More about Gran Hotel El Tope
Gran Hotel el tope not so "grand"
by TripAdvisor Member jadabull
I´m currently on honeymoon in the Canary Islands and visited both Tenerife and Gran Canaria. I stayed at El Gran Tope for 1 night during an excursion to north tenerife. I must say that the hotel was below my expectations. For one, many of the reviews on this site praised the quality of this hotel. When you first drive up towards the hotel, you notice the worn out sign and chipped paint and realize you´re in for a doozy. The outwardly appearance of the hotel is definitely not enticing. Once you enter the lobby, however, you begin to change your mind about things. The lobby is quite spacious with finely polished floors and cherry wood staircase. The sitting area of the lobby offers pictureque views of northern Tenerife with large picture windows. There is a fuctioning lift and an amenable staff waiting to assist you. But you just can´t shake this feeling that everything is old and outdated.
One major plus is that my hubby and I were able to park the car in the immediate front of the entrance making our baggage handling much less strenuous. We stayed on the 5th floor and had a corner room at the end of the hall. What impressed us were the stately doors made of cherry-stained wood. However, the minute you open the door, things go down a notch. Now don´t get me wrong, the accomodations aren´t bad, there just not good, not inviting, not very comfortable. Everything looks and smells a bit dated from the inner most space in the closests to the bathroom tub, there is a musk in the air. What blew our minds, however, was the view off our huge, I mean, gigantic, balcony overlooking N. Tenerife´s shopping centers, beach and competing hotels and apartments. The view was absolutely stunning. We could also see the hotel´s pool which was nice and clean.
Thankly, we stayed one night at this hotel. After leaving a hotel in South Tenerife that costs about the same, but was of a much better quality, we were a little disappointed by El Tope. The hotel is clean, but again, there is an unclean smell about. The bathroom looked dated most in particular and had that peculiar smell which was ubiquitous in this room. The linen in the bedroom was a bit dated and the matress and pillows weren´t comfy like the previous hotel we had stayed at. There is a television with BBC, CNN and some German, Spanish stations. Please keep in mind that you must use your key to activate electricity in your room. We didn´t know this and were touting mad when we had to carry our baggage down to the lobby to inquire about this "seemingly" problem.
I also agree with other reviews indicating the stairs to get into town are a bit much in particular this could be a problem for older visitors or the disabled. For my hubby and I, in our mid-20´s this was not much of a problem. Speaking of, who would I recomend this hotel to? Definitely not individuals on their honeymoon or those looking for impeccable accomodations. I would recommend for college students travelling, looking for budget accomodations and the elderly as that was the primary population inhabiting this accomodation. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, but the steep stairs are still an issue.
Unfortunately, I don´t have any pictures to share as my digital camera ran out of batteries and here in the Canary Islands there aren´t many American, not English, but American adapters.
Cheers,
Shana
EL Tope not top class.
by A TripAdvisor Member
We stayed at the hotel El Tope for two weeks and would not go back. The hotel is in fact pretty good on most counts but there were a few disadvantages. There’s stairs from the town up to the hotel that would kill you, but taxis are cheap. The air-conditioning is a poor joke and we ended up buying a small fan at 22 euros to cool the room. The deal we went with was Thompson’s Gold but the hotel was polluted with kids, and that’s not what we paid a premium for. The kids were mainly Spanish and some German. And other small things that just wore away the top flight image that this hotel has positioned itself.. Fruit juices were of the diluting kind, not fresh and the number of men who wore soccer/football shirts at dinner.. Between that and the kids it turned a dinning experience (the food was very good) just into getting fed and out again.
So overall.. about 6 out of 10.
A Great week at the El Tope
by A TripAdvisor Member
Spent 20 to 27 February 2005 at this hotel. Very good, no complaints at all. Room had a sea view although not requested. Sea is perhaps 400m away but nevertheless being on a hill the view was interesting.
Bedroom was of good size with a good sized bathroom as well. Beds were comfortable. Everywhere was clean
Food was good with a reasonable choice, all generally hot and the staff were very pleasant although I thought that a couple more waiters on duty would have helped clearing the tables at times. Only saw queues for the restaurant on the last evening for dinner perhaps the hotel had not been full previously. Reception staff were particularly helpful.
The entertainment was only average but you don't have to spend any time there if you do not like it. There was a resident duo (keyboards and singer) on 6 nights a week and we had three professional acts in the week with the Thomson reps providing the other entertainment.
The steps down to the resort can be a little off putting. I am 64 and found them no trouble but my wife preferred to come up the road which is not much further but it is steep. Puerto de la Cruz is built on a hill side which means that there are a lot of steps and steep roaads to tackle but I found it an interesting town.
The resort is a change from the usual ribbon development only built since the 1960's in that it has a long history and so there are plenty of narrow strreets to explore with a lot of shops. The front is not a promanade in the accepted sense. It is possible to walk all the way along to the Playa Jardin but it is a bit up and down and in and out. This made it interesting for me.
This is not a resort for you if you want to spend time lying on the beach. There is one small black sand beach down from the hotel but there are no sun loungers on it. The best beach, Playa Jardin, is at the opposite end of the resort and you are best walking down the back of the resort to get there as it is a long way walking around the front. There are sun loungers on this beach and the gardens are quite pleasant.
It is a port with a harbour but I have never visited a foriegn resort with so few boats. There were three small boats moored in the harbour and perhaps 40 to 50 smaller boats (just a bit bigger than rowing boats)out of the water lined up on the dock side. I only saw two boats out in the sea all the time I was there. Though the brochure said that you could see the fishermen landing their catch there was no evidence of any fishermen, nets , bouys etc. I would be interested to find out the reason for this.
Had a day at Loro Parque which I thought was good value for E22. The Orchid Gardens near the hotel were poor value for their E4.50 entrance fee.
Overall an excellent holiday.
in many towns you will find a...
by finisterrae
in many towns you will find a restaurant called 'PRADA A TOPE' with north specialities wich is one of my favourites. Galicia and Asturias restaurants are usually cheaper than others. Vasque Country have impresionat meals and restaurants but they are expensive.
in the south you will find in Granada the tipical 'tapas' with each beer or wine ('tinto de verano'), and you eat with two or three beers. i recomended Europa in granada. In Cordoba and Sevilla you can eat for 6 €, and also there are fantastic 'tapas' in Jaen and Almeria.
in Madrid I recomended all the taberns between the Mayor square to La latina ( Casa Manolo, El Ñeru, La burbuja que rie, La Rosa, etc.) with tipical specialities and good prices. Also in Madrid in Lavapies (the intercultural area) you will find Galicia and Asturian 'Mesones' cheaper than other parts of the town.
Well, i continue other day....
A good hotel spoilt
by A TripAdvisor Member
We to have stayed at the El Tope many times. Prior to 2002 it is true that there were rarely children at what was an excellent hotel. However, Thomson 'commandered' the hotel for it's Gold brochure in 2002. We went for the last time in 2002 - when Thomson allegedly did not discount Gold holidays - but the place was full of people on last minute cheap deals some having paid almost half what we had, and standards had dropped considerably. We have called in there in each of the last two years whilst staying elsewhere and found that standards had dropped even further. One of the waiters said 'The El Tope is now p**sy". Many Spanish stay there (with children) and the whole atmosphere of the place has been spoilt.
Relaxed and Relaxing
by TripAdvisor Member SueMick
Myself, my wife and our 18 year old daughter spent 14 nights at El Tope in July 2005 and had a splendid time. The Hotel is well run with highly efficient and helpful staff, all of whom were delighted to be of assistance. We had a beatiful room with an enormous terrace that had an absolutely stunning view of Mount Teide, the air-conditioning was adequate rather than chilled but that is only a minor quibble.
The grounds of the Hotel are very well laid out with very good views of the sea and the town. The pool was on the small side but was never crowded. There were a very small number of Spanish children but they were well behaved and no problem at all. The buffet meals were always well laid out with plenty of options and many freshly cooked items.
The Thompson reps were very friendly and not at all pushy or intrusive, we really liked their style and the entertainment that they provided. The famous steps were a challenge to me and my worn out knees but they certainly did not spoil our enjoyment or our getting around. Going the other way, up the hill, there were a great number of Spanish and British bars which were a great deal cheaper than the Hotel Bar. The local Municipal and Orchid Gardens are well worth a visit.
We enjoyed the El Tope enormously and would have no hesitation in returning.
Great Holiday
by A TripAdvisor Member
I have just returned from a great holiday at the El Tope. I had read the previous reviews on this hotel and was wary of the aiir conditioning and steps.
It is true, the air conditioning is poor, however I found a trick which helped. When you arrive at the hotel, you are given two room "keys". After the maid had cleaned the room, we left the second key in the socket which provides electricity to the room and allowed us to leave the air conditioning for most of the day. Although the room was never actually "cold", it was at least confortable.
With regard to the steps, I did not find them too much of a problem, although I could see that they would be for the less mobile. Taxis, however are based at the bottom and were always available if necessary.
The hotel is in prime position, just far enough out of the centre to be able to walk in whilst in a very quiet location. I had learnt a few basic spanish phrases which I used mostly with the restaurant staff which they seemed to appreciate. I found the staff to be very friendly and helpful.
Other reviews commented that the spanish cannot cook bacon, however I believe that the spanish cook the bacon the spanish way and that we should be willing to try the local cuisine and sample their ways of cooking.
I really enjoyed the holiday and would definitely return to Tenerife and the El Tope.
What a holiday!
by A TripAdvisor Member
I am absolutely amazed by some of the poor reviews that the El Tope has received recently. Having just returned from an amazing week I felt I must put my own thoughts across.
I had never been to Tenerife and was determined to get as much out of my visit as possible. The reps (Laura and Emily) were so helpful to us when considering what we wanted to do, and always a pleasure to talk to.
The staff of the hotel were all wonderful, especially the restaurant manager and the waiters who worked very hard and never stopped smiling.
Our room (3rd floor) had a lovely view of the poolside, the local town and surrounding hillside villages. It was spotless and kept that way by the cleaning staff.
We enjoyed a variety of daytime and evening entertainent and were constantly kept entertained. Our very favourite night was the reps cabaret show, followed by the Bejing acrobats who were amazing.
The location of the hotel is uphill from town, but it does say this in the brochure. I was amazed that people had complained about the location when it is clearly stated in black and white. And for those who dont like kids? Well, check the brochure. It says that while Thomson DO NOT accept bookings for under 16s, the other tour operators in the hotel DO.
All this together with great days out at Loro Parque and Mount Teide made our first visit to Tenerife a joy. We will be back. Thank you Thomson reps/entertainers.
Excellent place for a honeymoon on a budget for young couple!
by A TripAdvisor Member
We were married on the 30th July 2005 and as most couples find they dont have much left for the honeymoon! Well we fell on our feet here, we paid £816 for both of us and we could not fault it.
We told the hotel it was our Honeymoon and they updgraded us, sent a bottle of champayne FOC to our room as well.
The rooms were clean and maid service daily! Food in the restauraunt was excellent, buffet style but also chef on show doing a carvery every night also. My husband is a chef so is very fussy and he said it was good as well which is a big big plus! Normally he wont eat buffet food!
The pool was clean and always sun beds available, with free parasol, towel and sunbed cover too.
Drinks were resonable price for a hotel not too expensive at all.
Entertainment was every night and good.
Representatives were very helpful. One thing it is cheaper to get a taxi to Loro Park than coach trip and they sell the tickets in the reception for the same price as at the gate, Or they have a free noddy train about 100yads from hotel that go regularly but get there early as the ques do build up after 9am.
The only bad thing is the loads of steps to the hotel. This can easily be overcome though as they are ok going down, but after walking about on the front I always got a taxi back rather than walk then for about 2 euros. 10 euros in a week well spent!
All in all I would definetly return to the El Tope as it was a top class hotel.
Never again
by TripAdvisor Member freddyman
The report on the hotel from Thomson looked good, not so good when we got there I'm afraid, rooms dirty, matress terrible, air con 30 yrs old & sounds like drums banging, split in hair dryer pipe which burned my hands on the first day, very dangerous, hole in shower pipe, dusty everywere in the room, TV took us several attemps to switch off, towels exchanged on second day for ones with blood on, bedding not change throughout our stay of 10 days which was disgusting as the air con was rubbish & we were sweating in the night, money stolen from locked case in room, I reported this to reception who advised me not to involve the police, I did'nt call the police but wanted the rep, instead they sent the maid up shouting at me in Spanish, I had to throw her out the room, I never even blamed the maid as anyone could have gone into the room because when we asked for fans (because the air con was terrible) someone bought the fan to our room but on that day our spare key card went missing from the room, I went to reception to ask for another one & all they did was to ask me for the room no:, they did'nt even ask for my name, I could have asked for any key in the hotel, terrible security, after speeking to the rep with ref to my money I was advised she woukld get back to me, she never did, so Thomson will be getting a letter from me about this & about the hotel, the hotel has the facilities for a 4 star but its filthy, pool cold when Thomson advertise it being heated, staff unfriendly except restaurant staff, bar staff find it too much trouble to make a cocktail, spent most of the time sun bathing at the Dragada which is a small water park, as don't like sharing the El tope pool with flies, found it very uncomfortable, the hotel is built beside some kind of gullie were water travells down from the mountians to stop flooding, there pipes comeing from the gullie, I'm not sure if these pipes were connected to the sewage pipes but there were alot of flies around,
Its hot in restaurant as they never have air con on,
Spanish run Hotel, seams to me there were 80% Spanish, 10% German & 10% Thomson Gold,
Good points,
Laura the thomson rep kindly aranged a bottle of champaigne in my room for my partner
Carina the entertainment rep was fabulous, best rep ever, shame she leaves in October.
but I would not ever go to this Hotel again
