Melia Jardines del Teide

Just returned from a five night stay here. We were a group of five celebrating three of us turning 50 this year.

The hotel is generally lovely, with clean spacious rooms, good facilities and the majority of staff were very helpful. However, overall our experience was disappointing for the following reasons:

• Three of us were sharing a room, but on arrival the room was only made up for two and we had to request someone to come and make up the sofa bed and provide additional towels.

• This was echoed throughout our stay in that the hotel was generally not set up for groups larger than four. There were never any tables prepared in the restaurant or bars for more than four, meaning that we had to rearrange tables (or wait for the waiting staff to do so) before every meal.

• One evening we booked the Italian for dinner and I asked via reception, if they could do something to recognise that we were there to celebrate three of us turning 50 this year (just something simple, nothing elaborate!) Despite reception making a note of this, nothing was done.

• Although the food in the main restaurant was overall very nice, it quickly became repetitive.

• Checkout was at 12pm, and the charge to extend our room until 6pm was far in excess of that I have been charged at any other hotel of a similar standard. Even though we paid this, our room keys stopped working at 12pm and we had to go to reception to get them reactivated (which was quite a walk from the room). If you did not extend the room, you were also unable to continue to use the all inclusive for the rest of the day, which again, I have not experienced at other similar hotels.

• As several other reviews have mentioned, the main pool is in desperate need of refurbishment as the sides and bottom have many black marks which detract from what is otherwise a lovely facility.

So overall, while on the surface the hotel appears of a good standard, due to these service issues, I would not choose to stay at a Melia hotel again.

I am writing this review to express our immense disappointment with our stay. This property is marketed as a luxury 5-star hotel, but the experience we had fell completely short of those standards.

The main issue was the state of the swimming pool. As you can see from the photos, the bottom was covered in widespread black sediment and grime, creating conditions that looked completely unhygienic and uninviting. It was in such a state that we couldn't bring ourselves to use it at all. When we formally complained to the manager, we were initially told that "there was nothing they could do." It was only after further persistence that they finally granted us access to the VIP pool—a resolution that shouldn't require an argument when you’ve paid for a 5-star holiday.  The only saving grace was the general floor staff, who were mostly friendly and polite.

One English lady working in customer service was particularly unprofessional—she looked miserable and didn't smile once throughout our stay. Worse still, she was openly complaining to other British guests about how much she had to speak with German guests. That level of attitude is completely unacceptable in hospitality.

If you are planning a trip and expecting a true luxury experience, I strongly recommend booking one of the many other beautiful 5-star hotels in the area instead. We certainly won't be returning.

Third visit to this hotel and we had a great week. The staff were very welcoming and helpful right across the hotel, our room was fantastic and the views right across Costa Adeje are beautiful at all times of day. Food was excellent every day. The only criticism I have is the state of the bottom of the swimming pool! It’s peeling badly and looks dreadful, which is a problem when they have made the pool the visual focus of the hotel. We didn’t use the pool but heard other guests complain of how shabby it looks. It really needs urgent attention.