Iberostar Waves Playa Gaviotas

"We spent a week as two families with teens. I've been to all the islands in the Canaries but this is the first hotel where I felt I want to return here... Largely due to the exceptional, unbelievable beach, right in front of the hotel, you can walk for hours in the sand, it is simply magnificient. I woke up several mornings just to walk during sunrise! The hotel itself is great, very clean, nice staff, though really loud for our taste... (we wanted to go to the African market, but the animator told us he will not go only with the 3 of us, so we were just left at the reception... that was not very nice, but really this was the only negative point during the whole week). Now the food. That is the other reason why I feel I will return here. Fresh food, lots of choices, fresh made-to-order omlette for breakfast. very nice lunch and dinner, every evening a themed dinner with lots of freshly prepared food. I don't think I've ever eaten homard in a buffet restaurant... Our favourite was the sea night! The tapas bar was a disappointment though, there's no point going there when the buffet is so good. Coffee could have been better, the one at breakfast is simply too horrible to drink and the only bar with an espresso machine opened only at 10.30. But we enjoyed that the whole hotel was AI and nobody was trying to make us buy this and that, waiting for tips... I'm already planning my return!"

"We have just returned from a fabulous 11 night holiday at this hotel. Where to start……. Check in was quick and straightforward - Kristian was amazing and helped with all our questions. We had 3 adults (sisters) sharing a superior double room with a sea view (one of the renovated rooms) and the room did not disappoint. Spacious, good air conditioning and an amazing view. The housekeeping team are so friendly and hardworking, again nothing was too much. The hotel is spotlessly clean with staff out and about tidying up cups by the pool or removing used plates and glasses in the dining areas. We were all inclusive and we didn’t go hungry. There are themed nights for food - we really enjoyed the meatballs! Lots to choose from for breakfast (Bruno and his omelettes - do try them) along with a good range of different foods at lunch either in the restaurant or at the pool bar. Towels are €20 per towel, which you get back at the end of the holiday. You can change them everyday which was useful when we were around the pool. There are plenty of sunbeds - we were always able to get three sunbeds together even when we didn’t arrive until lunch time. The pools and the surroundings are great. The beach is literally just outside the hotel and it is truly wonderful. The sea was warm and enjoyable to swim in. You can rent sun loungers if you wish. I walked to the lighthouse and back (around three miles in total) on the beach which was great. I also did the same but on the footpath, which runs alongside the road. There is a hotel shop which is reasonably priced and around 0.5miles away there is a shopping centre, with tourist shops. a Spar supermarket and a Burger King. Near the lighthouse is where the Jandía shops start - there are loads. Again, it’s about a mile walk away from the hotel - it was a pleasant flat walk. The entertainment team - WOW WOW WOW! They brought the energy to the party every day! Huge shout out to Denise - she is one ball of energy. Denise we love you and we will always be your cheerleaders at the side of the pool. A huge shout out to Samuel as well, thank you for walking us to the African Market and the history of Jandia - it was really informative. The evening entertainment was good - my absolute favourite was the tribute to Disney - this was performed by 5 members of the entertainment team and it was brilliant. I also really enjoyed the Wonderland act - it was mesmerising. This is really long - so if you’ve got this far thank you. I cannot fault our stay in this hotel - the staff really do make it - nothing is too much for them and they always say hello. Thank you for a fabulous holiday - we will be back (I’m hoping this time next year). I’m not sure if the staff named will see this - but I’m hoping someone from the hotel will. If you are from the hotel, please pass on our thanks and praise to the following staff: Kristian on reception, Bruno in the restaurant, Denise and Samuel on the entertainment team. A big thank you to all the staff at the hotel."

"We recently returned for another six night stay at this beautiful hotel and were pleased to see the same high standard has been maintained. I have mentioned in other reviews for Iberostar hotels that the star prestige level needs standardising across the group, this one should be the model. The hotel appears to be fully all inclusive, I didn’t see any sign of extra costs for snacks, premium spirits etc. There is very little to fault overall, the hotel is spotlessly clean, rooms are comfortable and reasonably spacious with the Star Prestige rooms having fabulous sea views. Bianca, our maid did an excellent job with the housekeeping and changed our towels twice daily. The star prestige pool area is just fabulous with a heated infinity pool and open bar and beach towels changed whenever you want. We were pleased to see Reuben is still there, constantly running around looking after us! The food, as always, is very good and varied and the hot meals are always hot, which is something of a rarity in buffet restaurants! I’ve marked it down slightly from my last review for a few minor reasons. Through our stay, there was nobody on the Star Prestige desk, although it’s in the main reception area, there’s no point in putting comfy chairs out to speak to your concierge if they’re never there! The waiter service for wine and other drinks in the SP dining area was rather slow at times, with one waiter in particular showing a definite bias towards guests from other European countries. On the second day of our stay we lost all the English TV channels in our room. This was reported at reception five times over the week and nobody ever came to investigate. I know these are minor faults, but they do make a difference. However, it doesn’t deter me from wanting to go back."