H10 Taburiente Playa

The hotel runs smoothly, thanks to the hard work of the staff, who were friendly and helpful. It’s clean throughout, and the tidy rooms are comfortable, even if a little dated. The hotel is huge, with lifts to all floors, and it’s about a 10 minute trip from the airport. The restaurant gets loud and busy at mealtimes, so we usually preferred sitting outside. There’s a good daily buffet, with a cooking station for dishes such as fish and pork chops, plus eggs made to order or omelettes in the morning. We’re fussy eaters and had read some doubtful reviews, but I couldn’t complain about the food. It was fresh and plentiful, and staff kept replenishing it. The hotel is cashless. The pool bar felt expensive to me: €11 for a G&T and €4.30 for a beer in a plastic cup. Some cocktails seemed to use premade syrup ingredients. I was surprised the bars didn’t have Ron Miel, a local drink made in the Canary Islands. I’ve stayed on almost every island in the Canaries and haven’t come across another place that didn’t serve it. Five stars for how well the hotel is run.

The big letdown was the food. I didn’t enjoy either breakfast or dinner because the quality was poor and the dining area was overcrowded. The hotel is very close to the airport, so you can see and hear planes taking off and landing, though it’s quiet at night with no flights. The location and service were great, and the renovated room was comfortable. There was plenty of complimentary bottled water, with a supermarket next door as well as restaurants.

We couldn’t enjoy the ocean-view terrace because a strong kitchen smell reached our room. Moving rooms didn’t solve it, and it affected our stay a lot. The food was disappointing too, with very little fruit and vegetables. On half board, even water wasn’t available for free, which felt unnecessarily restrictive. We also couldn’t borrow an iron and ironing board, only pay for ironing service, which seems inadequate for a hotel in this category. The doors didn’t work properly, and one day the cleaning lady left ours open all day. That felt unprofessional and unsafe. I also saw a cockroach in the hallway, which did nothing for the impression of cleanliness. Despite the hotel, we still loved La Palma and think the island is well worth visiting. We’ll choose somewhere else to stay next time. Overall, a negative experience that didn’t meet our expectations.

The hotel is close to the airport and makes a handy base for booking excursions or driving to Santa Cruz, the capital. The surroundings are beautiful, though the rooms are practical and the beds aren’t very comfortable. There’s a wide choice of dishes, and the staff are busy keeping service moving. But the food isn’t laid out in a practical way, so guests run around trying to find what they want. It turns into real chaos.