf and high ropes and a day at the Bali Beds private area.
• We also had a day at the local beach in Play de la Arena – only a ten-minute walk down the hill, a small compact resort with a Blue Flag black sandy beach, several small shops, restaurants and bars and a supermarket. Costal path running through the three resorts. A very laid back vibe compared to neighbouring resorts.
• We visited Los Gigantes looking at its amazing cliffs with heights of around 5-800 metres after which the town was named. It’s a small compact town with several shops, bars and restaurants and a small black sandy beach – ‘Playa Los Guios’. It also has a small port from where you can do Dolphin and Whale watching trips, fishing trips or sit with a coffee and watch the ships and people come and go.
The resort is on the hill side so can be steep hills or several steps when walking around. It took us around 30 minutes walking the higher route from the hotel and around 40 mins walking back the coastal pathway. Or in a taxi from our hotel, it was about 10-15 minutes and only cost 4 Euro.
There is also a natural ocean swimming area and ‘Oasis’ an outdoor public swimming pool with splash area and bowls. A nice day out and the walk along the coastal path from Playa de la Arena, through Puerto de Santiago and onto Los Gigantes has amazing coastal views.
• We went on a Dolphin & Whale sightseeing boat trip from Los Gigantes port, which was around 2 hours, stopping to take pictures of the Dolphins. We also stopped at the beautiful, secluded Masca Bay for swimming and snorkelling which can only be accessed by boat, or a 3 hour walk from the remote Masca Village. It is rumoured that this was once a pirate’s hideaway! We sailed back to port alongside the huge Los Gigantes cliffs. It really was a good trip.
• Take a taxi to Costa Adeje. It took around 30 minutes and cost 30 Euro each way. We spent the full day here. It is a much busier resort, much more commercialised with many hotels, shops, bars, restaurants, fast food restaurants, a lovely beach and a port where you can do boat trips, jet ski etc. You can also walk from here along the coast to Los Cristianos and onto Las Americas.
Tenerife has so much to offer all ages and lots to keep you entertained. It is very popular with cyclists, you can take a trip up to explore Mount Teide, day trip to Siam Park waterpark in Costa Adeje, daytrip to Loro Parque Zoo to see the animals in Puerto de la Cruz, hire a car and explore further resorts and villages, boat trips, water sports, golf, beaches and more.
