The Ritz-Carlton Tenerife, Abama — Hotel in Guía de Isora

We stayed at the RC Abama in an Adults Only villa for one week in January and absolutely fell in love with it! We have previously stayed at the Red Level Melia and you absolutely cannot compare that hotel to the RC Abama in terms of service and so many other things! We also usually stay at Las Terazzas De Abama (the apartments on the same complex) and whilst the Terazzas apartments are absolutely beautiful, the whole experience is totally different and would stay at the hotel in preference every time.||The villa was beautiful and spacious with a fabulous terrace and small garden overlooking the adults only infinity pool and the sea! The bed was the largest and most comfortable I have ever slept in, in a hotel room! You just sink into it and don’t want to ever get up! Like sleeping on a cloud! ||The lighting in the bathroom is perfect (unlike the Red Level Melia where I ended up looking like a clown every night because it’s too dark in the room and bathroom to see to do your make up!) They also have a fab magnifying light up mirror. The shower is unreal - lots of tiny fine jets that feel soft and incredible but powerful at the same time! Best shower in any hotel ever!||The Adults Only pool is obviously lovely and peaceful with attendants and waiters everywhere to supply you whenever you like with complimentary coffees, teas, beers, wine, diet cokes, water etc and also they come around the pool with Greek yoghurt, granola, smoothies etc during the morning and complimentary cakes and ice lollies and cocktails during the afternoon (cocktails served between 5-6pm I think). There is an ice cream and coffee machine to help yourself any time and an array of complimentary hot and cold tapas at lunchtime served outside the El Mirador restaurant by the pool. ||The only thing I wish, not being on holiday with kids and staying in an ‘Adults Only’ villa, is that El Mirador which joins the Adults Only pool was also Adults Only. Lots of noise from toddlers and babies at lunchtimes and can’t imagine what that would be like during school holidays. That being said we absolutely loved it and are already rebooking for later this year.||We stayed on half board basis (Journey of Flavours offer) which entitled us to eat at 4 of their restaurants with a small supplement for some dishes, but most were included. We loved El Mirador, especially Jonathon and Mohammed who were so friendly. The sea bass baked in salt is incredible. We also loved Verona, the Italian restaurant, and our lovely Venezuelan waitress, whose name I don’t know and the hilarious waiter Pedro, who really entertained us with his humour! The only restaurant we were not keen on was Txoko, the Spanish restaurant, the food and service were ok, but nowhere near the level of the other restaurants. ||We also ate at Kabuki, the amazing Japanese restaurant where, if on half board, you are given an allowance of I think €55 each towards the bill. It has 1 Michelin star. Food and service incredible. We ate there twice we loved it so much!||We also walked down to the small beach (golden sand) and had drinks at the Abama beach bar. It’s about 10 mins walk downhill and the beach staff called for a car to collect us after. So easy!||To end I just want to add that the best thing of all about the Ritz Carlton Abama is the fantastic, friendly, above and beyond service! I want to say a special mention to lovely Paulina and Karen, and the absolutely amazing Oskar (thank you for so many helpful chats!), who work in Customer Relations at El Mirador. We have never felt so pampered and cared for and looked after, and we stay in 5 star hotels all over the world! The staff are amazing here! Even our lovely maid who did turn down service and didn’t speak English kept insisting on giving me chocolates and laughing! ||The only thing that could be improved on is some sort of personal orientation on arrival if staying in the villas, and shown how everything works in the room, rather than just a map. We know the hotel having eaten there many times, however if you were new to the hotel and in a villa it’s a bit of a learning curve.||We absolutely loved the RC Abama and will be...

We just came back from a family vacation at the Ritz Carlton Abama, and as I had mixed feelings going there  because of all the reviews, I think it's only reasonable that I share my own experiences here.

We travelled with 2 children (4 and 1y old) and stayed in a 1 bedroom suite. Check- in was smooth and friendly, and after being shown to our room, we noticed the very nice welcome snack: cake pops, a bottle of wine, a cheese platter & fruits.  The suite was very spacious and well decorated. Our 2 daughters slept in the living room, on an extra bed and in a crib. The crib was slightly small for our daughter , but this did not seem to bother her.

The bathroom was big, with a lovely rainshower with plenty of amenities and Diptyque products.  The only 'negative' point would be the exposition of our room, which was fully North, meaning that we would not have any sun on our terraces. This would be something I would specifically ask for in the future.

The resort itself is stunning; from the building itself, to the lobby, gardens, restaurants. The little train that runs from reception to the beach is a super nice feature, especially with young kids. We knew up front that the lift towards the beach was broken, but this would have been quite the experience too. We mainly stayed at the main pool because of the kids. They totally loved it and so did we. The pool staff was very friendly , and the vibe was relaxed. Yes, the pool paint is chipping on some parts, but as stated on the website there are renovations planned so this was also expected.

We pre-booked all our restaurants up front, and to us this is a must as they were very full the whole week. I have read quite some negative comments about the staff and food, and as we are a bit picky , we had low expectation. To our surprise, the food was very nice and all the wines we ordered were available (higher segment, maybe the lower priced bottles were out?). A big shout out for all the kids menu offered! They differ in all the restaurants and offer very good value for money. In fact, we had to share the menu between the girls because of the quantity.  Plenty of choice, very healthy options too.

The only negative experience we had was at Txoko, where we indeed felt the 'upsell' very much. We asked for 700gr of meat, the waiter arrived with 1kg (for 2 persons..) which we turned down. 10 minutes later he came back with the same piece asking if we really did not want it? The bottle of wine arrived very late , and when I asked for an ice cream, we were told the bill was arriving.. Staff felt junior and was clearly not communicating. The food itself was, however, very tasty.

We did not try MB nor Akira Back (no kids allowed).

The best experiences we had were at Mirador (what a view!) and in Verde Mar where they offered a very inventive and tasty menu. We had dinner at Verde Mar during valentines day, and they really made it a special night (roses, heart- shaped chocolates etc.).

Some quick words on the food at the pool, beach and beach restaurant: nothing spectacular but not bad either. The food at the small cafe next to the lobby bar serves really nice food, so we had our lunch there a few times. The lobby bar is nice, with live music in the evening. The service here is a bit long, this is not the case in the other f&b outlets.

The breakfast was very extensive with choice for everyone, and some special touches for Valentine's day. We were helped  by Magda most days, and as she spoke French she really made it special for us.

Our oldest daughter went to the kids club twice, which she really enjoyed. The playgrounds are a bit outdated but do the trick.

The hotel is quite remote. We took a taxi to Costa Adeja and to Playa San Juan, but haven't discovered the island otherwise. Renting a car is needed if you want to do this.

A last word on the price: yes, food and drinks are very pricey compared to what you would pay in the town next door. But it can be expected if you book at a 5*.

We loved it, and will hopefully be...

This review is strictly for people traveling on their HONEYMOON.

My wife and I visited the Ritz Carlton Abama for our Honeymoon. We spent the first few nights at the Iberostar El Mirador (10/10 recommend for anyone on their honeymoon) and then the last few nights at the Ritz as we wanted to have variety in our stay.

The Ritz provided us with an upgraded room for our stay which was very nice (but might also have been due to the status of the top tier account status we booked under). The room was fantastic and had a beautiful view. The rest of our stay/the service was sadly a bit disappointing. First of all, barely anyone acknowledged that we were on honeymoon - which was a contrast to the incredible attention to detail provided at the Iberostar El Mirador hotel. At Iberostar they went above and beyond with our stay: offering champagne when you first arrive, offering us a complimentary upgrade for our honeymoon (we don’t have a membership/account so this was very nice) with access to their club services including complementary personal butler, food, and drinks. Every night they did something different, leaving us champagne and high end desserts in our room, roses on the bed in the shape of a heart and chocolate, personalized notes acknowledging our honeymoon, and so on. The Ritz, on the other hand, has a larger and more corporate feel, and didn’t have those kind of personalized touches. It wasn’t until our last day that the staff made an effort to congratulate us. Which isn’t necessary, but is a very nice gesture that adds a lot to one’s experience and coming from such incredible care at our first hotel, we were left wishing we had just stayed at the Iberostar the whole trip.

Thirdly, cost. The ritz charges exorbitantly higher fees than the El Mirador for arguably inferior services. The El Mirador provided beautiful multiple custom refillable glass water bottles, to the room daily - the ritz provided one plastic water bottle and after we had finished it, we were required to order more through room service and charged us 10 euros for two more. They also ask you for tips on every bill while the El Mirador never even brings up the bill, just charges to your room/tips are not expected. I’ll put it this way - at the El Mirador for three nights, we had an added charge at the end of around 600 Euro for 4 spa treatments, 2 dinners, and the rest of the drinks and food were complimentary (open bar). At the Ritz, for the same amount of time and same excursions, it was closer to 1700 Euro.

Fourth, location/design. El Mirador is smaller, higher quality, and right on the beach. It’s also within walking distance to shops and restaurants. The campus is easy to get around, and all the staff know you by name. Conversely, the ritz is a huge facility, anywhere you want to go is an ordeal, and the architecture of the building is very confusing (I.E. in one part of the same building there is 5th floor, another part there is not). To get to the beach (which decided not to even do due to the hassle) is a long walk up and down a huge hill or via a transit service that comes every 30 minutes. And you need a car to get anywhere. It’s got the corporate giant feel, not personalized. The drinks at the bar were a hit or miss. Mostly not good.

Final point - we booked the room through my father and laws member account as we wanted to ensure he could get the credit to his account for the room/receive any ancillary benefits. That said, this was a mistake. Due to their system, they could not make my name the primary name on the account for our stay, so they kept referring to me by my father in laws name, and my wife by her maiden name. I repeatedly tried to corrected the issue but to no avail.

OVERALL - we do think that depending on what you’re looking for or why you are traveling, the Ritz could be a great option. BUT ultimately if you are on your honeymoon, I would NOT recommend staying at the ritz and HIGHLY recommend the El...