We have just returned from a fabulous holiday at the Barcelo Santiago hotel in Puerto Santiago which offers a majestic panoramic view of the ocean, a nearby island La Gomera (the second smallest of the Canary Islands) , and the spectacular Los Gigantes cliffs.
When we booked the holiday with Jet2 (holiday paid for by us, not gifted) we rather overlooked the significance of these cliffs. Arriving after a four-ish hour 6am flight and a frankly grim coach transfer where we seemed to stop at EVERY SINGLE HOTEL we were feeling rather travel weary, but the first glimpse of those cliffs rising up from the ocean, re-energised us because they are truly spectacular. Very much gave us Jurassic Park vibes!
We were lucky enough to get rooms with a view of the sea, the harbour and the natural sea pool at Santiago del Teide. (We were in rooms 530/532/534) which also benefited from being a stair-free walk from reception and only one flight up to the pools, restaurants and bars. There are lifts of course.
Here's a round up of our experiences at Barcelo Santiago.
OUTDOOR AREAS
The hotel has three freshwater pools, one of which is used occasionally for aqua exercise. I gather one is heated in the cooler months. There was also a little jacuzzi and, my favourite, a shallow pool with three sun loungers partially submerged. I *may* have snoozed momentarily in this pool.
The pools opened at 10am and closed at 7 and staff start clearing unoccupied sun beds just after 6. I forgot my water bottle one day and it was cleared in the evening tidy-up but I simply collected it from reception the next day.
There were plenty of sunbeds spread over a wide area - we favoured a rooftop decked area. We had no trouble getting a bed although brollies were harder to bag if like us you choose a leisurely breakfast over as dawn raid on the loungers. You can hire Balinese beds (with waiter service) for the day but I'd advise booking these when checking in - they are very popular and we didn't manage to snag one during our stay.
There's a large covered pool bar, a smaller covered area for yoga (pictured below), a smoking area with umbrellas and a few activities dotted about - darts, pool and shuffleboard. The fantastic entertainments team managed to be encouraging without being pushy and we came home with a handful of winners certificates and some sadness at having to say goodbye to Fernando and Lorenzo in particular.
In the evening staff remove the sun loungers and set out chairs and tables for entertainment which during our stay included a fabulously flamboyant Flamenco show, acrobats a singer and a band. You can queue at the pool bar or enjoy table service during the evening entertainment. We even got crisps with our cocktails!
FOOD
We stayed all inclusive - only our second time ever -and I have to admit that jumping from a three to four star we wondered if the difference would be reflected in the food. To be honest the buffet offerings were very similar but the bar "snacks" at Barcelo were far superior to our previous hotel.
At the buffet restaurant you could eat inside or outside (shaded) and at the pool bar you could sit under the huge gazebo or out in the sun. There was a dedicated smoking area which had umbrellas and a great view, especially at sunset. (You can see the smoking area with lights in the background of this picture taken from the pool bar covered seating area)
Breakfast
As expected there were pastries, a really good selection of bread and rolls, doughnuts, freshly made pancakes (tiny crepes rather than US style) and some hot choices. UK die-hard fry up fans could choose bacon (crispy streaky bacon), beans, eggs poached, omelette, fried and scrambled with or without mushrooms. Sausages were frankfurters or bratwurst. There were fresh grilled tomatoes too.
I made eggs benedict with spinach, bacon and poached egg and a decent hollandaise. There was locally grown whole fruit and continental style cold meats and cheeses. A pleasant addition was fresh juices and smoothies and good coffee plus Cava for a morning Buck's Fizz /Mimosa.
Lunch
The buffet offered cheese, ready prepared salads and a build your own salad bar, meats cold and hot and fish plus some vegetable dishes and assorted carbs usually including a couple of potato dishes, rice and pasta. There were vegetarian and gluten free options.
The restaurant had a pizza oven churning out fresh pizzas which proved popular.
Deserts were generally cake-related generally creamy and glazed. There was also fruit and ice cream with sauces and sprinkles to add and pots of mousse type puds. My friend and I chose deserts to match our hair on one occasion.
The pool bar offered an a la carte menu which we really enjoyed - ribeye steak, garlic mushrooms, squid, octopus with paprika and mash, pasta carbonara, caesar salad, toasted sandwiches, a poke bowl.... lots of choice made freshly in kitchens within the bar area.
Afternoon Snack
Some hotels offer afternoon tea apparently but Barcelo Santiago's afternoon special snacks came in waffle form with fruit, syrups, chocolate and icecream. Coming home 4pm will never feel as exciting without a waffle.
Dinner
The buffet was themed in the evening with Asian, American Diner and Canarian on offer during our stay. As well as "specials" there were choices similar to lunchtime. Quality varied - I had a great lamb chop but we all left beef that was freshly cooked but sadly poor quality and overcooked.Another day the beef was excellent.
We ate outside every day and were served with efficiency and cheerfulness by the helpful staff members. You could choose red or white wine, Cava or beer along with soft drinks at mealtimes in the restaurant.
My son (pictured below) had chosen the hotel from the Jet2 website and we were very pleased with his selection. We celebrated his 24th birthday while we were there and the hotel left a gorgeous looking slice of chocolate cake in his room as a surprise - sadly teeny tiny ants found it before he did!
DRINKS
Even at peak times the queues at the pool bar were never horrendous - you could opt for drinks in recyclable plastic tumblers to take to your sun bed or go for waiter service under the big gazebo or in the sea-view smoking area to get drinks in glasses.
We enjoyed local options like the Canarian honey rum and international brands in our AI package. Measures were generous and cocktails were on the whole quite good - sometimes varying in quality depending who made them. Sadly the lobby bar proved a disappointment both times we ventured down with a badly mixed Old Fashioned (more alcohol is not always better) and a bitter Expresso Martini.
No-one seemed to get ridiculously drunk probably down to the clientele. All ages but no rowdy parties only one rather sad solo traveller who got a bit leery around the ladies and was swiftly dealt with by management.
ENTERTAINMENT
Now I am not one generally for organised entertainment on holiday and would usually choose a venue without any on offer. However Barcelo Santiago's in house team and visiting acts were excellent and not only did we end up planning dinner round being able to get a good seat in time for the evening entertainment, but some of our party probably ranked the daytime activities as a highlight of the holiday.
CUSTOMER SERVICE
From before our trip when I emailed with some special requests to during the stay contacting customer service through the hotel's nifty app, face to face or via email we were delighted with the service. It's well worth downloading the app - we ordered slippers, tea and coffee and booked taxis through it with ease.
RESORT
The surrounding area is very hilly and there are lots of steps but taxis, even minibuses, are cheap, easily obtained and regulated so you can jump in one at any taxi rank with confidence. There was a good supermarket and a couple of touristy shops literally steps away from the hotel and beaches, boat trips and bars and restaurants not too far away. Barcelo Santiago is not so close to bigger attractions like Siam Park and the Teide volcano (which you can see from the hotel) but day trips are reasonable priced and easy to book in advance or during your stay.
We enjoyed a nice walk down to the harbour admiring the views and flowers, and swam in the nearby "natural" sea pool on the way back.
One of our party lost a piercing so we walked to a piercing/tattoo place opposite the gorgeous black sands of La Arena Beach and enjoyed gelato and macarons before tackling the hill back.
The younger members of our party also explored the beaches and rock pools around the hotel. They brought masks from the nearby supermarket and saw lots of sealife in the rock pools.
TOP TIP
We really enjoyed a trip on the Pirate ship Flipper Uno from the harbour 15 minutes walk or a 5 minute taxi ride (7 euro) from the Barcelo Santiago hotel.
We joined a two hour trip at 5.30pm which was less crowded than trips earlier in the day, and marvelled at a family group of pilot whales, drank Sangria and rum poured by a pirate and a swim in the gorgeous blue water.
I'll write a separate review for that trip. It cost 30 Euros each for two hours including drinks. You could book a three hour trip for a little more with Paella included.
CONCLUSION
I would recommend Tenerife and Barcelo Santiago in a heartbeat. We felt pampered and relaxed and apart from the initial transfer, can't fault Jet2 either. You can search Jet2's site for this and other hotels in the Barcelo group.
DISCLAIMER This holiday was entirely paid for by our family. I am sharing because I want to recommend this holiday and hotel.