Gran Melia Palacio de Isora

Service 5⭐️ restaurants, bars and others stuff was really nice. Food and drinks 5⭐️everywhere inc buffet was good Room 4⭐️ was good and everyday clean maybe need small refurbishment Swimming pool and area just 3⭐️ main pool only use that one smell to much strong chemicals ( stitches change colour on my shorts ) and Pool lounger mattresses all and everywhere very dirty looks like they just wet because stuff clean around every morning but we didn’t use was that bad. 😎

We had actually stayed at the Gran Meliá Palacio de Isora two years ago, and even then I left disappointed after my wedding ring went missing during our stay. I never established what happened to it, but understandably, that experience made me hesitant about returning.

However, my children had absolutely loved the pool and really wanted to return to Tenerife to enjoy some of the attractions, and after looking at the options in the area, this seemed to be the best hotel available. So, with some reservations, I agreed to give it another try.

Unfortunately, I wish we hadn't.

Our family consists of my husband and me and our two teenagers, aged 14 and 18. Both children were charged at the adult rate because they are over 11, which we accepted when booking. However, what we found particularly unfair was that, despite paying adult prices for both of them, we were not able to access the adult areas because we were travelling with our 14-year-old.

This is something I think prospective guests really need to understand when considering Red Level. You can be paying adult prices for teenagers, yet still be treated as a family booking and excluded from the adult facilities.

We chose to return because we expected the hotel to provide a high-end experience, particularly as we booked Red Level, all-inclusive, and paid around £10,000 for 8 nights. Sadly, the experience fell a long way short of what we expected for that price.

The positives: The hotel grounds are beautiful, the infinity pool is fantastic and the food is generally very good. There are certainly some impressive aspects to the resort, and my children still loved the pool.

There is also a very beautiful new addition to the hotel - Entrecielos rooftop bar. It is absolutely stunning, with a fantastic setting and beautiful cocktails. The staff there were also excellent - friendly, attentive and professional. It was probably one of the highlights of our stay.

It is worth noting, however, that Entrecielos is not included in the all-inclusive package and is 16+, so unfortunately we were limited in how often we could use it. Nevertheless, it is a lovely addition to the hotel and deserves recognition.

Unfortunately, the negatives far outweighed the positives.

Our two-bedroom suite was badly in need of some TLC. It was dated, shabby and grubby. The biggest issue, however, was the air conditioning, which had an extremely unpleasant, bitter smell.

We reported this and it was disinfected, which helped temporarily. Unfortunately, the smell kept returning and during our 8-night stay the AC had to be disinfected five times.

The smell was so strong that when we got home and opened our suitcases, our clothes still had the overpowering smell from the air conditioning. It was honestly quite shocking and left us wondering what exactly we had been breathing in during our stay.

Red Level was also a disappointment. We booked it expecting a premium experience. However, because our daughter is 14, we were restricted to the family Red Level area, which felt much more like a children's club.

Some of the Red Level staff were excellent, particularly Claudia, who was genuinely helpful and lovely. Unfortunately, we had very different experiences with some of the other staff. We felt that some staff were noticeably unfriendly towards us as British guests — we are Scottish — and on several occasions they came across as inflexible and unwelcoming.

The dining arrangements were particularly frustrating. Despite paying for Red Level and all-inclusive, there was very little flexibility about where or when we could eat. We were effectively told which restaurant we could use and at what time. Even when restaurants appeared to be half empty, there was little willingness to accommodate a different dining time or venue.

It felt as though the system was designed to direct guests towards the Pangea food market, which we found to be a particularly unpleasant dining experience.

And despite being sold an “all-inclusive” package, the all-inclusive element ends at 11pm. After 11pm, you are paying for drinks and other items. Perhaps technically this is still described as all-inclusive, but at this price point, we certainly didn't expect our all-inclusive benefits to simply stop at 11pm. It is another limitation that we feel should be made much clearer when booking.

Then there was an incident which I found genuinely embarrassing.

As all-inclusive guests, we were given a bracelet identifying our package. During the week, we occasionally collected a packet of crisps from the bar. Staff would check the bracelet and everything was fine.

On one particular occasion, however, a senior member of staff literally chased after me, gave me a lecture about taking the crisps and told me I had to charge them to my room. He then marched me back to the bar, where I had to provide my room number to the bartender — who looked just as confused as I was.

I found the whole experience humiliating and completely unnecessary. If you are paying for an all-inclusive package, what exactly is the point if you are made to feel as though you are doing something wrong when taking something that is included?

Ultimately, the biggest disappointment is the value for money.

At around £10,000 for 8 nights, we expected a genuinely exceptional experience. Instead, we encountered a dated and poorly maintained suite, a persistent air-conditioning problem, rigid dining arrangements and some very disappointing interactions with staff.

We returned because our children had loved the hotel previously, particularly the pool, and because we hoped that after two years the experience might have improved. Sadly, for us, it hasn't.

We gave the hotel a second chance despite my previous experience of my wedding ring going missing here. Unfortunately, this will be our last visit.

The grounds, pool and Entrecielos rooftop bar are beautiful, and there are certainly elements of this hotel that are excellent. But for the price we paid, we expected considerably more from the accommodation, service and overall experience.

We won't be returning.

Wow! This place is amazing, We didn’t expect it to be this good. The setting is amazing, the grounds are beautiful and the garden team need a big shout out keeping it all looking amazing. They have Europe's biggest infinity pool which is huge! Got to be 500meter long, my only bug bear with this is that it’s a salt pool, and it’s pretty salty we had to get my son some goggles from the shop in very near by town. They have over 16 pools with spa jacuzzi points in them, this is great, but it does need a little action, they say ‘’ They honour Silence’’ but it feels like a graveyard in there and when someone speaks you can hear the conversation, just needs a little background music to make it feel like a holiday and not overly forced. The food in the Food Market is simply amazing, and the best we have had of any all inclusive holiday in the past 8 years. The selection and variety of it each night is brilliant, some hard working chefs in that kitchen! The choice of restaurants for lunch is also very good and the food quality is equal to the Food Market, they have a Italian, Mexican and Mediterranean they are all À la Carte with a decent choice, for me it’s missing missing a slightly lower/easier option as after a few days of eating sometimes you just want a snack for lunch like a toastie/simple salad. We went half board, so paid for lunches as we tend to go out and about a few days, these lunched have cost of £100 a day so far, which is a little steep tbh. Drinks are pricey as well and not included in half board. Dinner choice in the Food AMrket was amazing and they had more choices of restaurants for dinner as well, so included, discounted and some you had to pay for, all very good that we chose. The staff are amazing, there are so many of them everywhere working hard to please you, they do a great job. The room was great, huge kingsize bed, amazing jacuzzi pool in the garden, and a day bed, which could be more secluded. We went with a 16yr old boy amid there isn’t much to do for them, the smaller pools are too quiet and lifeguards police very strong for any fun! The evening entertainment is lacking, they have a DJ from 7pm tom9:30pm that’s dinner time! also when the main entertainment starts on the main stage, I get that they don’t want 2 things running at same time to dilute the main entertainment gust numbers, but the teenagers are not interested in that kind of entertainment, but they need something running till 11:30/midnight just to keep them entertained, there were a lot of them around when we were there, they shouldn’t be forgotten.

I would say book-it if you’re a young couple, not so sure if you have a teenager as there isn’t much to do for them. There were lots of young families there when we were, so popular with them. Wife and I will be back when we need a chilled week, with good food and sun.