Puerto de Santiago, Barcelo Santiago

After having had a good range of previous holiday experiences I would judge this not good value for money.

At Xmas be prepared for bars to close by 10.00 and the only entertainment to be the hotel staff running a quiz type session.

There was not any additional effort put in to celebrating Xmas besides some extra food and a visit for the children from Father Christmas.

A wonderful holiday, but not really for young children. My youngest is 10 and she loved the entertainment by the staff. My 12 year old son was quite bored, there were no other British children his age - even so, he loved the independence of going to the bar and ordering his hot chocolates and hot dogs which he happily chose to eat at a table alone, he has come away from the holiday much more confident. My 14 year old daughter was very distressed by the heat on days we couldn't get a shaded spot but she still said that she throughly enjoyed it. It's quite expensive in Tenerfie in comparison to years gone by so take a pack of your favorite chocolate and save a fortune.

I would honestly go back to this Hotel again, but as part of a couple - as a singleton hoping for romance it would be disappointing as it is mostly couples and young families.

We have stayed at Barcelo Santiago four times for our winter break because the resort is one of the quietest on the island and we enjoy the half board option. The weather on the west coast of Tenerife is also generally warmer and drier than the North coast. All the staff are friendly and courteous and the rooms are clean. There is entertainment laid on by the resident animation team during the day and evening for both children and adults alike although we holiday during UK term time so there were not many children staying. The menu in the buffet style restaurant varies from day to day although, because of the large number of guests, it can sometimes mean a bit of a scrum at meal times. The pool area is also quite small so if you are the type of person who likes to sit around the pool it is often difficult to get a sunbed unless you are prepared to start early in the morning and stay there all day. The resort of Puerto de Santiago has a good selection of restaurants, bars and souvenir shops. For those wishing to exercise a little but generally chill out, it is a short stroll via some rather steep steps to the neighbouring resorts of Los Gigantes or Playa La Arena with a larger choice of shops and restaurants where you can stop for lunch. The hotel runs a free half-hourly bus service to both resorts if you prefer not to walk. After returning to the hotel it is great to spend the afternoon on your furnished balcony in the sun. There has unfortunately been a rapid rise in building works in the area which threatens to spoil this resort although we were not disturbed by any construction noises and it is still far less developed than Playa de las Americas.