3 Star Tenerife Holidays

SAW

After browsing through several TripAdvisor reviews—some of which were less than glowing—I read between the lines and decided to book at GF Noelia anyway. I’m so glad I didn’t let those reviews sway me; the hotel turned out to be fantastic! The warm welcome I received set the tone for a great stay. I had requested a specific room, but it wasn’t available when I checked in. The next morning, Maria at reception personally apologized and offered me a chance to switch rooms that day, which I appreciated. While moving rooms, I accidentally misplaced my Kindle, but the attentive room service maid, Sarah, found it and returned it to me before I even noticed it was gone—what a relief! The hotel itself was outstanding, with spotless, comfortable rooms. The food was consistently high-quality, with plenty of variety to enjoy each day. The evening entertainment was a highlight, offering something different and engaging every night. The location of GF Noelia was perfect—just a short, easy walk downhill to the main harbour and promenade. This was my first time staying in the north of the island, and I loved every minute of it. Don’t let any negative reviews deter you from booking here; I’d happily return to GF Noelia without a second thought!

Carly Martin -Legg

Currently on the last night of my weeks stay here. Every single staff member is fabulous especially Angelo, Carlos and the chef went above and beyond for us, so friendly and welcoming. Roof top pool was cold but just what you need when your out there all day sunbathing. I can not recommend this hotel enough. Well done to you all and a massive thank you 😁

Lindsey Zahra

Rooms- descent size, plenty of storage and clean. However in desperate need of modernisation and sound proofing. You can hear everything from neighbours (everything) and outside from sports centre and bus station. Bathroom drains also bit stinky. Service- Maids and lifeguards pleasant enough but the waiters, chefs and bar staff are very rude. Receptionists do their job well but not much interaction required with them. You cannot use cash to pay for your drinks at the bar! Location- not a very clean or pleasant area. Feels a little bit out of the way and lots of homeless people in the area. Didn’t bother us but felt a little bit uncomfortable as I was on my own with my 2 kids. The sports centre and the bus station located very close by means that noise is unavoidable at night and all the way through to the early hours you can hear buses reversing in the bus station. Entertainment not great. Pool not heated. Games room needs upgrade. Pool cues have no tips and pool balls all mixed up.

Bridget Saward

We had 11 days at this hotel half board, well situated central to Puerto de la Cruz, rooms spacious clean though outdated,bathroom needs a revamp.Staff very friendly and helpful especially with an issue with payment of drinks bill,finally sorted many thanks.Evening entertainment varied and very good,however our last night was extremely loud spoilt the evening. We noticed the seating had been revamped but was very uncomfortable. Food on average good,breakfast a varied choice,however evening meal rather hit and miss lacked variety and seemed repetitive if you like pizza chips etc.Some evenings very noisy due to constant turnover of school parties.Pool more like a plunge pool un-heated,terrace area good but nowhere to order drinks food etc.Overall an enjoyable stay many thanks.

Sylwia

I am writing this review as still in my hotel room at GF Noelia. I must admit I was a bit nervous after reading the reviews, but the hotel didn’t disappoint at all. Everyone at the hotel was very friendly and the receptionist very helpful. There is a little shop by the reception, a bar and entertainment area. My children have enjoyed playing pool each night and all the machines work as they should. We had a problem with a coin stuck in one of the machines once, but just asked the staff and got help immediately. The location of the hotel is very good, there is a big shop just round the corner, cafe, pharmacy and a little playground in front of the shops. The hotel is close to the beach. There is a nice, new playground by the beach and a footpath with palm trees and remarkable selection of cactuses. Rooms are spacious, clean and each room has a balcony. Our room was on the side facing next door hotel’s swimming pool, quiet and comfortable. When it comes to food, we have purchased the full board option and we have enjoyed our breakfasts the most. For lunch and supper you need to pay for your drinks but the prices are very reasonable. All in all, there is always something to choose from, but we are not fussy eaters. If we ever come to Tenerife again, we wouldn’t hesitate staying at this hotel again.

Sahndrra

For someone who travels solo and does more outdoor activities to within the hotel / all inclusive deals - I’d say it was a good deal for me. The location is located in one of the reserved, peaceful, quiet places of the island with grocery shops , restaurants and ofcourse the beach close by. It has 3 swimming pools (10:00-18:00) with ample number of sun beds. The breakfast was just okay, not a lot of variety but it’s definitely doable if you don’t care to eat out for lunch and dinner. The room was conducive, spacious, nice views, clean and well maintained.

Jennifer Moyle

A holiday is what you make it and overall we had a really fab 6 nights holiday here. If you're looking for a cheap, all inclusive holiday in a lovely spot and away from the crowds this is a great base. We would return and stay all inclusive even though we eat out a lot. We loved the area/location with easy transport links running every 15 minutes and a close by taxi rank. It's much better to use the local supermarkets rather than the on-site shop. Just remember that this is a 3 star complex in need of refurbishment with a repetitive menu, no daytime entertainment and only have very short entertainment on a Friday night.

Jessica Simpson

Rooms are dated but very clean, pools are lovely and food has been good even though it is limited. We have had no entertainment till tonight which was Jorge party imagine 360 was fantastic experience and fun to do. You dress up and dance and he videos it and then air drops it to you for you to keep and leaves you with great memories of our trip.

Louise Duffy

After reading bad reviews I was a little apprehensive about our stay. We are currently on a 4 night stay here, with one night left to go at Calleo Garden and I have to say, do not listen to the reviews. Our room is superb, large, clean, beautiful views. The staff are very friendly, I'd like to give a mention to Eduardo, Kevin And Luis lovely guys who will go above and beyond for you. The food... The food changes daily. There's lots of choice and you won't go hungry. My husband is very fussy and the first day I was worried as there wasn't much for him to eat and reviews had reported that it was the same food every day....that's a lie. Every day the options for breakfast, lunch and dinner change. He got to eat plenty and didn't go hungry. The food is also delicious. The pools. There are actually 4 pools, one is hidden away from the other three. The pool areas are clean and in a beautiful setting. Lovely cool water for when you are needing to cool down after being in the sun . These areas are cleaned daily by the lovely staff. Can't fault it at all. The Bar. I honestly have no idea why people are complaining. It has everything you need. Yes you have to pay a euro deposit for your cup but this is given back to you when you hand it in. I love this idea and it's much better than plastic throw away cups that would end up littering this beautiful place. The beer is san Miguel so hardly a bad choice. The spirits are plentiful and not watered down like some reviews state plus they are generous in their servings. There was entertainment (Friday only) but as it's out of season this is to be expected. The dreaded steps. Yes there are a lot of steps, I have serious mobility issues (fibromyalgia) and some days we're harder than others but due to the location of the hotel, it's to be expected, it also states all over the websites about these steps so its not like you are not warned. The steps are in little bursts around the hotel so it's not as bad as it seems. I personally think it adds to the character of the hotel and my weightloss lol Overall I love this hotel. The views are outstanding, we will definitely come back (can we choose the room we had again? Hibiscos 3002)

Jesse-Valtteri Lehtinen

Even for low budget hotel we had a bad experience. We spend five days. On positive side the hotel area was nice and quiet, pools were clean and breakfast was pretty good. Reception was helpful. The whole complex was old and needs renovations, but it was well kept and clean all around. Then the negatives: - We had half board and dinner every night was absolutelu bland and tasteless (fries and dry nuggets etc.) - Second day we had no hot water in room. Fixed next morning. - Last three days renovations right next room, drilling and banging from 10am. No warning, no nothing, had to leave the room for few hours just to get away from the noise. - Never had worse beds, really hard to sleep and we were both aching every morning. - No real blankets, just sheets or small musty wool blankets, and the room was chilly at night.

Alan Lewis

Bit of a hill to climb yet worth it! Found out too late there was a bus down to the centre. Live and learn! The hotel though was lovely. Clean, great staff and great food. Would love to visit again

Thomas

Fantastic budget-4 star hotel. Staff are friendly and the breakfast was of a decent quality (understandable for the price). The elevators in second building (not sure if the primary building is the same) have a lot of character due to their age! The only downside is the location of the hotel, that being said they do offer shuttles into Puerto de la Cruz.

Tom Lefevre

Rooms very dated and in desperate need of refurbishment but the hotel was perfectly comfortable, although no air con in the rooms which was especially disappointing when we had upgraded to a superior room. Service was exceptional, all staff very friendly and helpful. Location is ideal as plenty of things locally to do including a shop 5 mins walk away that sells all your essentials, only downside of the location is the hotel is located on a very steep hill if walking into the local town, however the hotel does provide a free shuttle bus service.

Chantal S

If you intend on staying and relaxing all day in the hotel it might not be for you. For just sleeping you get what you pay for. Friendly staff, breakfast okay. Rooms need renovations and are not sound proof. At the reception there is a strong sewer smell. They offer parking for 5 euro per day, which can fill up quite fast at night. Also a free shuttle bus to the city centre . On foot the way to the hotel is steep

David Ellis

Our first impressions were really quite good. Friendly reception staff, nice gardens and a room we were happy with (the layout, size and condition). However, the longer you stay here the more our rating dropped. There were just too many issues for us. We requested a quiet room but were allocated one above the dining area. This lead to noise until quite late at night and coupled with the general lack of sound insulation (you can hear a patio door slide from the other end of the building). The buffet restaurant is really quite awful. The food is poor (we unfortunately ate dinner on the first night) and the staff inefficient and unfriendly. Breakfast was ok to start but by the second week of our stay the cooked food was mostly very undercooked (do you like undercooked cold rubbery fried eggs and fatty cold underdone bacon?). The coffee machines are never all in service, even if the staff have bothered to put cups out. Plates regularly run out. Room cleaning was poor. They don't clean on Sundays (why? We still paid the same) and other days they don't clean consistently. Parking is a joke. 5 euros per day should guarantee you a space but due to selfish parking (people taking two spaces) in the lower car park and padel/restaurant customers in the upper car park it can be a struggle.

Steven Hughes

This was the cheapest hotel we could find in January in Los Cristianos, we booked last minute and found a lot of the accommodation in the area was sky high in price. I'd say it was pretty much what we expected - as our expectations were quite low. I would say that the pool area was quite nice with plenty of sunbeds, and the staff here were very accommodating and friendly. We were also quite happy with the size of the private terrace we had on our room (our room was the most basic option). Also, the location is pretty good, close to the main areas. Two things let it down for me: 1. The beds were very uncomfortable, the staff did arrange for us to have a mattress topper put on but even with that you can't get around the fact that the beds are desperately in need of replacement, and we weren't able to sleep well on them at all. 2. The included breakfast, whilst having a lot of options was not the greatest. All of the "hot" options were stone cold on all 4 mornings of our stay, that is to say, the items weren't even slightly warm so I imagine most of the food is cooked very early and then left out rather than kept warm properly. I think go for the hotel if you're on a budget, a short stay here was enough for us though.

Janice Perry

My friend and I had a 10 day holida in January and February. It was great. The hotel staff were all exceptionally nice,it was very clean, And we thought the food was exceptional. I don’t understand the negative reviews.. there was always some type of activity to do around the pool, and the activity team was so pleasant and enthusiastic, we would go again next year but we think it will be still under refurbishment, But we look forward to going again when everything is finished, if we can still afford it🤣 Thank you for a lovely holiday

Tia Halliday

We stayed here a few months ago now, but I've probably only just gotten over how utterly horrible it was to actually put the energy into writing a review. During the summer, the staff can't cope with the capacity of the hotel, nor can the amount of sunbeds, chairs or pool space outside. The pictures you see of Sol Arona do not reflect what it actually looks like. Picture the worst sky rise block of flats in your hometown, that's what it really looks like. I was mortified on arrival, then to find the pool is tiny compared to pictures. The mattresses are horrible, drains stink, major timescale build up in the shower no air conditioning, unclear on booking you have to pay for a safe per night, which you'll be lucky if it even works. On arrival, took almost an hour to check in which was awful in the non air conditioned lobby. The first two nights we had horrendous noise from other guests to which we were alerting security until 5am. Security just stopped bothering to knock on the neighbouring room by that point, doing nothing at all about it. We eventually had to move rooms and almost had to pay for the safe for the week again as the reception staff didn't document it properly. Moving on to food, no major issues here, other than the squashed flies around the rims of dessert lids. Range of food was okay. If you're really still thinking of going here after reading this review, don't bother paying all inclusive. You simply can't take advantage of it, there aren't enough members of staff to be able to serve you the all inclusive drinks. You can self serve wine and one lager, but if you ever want something different, just give up hope that you'll be able to get served at the bar. Poolside toilets also disgusting, which is non surprising given the state of the rest of the place. We ended up with money back from our holiday provider for the experience we had (which is something we've never ever had to consider even asking for before) which was backed up by the proof of all of the above. Only good thing about this hotel was the convenience of location and that checking out took 2 seconds. I see Sol Arona reply to reviews, I'd much rather they didn't bother with this one.

Fe Bergh

The hotel has a good location, making it convenient for exploring the area. However, the overall experience was disappointing. The bed was thin and outdated, making it quite uncomfortable for a good night’s sleep. Additionally, there was no duvet provided, which made the nights uncomfortably cold. The hotel itself feels in need of a fully makeover, as some areas appear quite dated. Given the condition of the amenities, the price feels too high for the value offered. With some improvements, this hotel could be a much better experience, but as it stands, it does not meet expectations for the cost.

Louise M

This was our first visit but many of the holidaymakers were repeat visitors. This was due to the excellent location of the hotel, just a few mins from the beach, and because it is so cheap. We went half board and found a good choice of dishes and no upset tummies. The downside was the room was very small & poorly decorated. The bathroom stank of sewage. As we were not poolside we were in shade all day, also there was noise from reception, the car park, and teenagers in local park till about midnight. We would advise anyone booking here to book a high-up poolside room to avoid these problems.