"Only now three weeks later can I reasonably write this review, as it has taken three weeks for my deposit to be returned, and I was concerned that if I left a negative review, it wouldn't be returned at all.
I have previously stayed at the Caribe twice whilst in Tenerife, and picked it a third time due to the positives of the rooms always having sun on the balcony in the afternoon, and for the relatively quiet pool area. While only being around ten minutes from the main strip, it's not a "party" hotel, definitely caters to couples, and older people, and given I was coming away with my partner and my parents, this was the chilled vibe we were looking for.
Upon arrival, we were advised that we required to pay a EUR150 security deposit. Despite this not being shown anywhere on our booking, and not being asked for this on previous stays, I do understand this to be a regular occurrence at some hotels and so paid on my card (cash deposits are not possible). Unfortunately though I did feel the manner in which the receptionist asked for it to be quite rude, as when we simply mentioned our previous stays and lack of mentioning of it on our booking etc we were simply told "well that's policy now as the hotel has been refurbished...". As mentioned, I was away with my partner and my parents, and did not anticipate any issues, as we are very much of the "leave it exactly as you find it" mindset and aren't exactly the rowdy type being in our late 30s. We paid the deposit, left our luggage and went for lunch before we were able to check in a few hours later.
On checking in, I note rooms were clean, although I was disappointed to note that the beds were simply two pushed together, and no real effort was made to try to make them seem like a double bed. There was a bottle of water provided in the fridge, which admittedly was a nice touch as I don't recall that from previous stays. Unfortunately, our bathroom hadn't been upgraded, and having seen the bathrooms which had, as my parents and the room next door had had theirs upgraded, you really can see how much work needed done, and how old the old bathroom sets really were, with a couple of cracked tiles, and discolouration of the bath (which is about three foot long, and only suitable for bathing a child!).
I also noted that my parents were given a bottle of fizz on our second day, and the room next door to us had also been given one (they were kind enough to give us theirs as they didn't drink alcohol and asked if we had received one - we hadn't so they kindly gave us theirs). Neither room was sure why they had been given it, my parents had stayed before, but next door hadn't. The only difference I could think was again, their rooms had been fully updated where ours hadn't. Not a big deal, but if in a group you expect each room to be treated the same.
The majority of the stay continued to go by without any issue; despite an overly cautious lifeguard (no ball games etc in the pool, there's no music at the pool area either if that's the vibe you're after). Unfortunately, due to the timing of the lifeguards hours, the pool didn't open until 10am (then on our last two days 11am), which may not seem like a big deal, but as early risers it is nice to get the day started, especially as the pool area gets the sun early, and it's nice to get down, and get going with a swim in the morning. The pool is SLIGHTLY heated as well, which does make it nice, and the space is generally nice. It would have just been a bit better if you could play with a ball or caper a bit - you felt you were watched a lot, and that it was "dip" and "swim" only rather than being able to chill in the pool, sort of vibe. While my partner and I don't smoke, a lot of smokers or vapers around the pool were jumped on immediately and told to go and smoke under the veranda. A few smokers had gone to a quiet corner of the pool where there were no sunbeds or people even sitting, so to be told to move to where food was also served seemed an odd choice to us - albeit not one that affected us. Same with a couple of younger people, they had music on which you really couldn't hear and they were told to turn it off. Though I do understand if everyone was doing it, it could get annoying. It did feel as though there was a real push for there to be silence.
The rooms were really warm, and there wasn't a window to open in our bedroom (as we were facing the street level rather than the other rooms where the bedrooms have a window to the pool view), while they appeared to be cleaned regularly I think on more of a surface level, as the floors definitely weren't cleaned each day, nor were the bins taken out daily either. Though, the sun continues to shine on the decent sized balconies for much of the day, which is a definite plus point for the hotel and we spent most evenings until about 7pm sitting catching the last of the sun which was still up high - that's definitely a nice perk.
The food at breakfast and lunch, whilst not part of an extensive menu, was basic, but nice enough and reasonably priced but a special mention for the barmaids in the pool bar, and especially the lady chef who was there each day but the Saturday (which incidentally was a day my parents had breakfast and commented the breakfast had been less appetising than previous days, and had that been their first day they wouldn't have dined again). The chef, who's name I'm afraid I didn't catch, was really welcoming and made an effort to chat whenever we went into the bar, and she just seemed so lovely, and the barmaids were also on relatively good form, especially as there was only one on at a time. They were definitely the cheeriest of all of the staff at the hotel, and it was nice to speak to them about life in Tenerife and they really did seem interested in your holiday and talking about the changes to the island etc. I could have spoken to the chef for a lot longer, she was really welcoming. I overheard a few other guests talking about them as well in a positive manner, and saying that the others they had dealt with, it felt as though they were being rude on purpose, almost like they don't want you to come back - which given the news stories about Tenerife and tourists and tourism at the moment, does actually seem true, although you do wonder if they realise no tourists means no hotels and no jobs, but that's a rant for another day.
There is also not a "comfort room" available when checking out, although there is space to leave luggage for late check outs. It would have been nice to have a room available to freshen up before our late flight (unfortunately we were unable to have one of our rooms kept on as the hotel was fully booked), so had to do so in the pool area toilets instead - not ideal for a long journey home, and the Caribe does appear to be one of the few hotels in Tenerife that don't offer this space.
Unfortunately, the disappointment from the hotel comes from the actions of the receptionist on the last day.
As previously mentioned, you pay a deposit on arrival. When checking out, you are then asked to wait while a housekeeper checks the room to guarantee refund of the deposit. Our room was checked, and as expected we were advised that our deposit would be returned and the receptionist went to process same. My parents had gone down around 15 minutes before us, and by the time we got downstairs, their room had been checked and their deposit had been processed. We were then advised by the receptionist that they were unable to process the payment as there had been a system error. I was then given a receipt in Spanish with handwriting noting this (granted, I do not speak more than basic level Spanish), and told "email next week if you haven't received this". I asked if the funds could be refunded in cash instead, and was told that they had to be returned the same way they were paid.
Annoyed, I walked away, but went back shortly afterwards, and explained that while I understood there was an issue, disappointing though it was, I didn't feel comfortable not having something in writing FROM the hotel and asked if I could have an email from them stating our deposit was to be returned, and that they would do so when possible. I was told this wasn't possible and the receptionist just kept explaining the issue was an administrative one and that she couldn't do an email and that the receipt she'd given me was good enough. Quite frankly dumbfounded by this, and admittedly annoyed by her incredibly rude tone and attitude, I asked to speak to the manager. I was first told she was in a meeting, then I was told there was no need to speak to the manager as she would tell me the same thing. I reitereated that I wanted to speak to her and asked that she come to find me at the pool when she was available (at this point partly to press the email issue, and also the attitude of the receptionist). I was told, with a reluctant huff, that she would.
Two hours pass, and my partner notices the manager is at the pool bar, so I go to speak to her personally. I advise I had asked for her to find me, she was told the message hadn't been passed on (very annoying, but lets be honest, by this point not a surprise). So I explained the situation and my annoyance to her, that I understood there was an issue with the system, that I was obviously disappointed to not receive the funds, but understand technology doesn't always work, I simply wanted an email in writing stating that the funds would be returned to me when the system was working. The helpful manager took me up to reception, took my email address and within an hour I had an email stating there was a deposit to return, there was an issue, and they were to return the funds when they could. Now was that so difficult...
The receptionist caught my partner and I as we then left and she had clearly been spoken to by the manager as she "apologised" for the confusion, and that I "must have misunderstood" what she had been telling me. My issue all along was not the lack of deposit being returned immediately, it was the sheer refusal to send a 30 second email for me to have that information in writing.
Anyway, three weeks later, and despite two emails to the hotel asking if they had been able to provide an update on returned funds and being told it was still with their administration team, I decided to email Servatur directly. Quite a coincidence then to receive an email the day after noting the funds should be in my account within three days (which they have now been). We are fortunate that we are able to afford not having the funds in our account for that amount of time, but I can understand that may not be the case for younger guests who hadn't expected to pay for it at the start of their holiday - I think it should be more advertised when booking holidays if there is to be a deposit required, as not everyone checks reviews when booking.
All in all, we had a lovely holiday despite the rude staff and annoyances of the last day. Unfortunately, it has marred my opinion and experience of the Caribe, and as such, wouldn't now return."
