As a last-minute pre-Christmas get away, my boyfriend and I decided to jet off to Tenerife for a week. The last few months have been hectic as hell, what with moving house, work and all of the festive events we were more than ready for a flop and drop holiday with plenty of sunshine. The Canary Islands are well known for having fabulous weather year-round, and so many of our family and friends had raved about Tenerife, so it was a no-brainer when we were deciding where to book for our winter sun break. Having decided on Tenerife we then started to look at the huuuuge range of accommodation on the island, and finally narrowed it down to The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife, which looked and sounded right up our street. As it turns out our expectations were totally exceeded, so I’m going to share with you why we loved it so much, as well as a few tips if you also decide to stay in this resort… which, btw you totally should..
Check-in
As we’d booked a package with Jet2 Holidays we had a transfer to the hotel included, which once everyone was on the coach it only took 25 minutes to get to The Hard Rock Hotel with just 3 short stops at other hotels. Once at reception we were greeted with a little cocktail, just a mouthful really, but I thought it was a nice touch. Check in was pretty quick considering all of the information they need to give you, including the smart wristband which not only opens your room door (no more losing keys or getting locked out!) but is also your payment method for the duration of your stay. So, no need to carry cash etc. especially useful when you’re sippin’ on cocktails in the swim up bar.
Room
We opted for a Gold level suite which was bigger than the standard level rooms, with a sofa/living area, large balcony with sun lounger and massive bathroom. What I really loved about the room was the open plan bathroom/bedroom concept. I’ve stayed in a few hotels like this recently and I’m here for it! A couple of nights I was able to sit in the jacuzzi bath, sipping cava and watching a movie on the massive flat screen TV that pivoted so you could watch where ever you were in the room. As well as the jacuzzi bath there was a huge rain fall shower, his and hers sinks, a large fridge, massive bed, robes and basically everything that you could possibly need for a really comfortable stay.
Facilities
The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife is far more than a hotel, it’s a deceptively large resort built on 3 different levels, the main features being 3 swimming pools and entertainment areas. These are; a family pool next to the Sessions buffet restaurant with slides and shallow areas. Eden pool is an adult only area with a swim up bar on the mid level of the resort, and where we spent most of our time as it got the most sun and the bar was pretty lively.
And at the bottom is the beach club and this is where The Hard Rock Hotel host their events. At one end there is a stage and in the center of the pool is a circular DJ booth and at the opposite end a private beach with access to the sea, as well as a swim up bar. This is the perfect place to watch the sun set and there were plenty of families with older kids in this area all week. All pools are heated during the winter which was sooooo nice! Temperatures in mid-December were low to mid 20s, which was just nice, but probably too cold to swim if the pools weren’t heated. It was still refreshing to take a dip in-between tanning, but it just made it that little bit more comfortable.
There is also a spa with hydrotherapy pools and a gym although we didn’t personally use those during our stay, mainly because there was an extra charge if you weren’t all inclusive.
Food & drink
Although Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife do offer All Inclusive, we decided to opt for the bed and breakfast option as we don’t really like being tied to our hotel, plus we tend to get bored of buffet meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Not to mention it was going to cost an extra £400 EACH for All Inclusive. A quick tot up in our heads and we figured it really wasn’t worth it. That being said, you can easily rack up a steep bar bill from drinking round the pool and having sunset cocktails at the 16th rooftop bar as the drinks are 2-3 times the price of drinks outside of resort!
Outside of the hotel we found plenty of great bars and restaurants with very reasonable prices. From Spanish to Italian, British, German, American, Indian, Greek…something to suit everyone. Our favourites were the sunset bar and restaurant Roca Negra and L’Incontro Italian restaurant.
Other than a salad/burger around the pool one day the only meal we ate in the hotel was breakfast each morning. Breakfast (and if you’re AI, all meals) are served in the Sessions restaurant on the ground floor of one of the towers. You can either sit inside or out on the terrace next to the family pool. Every morning there was a different musician playing out on the terrace, which was a nice touch. The breakfast selection was excellent, with all the usual continental stuff (bread, ham, cheese, jam etc) and English cooked breakfast too. There was also eggs benedict and omelettes cooked to order, tacos, giant hams, pancakes and waffles, pastries, loads of juices and a selection of teas and coffees. We tended to have a late breakfast and really fill our boots, so there was no need for lunch…well maybe a snack or ice cream…we were on holiday after all!
Bars
Other than the pool bars there were plenty of other places in The Hard Rock Hotel to grab a drink, although most of them were only open from 5pm onwards. The 16th rooftop bar is a very nice place to sit and watch the sunset, they have a DJ playing chilled Balearic beats every night and often live music too. The lobby bar has live music every night and tends to get lively from 8pm onwards. And there’s the 3rd Half, a sports bar with pool tables and big screens, perfect for watching the footie. Although as it opens at 6pm it’s only the evening games you’ll catch in there, however there are plenty of bars outside of the hotel to watch sport if that’s your thing.
Service
Other than the pool areas and our fabulous room I think this is what made our stay at The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife so amazing. Every single member of staff from reception, to breakfast waiters, hosts, cleaners, security… absolutely everyone (and it’s a huge team) was bloody delightful! Everyone went above and beyond to make us comfortable and feel pampered, without being stiff and robotic. We had a bit of banter with almost everyone and I think it was the exceptional service that turned a very nice 5* hotel into an incredible one that I’d have no hesitation going back to.
Vibe
In mid-December the vast majority of people staying at the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife were couples in their late 20s to late 40s, some with pre-school age kids. As Christmas week approached, naturally lots of big family groups were arriving with lots of kids and teens. The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife manage to somehow balance being a very family friendly resort, whilst also having loads of space for adults to relax or party without having to worry about little ones. We found the hotel at that time of year to be more of a relaxing vibe, although at the adult only pool we did get involved in a few rounds of shots with people, but it was never anything mad. Obviously live music is a massive part of the Hard Rock brand and it was everywhere, from musicians around the pool, and in the restaurants to full stage shows in the bars, so there was always some sort of evening entertainment. But if you’re thinking it’s anything like the Hard Rock in Ibiza or Vegas, it really isn’t! I guess it would be a different story during the summer months when they have their events on at the beach club though.
Area
Although Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife is advertised as Costa Adeje it really isn’t. I mean technically it’s in the Adeje area, but it’s pretty far out of the big resort area of Playa Fañabe, Puerto Colon & Adeje. I was worried at first that we’d made a bit of a mistake, especially as we’d opted against All Inclusive, but actually there was plenty of bars, restaurants and shops in Playa Paraiso where the hotel is. We would stock up on soft drinks and booze from the mini market opposite to have in our room and hang out in the Roca Negra or Britannia pub most nights. There are a few other high-end hotels and apartments around this little bay, plus there is a local bus that runs 4 times an hour up and down the coast. We had a day out in Fañabe and Adeje, plus a bit of a mad one in Playa de Las Americas one night and got a taxi back which cost 20 Euro.
Cost
We booked our holiday through Jet2 Holidays, who were honestly brilliant. They even had people doing bag check-in at the hotel, which meant that we were bag free on our last morning and also that we could just head straight through to departures at the airport. Brilliant service!
It cost us £1468.00 (£734 pp) For a Gold level suite with sea view, including breakfast for 7 nights. Flights, transfers and 23kg checked luggage was also included in the price. Considering the quality of the hotel and all of the added extras I think it was really good value for money, especially as it was over the busy school/Christmas holiday season.
Would I go back again?
Absolutely! It was the perfect winter retreat, and everything we wanted out of a winter get away. The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife has only been open a couple of years so the facilities were shiny and new, it felt chic without being too “try hard” and the service was excellent. What more could you want?
