Out of this world

We’ve just returned from a fabulous week at the Botanico and to be honest I don’t think we’ve ever had such a fantastic holiday. When we arrived at the hotel the staff were so lovely and welcoming, check in was swift and within no time at all we were heading to our room. The fruit juice while checking in is such a nice touch after a long flight. The rooms are immaculately clean, it’s very classically decorated and I love the style of the hotel - it feels like you’re staying in an art gallery! The breakfast is just fantastic. Literally everything you could think of, fresh omelettes, crepes, cereals, smoked salmon... and because it’s buffet style it means you’re bound to find something. I loved sampling the fresh breads and Canarian Pastries each day. Everything here was just out of this world. The spa, the grounds, the quality of the food and drinks. We couldn’t have asked for a better holiday. We genuinely loved our time here but we did have a few small niggles. None of these things would make us lower our score though, as we still had the most amazing time. The first thing is the smoking. I understand it’s not illegal to smoke outside in Spain. But when you’re having breakfast and the non-smoking tables are right beside the smoking ones it isn’t pleasant. It’s the same by the pool, unfortunately. The second thing is the Spa. Our daughter is 12 which meant she couldn’t use any of the spa facilities. On a family holiday it’s not ideal having to leave your only child in order to use them. I can understand the tranquility aspect not being respected by younger children but at her age she appreciates quiet relaxation and escape from screaming children as much as someone older. I do think 16 is a bit of an extreme age limit and it should be lowered. Lastly, and it’s more of a suggestion than a criticism. Our family is vegetarian/pescatarian and we struggled with food in the evenings within the hotel. There are some options but they are limited, especially when your daughter is super fussy! Having only a couple of dishes per restaurant meant that we ended up out most nights. It would be amazing to see vegetarian menus added to each restaurant. Especially when there’s such a good selection at breakfast! I want to finish by saying thank you to the staff. We’ve never been anywhere that had such wonderful, attentive and friendly staff. They speak so many languages and genuinely seem to take great pride in their work. We especially loved all of the bar staff who looked after us every night. Their cocktails were just delicious and we always felt nothing was too much trouble. We can’t thank you all enough and wish we’d had the chance to say gracias in person to each of you before we left. We will definitely be back!