An excellent hotel for a relaxed adult break, with one small negative area for me.

We first came here in February 2020, four weeks before the world went pear shaped and during those dark days of the pandemic we used to comment that if this was going to be the last hotel we ever went to, then at least we finished on a high. Fortunately the world recovered and here we are back again some four years later to find it still an excellent hotel. It is a very well run hotel with a focus on rest and relaxation, which is well maintained and kept spotlessly clean. I can understand some comments from previous reviewers who considered the hotel and spa decor to be dated, but I consider it to have an old school charm and am one for which this appeals, and it is a pleasure to explore the floors and corridors whilst browsing the hotels interesting art collections. There are several true positives, the highest of which is the staff who are excellent and professional throughout the hotel. Always friendly and always helpful in every area of the hotel. However, a bit more local knowledge training from the management wouldn’t go amiss however as we stayed over the Easter weekend and the reception staff seemed unaware of the Saturday night time change and were not aware of any religious festivals or parades in town for Easter, when asked. Fortunately Mr Google was better informed and we were able to catch the excellent religious Easter parade that takes place in PDC old Town on the Easter Friday evening) The hotel gardens are exquisite and superbly maintained ( almost circumvents the need to visit the Botanical Gardens across the road). The army or gardeners who work behind the scenes to keep it looking superb are truly a credit to the hotel. The Oriental Spa pool area and spa facilities are excellent and sensibly adult only. This is a wonderful area for relaxation and fortunately most guests respected this, but sadly you still get the odd idiot who has to make a call on their mobile. The breakfast service is still one of the best we have ever encountered. The quality is high and the speed at which options are replaced is truly impressive. I know there will be those who feel uncomfortable at seeing any caged animal, but keeping caged birds is a cultural thing and the breakfast restaurant aviary is a thing of beauty as aviary designs go. The deluxe double rooms we have used on our two visits are spacious and comfortable with enormous king sized beds and well equipped. The bathroom was improved from our room four years ago and the multi function separate shower unit was a bit of fun. Also good to see the Noir toiletries retained. Also to wake up to the fabulous view of Mount Teide every morning set the day up nicely. There are rooms promoted with having sea views and I am not sure if there is a price premium for these, but given the hotel’s location you should take heed of the words of the most famous fictional hotelier Basil Fawty, that the sea is the bit between the land and the sky. Some may view the hotels elevated location above the centre of PDC as a negative as it is a good 15 to 20 minute walk down to the seafront bars and restaurants. But if you are active this is not really a problem. PDC still retains a Spanish feel and some excellent tapas can be had in the multitude of traditional restaurants and bars that adorn the squares and back lanes of the old part of town. The tourist ones that line the seafront promenade are not too bad either, but advice is to do your research and book the authentic ones. The hotel does run a shuttle bus on week days but this does stop quite early. However it is only a 5 euro taxi journey to and from and we usually took a leisurely stroll down and picked up a taxi from the rank on Plaza de los Reyes Catolicos for the way back, especially as the fare is less than a glass of red wine in the hotel bar. And that brings me to the one negative that I still have with the Hotel Botanico, which is the high price levels of the bar and restaurants. We would have liked to have utilised them more but it is difficult to justify that when there are so many high quality and much lower cost options outside the hotel. Disappointingly the food from the pool side restaurant was more expensive, but not as good as our previous visit four years ago, which led us to utilise it a lot less than we did last time, and I have to confess that being just on a B&B tariff, we did not use the evening restaurants in the hotel at all, as the price levels are high compared to outside the hotel and comments on here and the individual trip advisor listings for the restaurants themselves did not inspire confidence that the experience would be better than eating outside. We preferred to spend our money on massage treatments in the Spa, which were fully matching their price points. We did use the hotel bar on our first evening but the cocktails, wines and beers were nothing special to justify their elevated price level and paying over double for a standard Dorado draft product compared to the many bars and restaurants nearby isn’t that enticing. For the rest of our stay we utilised the local bars a short walk away, especially after I discovered those that stocked local and Spanish artisan beers, and they had the advantage of being considerably livelier than the hotel bar. If you are into Spanish wine make sure you search out La Vinoteca, hidden away in the small shopping area on the other side of the road to the hotel’s main entrance. Quality wines for a fraction you pay in the hotel bar for an average glass of house red. Despite the above final comments this was again a five star stay for us, and would not hesitate to visit again. However come the day we’re not able to easily leave and explore outside, then my negative will have a bigger impact on our decision.