The Hard Rock Hotel, Tenerife: A Family Holiday Review

Our visit to the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife was in February. Smack dab in the middle of the month. 

It was half term holidays and also right after Valentine’s Day which meant that it was busy with lots of families but the rush of fully booked restaurants had died down following Valentine’s. 

In this article, I’ll be sharing my experience staying at the Hard Rock Hotel, Tenerife. I stayed with my 1 year old, 4 year old and husband. We booked via British Airways and got the full breakfast package in a Studio Suite Gold.

Let me start by saying that we would absolutely do it again. Despite what you may imagine, the Hard Rock Hotel is one of the best Tenerife family hotels. 

What can families get up to at the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife?

You don’t ever have to leave the hotel during your holiday if you don’t want to.

• The Kids Club. The hotel runs a club with activities for smaller children. It is a bit like a playgroup. You can use it for free as a guest of the hotel. 

• Water play. The pools are both a great depth for children. Especially for children who cannot swim, once you are watching them, they will be fine and enjoy the water. The baby pool was only up to my knee at the deep end and right above my ankles at the shallow end. 

There is a water slide and some water fountains in the baby pool which makes for good fun for the kids. 

The deeper pool is really only slightly deeper and your kids who are swimmers would enjoy that as do the adults who lounge around in it. 

• Mini golf. We didn’t use this facility but we did see it was there so that’s something you can do as a family. 

• Teen Spirit (teens club). I spotted an impressive level of video games here both in terms of quantity and quality. Also, a pool table and some electric musical instruments. Pretty sure they conduct some activities for teens over the week even though I’m not certain what they are!

• Night concerts. It is the Hard Rock Hotel after all. You have to expect that they will put on a show for you. The performer they had three out of the four nights we were there was very impressive. He did awesome renditions of several rock and pop classics. 

• Food galore. The hotel restaurant has lots of yummy food that your kids can enjoy. You can too. 

In addition, there are restaurants near the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife. We dined at an Italian restaurant up the road from the hotel and their food was excellent. So were their cocktails. 

Venture a bit farther out into Adeje if you don’t want to pay hotel prices. We did the night before we left and were very happy with the food and the great service at about half the price that we would have paid at any restaurant closer to the hotel.

• Exploration. Your kids can explore the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife quite safely but under a watchful eye if they are little. The lobby area alone is a nice location for a little game of hide and seek. Just be careful of very young ones near the pools. 

How far is Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife from the airport?

The hotel was around 15-20 minutes drive from the airport both when we got there and when we were leaving. I did see online that it would be around half an hour but it was much less than that for us and that was even though we got caught in a bit of traffic on our journey to the hotel.

Which part of Tenerife is best for families?

Costa Adeje is ideal for families and particularly Playa Paraiso as it is not too busy. It is just busy enough with plenty of other families with little kids but not suffocating or overwhelming. 

Is Tenerife a good family holiday?

I found Tenerife to be a good family holiday location. You get to spend time in a warm location that is also safe and easy to navigate. The locals are friendly and happy to help. If you do not speak any Spanish, you are usually in luck because just about everyone here can communicate in good enough English to offer you some guidance. 

How many days is enough in Tenerife?

A week is the perfect number of days to spend in Tenerife, in my opinion. We spent four nights at the Hard Rock Hotel and we wished we were there for a couple more days than that, however we also knew that we would not want to be there for any more than a week. 

A week gives you enough time to get to know the area and dedicate two days to tourism activities before you leave. You also get to relax a bit (if your kiddos allow it!) before your time there is done. 

The highlights of our Tenerife experience

1. Awesome hotel breakfast

Though we booked for breakfast only, we had a slight panic the first night and wondered whether we should have gone all inclusive instead. I am glad we didn’t but the breakfast was incredible. It was the widest array of food that I have seen at a hotel in a long while. There was something for everyone and every single thing I tried was delicious and tasted fresh (the fruits and vegetables) and freshly made.

Careful if you are trying to stay away from too much sugar though and especially watch your kids. The breakfast options include lots of doughnuts and sometimes even things like chocolate fudge cake which we can all go a little crazy over at the detriment of our health.

2. White Sand Restaurant and Lounge in Costa Adeje

I’m a big foodie so yes, you know more than one of my highlights has to be food related. This is the restaurant we went to on our last night. Yummy food and excellent customer service (which I happen to value above a lot of other things). 

3. Child-friendly

On a family holiday, you want to know that you do not have to be scared of your kids getting hurt. With little children, you are on high alert all the time anyway, but if you are in a calm and safe environment, you feel like you can at least enjoy yourself while you watch them. The Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife was family and child-friendly because as beautiful as the decor was, it wasn’t one of those that had lots of glass doors and so on. The staff were also very friendly and welcoming to all of us.

4. The hotel room

As I mentioned before, the studio suite gold was our room choice. It looked beautiful. The shower and toilet were each in separate little rooms within the room. The room itself had a hot tub in it and two sinks which was handy for getting ready as a family of four in the mornings and evenings.

I am a bit of a clean freak so perhaps I’m not the person to comment on this but I do think that the hotel could do with better cleaning of their carpets.

5. The weather

Even in February, it was double digits throughout the day. It was warm enough to go for a swim after 9 am in the sun and it only got warmer after that until around 4pm when it would start to cool down. Coming from the UK, it was a nice change. Now, if you are coming from somewhere much warmer than continental Europe, you might be in for a bit of a shock and need to wrap up.

Something I found interesting…

I don’t know if it is like this all year round but the hotel was packed full of Brits. I probably only heard Spanish from three people within the hotel who were not staff. Most of the people we passed by and spoke with while out in town were also British. 

If, for example, you are British and would like to be surrounded by people who make you feel like you’re in a sunnier version of home, you’re in the right place.

Things to note

• The Hard Rock staff are all very friendly and accommodating of requests from guests. Don’t be afraid to ask for any help.
• On that note, you’re better off asking for help in person at the front desk than over the phone to reception.
• Don’t worry if you forgot to pack any holiday essentials. There are shops opposite and next to the hotel where you can stock up on simple things like sunscreen, swimsuits, floats, and so on.
• There is a medical centre and also a couple of pharmacies a very short stroll from the hotel if you need anything.
• I  wasn’t too happy with the fact that British Airways didn’t have any in-flight entertainment for a flight of that length. Load up on video downloads, games, etc. to keep your little kids happy.

Overall, I would visit the Hard Rock Hotel, Tenerife again and I cannot wait to do so!

Are you headed for the Hard Rock Hotel Tenerife anytime soon? Let me know how it goes!

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