We woke up at 6 o'clock in the morning (in our opinion it is already 8) - there is not even a hint of morning outside the window.
There are a lot of stars in the sky. One hour passes and the sky is still full of stars. Breakfast in half an hour...
Finally, at 7-30 it began to get light, and the sun finally rolled out from behind the mountain only at 8-40.
A full-fledged first day in the Canary Islands began at the Best Semiramis hotel.
First impressions of the hotel - you are on a sea cruise liner.
The hotel is "grown" right into the rock on the very shore of the ocean, and the hotel rooms are cabins with balconies.
You go out onto the balcony - in front of you is only the endless sea and the horizon in the distance.
The ship-hotel has 16 "decks" (floors). The first floor is located just above the "waterline", and the 16th (reception) is at the top of the cliff. Accordingly, the hotel has two exits - to the upper and lower city.
The upper one is open around the clock, and the lower one - only from 9-00 to 22-00.
One floor below - the main restaurant with panoramic windows and a terrace overlooking the sea.
The impression is as if you are in a restaurant, for example, MSC "Fantasia".
The hotel has two swimming pools, one internal is small with a jacuzzi, the second is external in an open area with its own bar and a relaxation area under palm trees.
The remaining thirteen decks are residential. The higher the floor, the quieter the room, the closer to the galley, and the more prestigious and expensive the cabin, although the layout and area of all rooms is the same.
We had the 8th floor (room 810) and a wonderful view from the room.
Two huge two-sleeping beds for three. Everything in the room is in perfect condition - new stylish furniture, plumbing. A welcome bottle of champagne on the table and a full free bar of drinks (the bar is not replenished). Safe for an extra charge - 1.75 euros per day.
But back to real life. Between the sea and the hotel there is a two-lane road with light traffic during the day, and at night there are no cars at all.
The noise from the cars is almost inaudible, they are drowned out by the sound of the ocean.
A closed balcony door virtually eliminates all noise. We slept with the door open to the soothing and steady sound of the ocean. Sleep quality is very high. One surprised - a pillow for the entire width of the bed?
But for some, noise can be a problem. “Have you noticed - what a noisy sea? ” - one Englishman asked us when we entered the elevator and greeted those present?
The hotel is located in the city of Puerto de la Cruz in its eastern part, and the city itself is in the Orotava Valley in the north of the island, so all rooms face north and the sun will appear in the rooms only at sunset (and then, maybe, only in summer).
Air conditioning is on until September 1st.
In visual visibility to the left of the hotel - the artificial lakes of Lago Martianez and the black sand beach - a very popular place in the city. Here you can swim and sunbathe and watch how paragliders land on the square and on the beach (“right on the heads of tourists”).
There are two ways to get to the lakes and the embankment of the city.
The first way (lower exit) is to go down to the first floor on a special elevator, which is located at the first rooms of each, including your floor, and go through the underpass to the opposite side of the road from the hotel.
Then 5-7 minutes of a calm step along the sidewalk along the sea and you are on the central embankment of the city and at the entrance to the lakes. Entrance to the lakes is paid - 5.5 euros per person, includes a sunbed.
For an umbrella extra 2 euros. You can enter and exit from (to) the territory of the lakes several times, but only until 17-00.
The same road can be used back when returning to the hotel.
The second way (upper exit) is through the upper exit (reception), without turning right anywhere to the observation deck and then down the beautiful stairs and further to the right along the road to the Piramides de Martianes shopping center and the Mercadonna supermarket.
The whole road is downhill, travel time is up to 15 minutes.
I categorically do not recommend this way back?
There are already two ways from Mercadonna - one to the beginning of the embankment (which I wrote about earlier) along a beautiful avenue of palm trees, and the second is the exit to Reyes Catolicos Square, where McDonald's is located, the Taxi stop (remember it for the way back) and stop of the mini-train going to Loro Parque.
The third way (upper exit) is to leave the hotel to the nearest Taxi stop and for 5 euros you will get to any place in the city, including Taoro Park with waterfalls and an observation deck, Jardin Beach and Loro Park.
The city of Puerto de la Cruz itself is small and you can walk along the promenade from one end of the city (where the hotel is located) to the other (where Loro Park is located) in just thirty minutes.
For those who are interested in the hotel. Few details.
When eating HB (breakfast and dinner), you can change dinner for lunch.
This is very convenient, since excursions such as Loro Parque, Jardin Beach, not to mention trips to the capital of Santa Cruz and Las Teresitas Beach, require almost a whole day.
The food at the hotel is excellent in my opinion. For breakfast, freshly squeezed juice of orange, banana, melon, blackberry, pineapple ...and champagne (well, maybe not champagne, but sparkling wine)?
All drinks at lunch and dinner - for an additional fee.
Every evening there is live music in the bar. We really enjoyed.
On the top floor there is a dance hall. But there are only European pensioners. I must say that they dance beautifully.
Yes, there are few young people in the hotel, but they are, but there are practically no children.
HOW TO GET TO THE HOTEL FROM THE AIRPORT?
From the South airport: taxi = 100 euros, bus number-343 = 13.5 euros (if you buy a preferential BonoVia ticket at the airport, you will get a discount of up to 35%). The BonoVia ticket, maps with the timetables of all buses can be purchased at airports and bus stations.
There is only one such bus station in Puerto de la Cruz (terminus).
The bus goes to Puerto de la Cruz without entering the capital Santa Cruz. The first stop is the northern airport (40 minutes). Then another 20-30 minutes to Puerto de la Cruz. Get off at the La Paz stop. All information on the LCD board in the bus. All stops are on demand. Don't forget to press the red button well in advance of your stop. In this case, you should hear a call from the driver.
That's it - a bit of a complication for the first trip on a white and green bus - all the information on the site www. titsa. com.
From the Northern airport: you can additionally get to the hotel by bus number-102. Taxi - 35-40 euros.
Both in the hotel and in the whole north, no one speaks Russian. As the guide told us, only recently tour operators began to carry Russian-speaking tourists to the north of the island, so you basically won’t hear Russian speech (this didn’t upset us too much : )))).
I really liked the food at the hotel, we remembered this buffet for a long time)) we had breakfasts and dinners, we ate to satiety, the food was delicious, fresh and varied). Great ocean view from the balcony! I liked everything in the hotel, the only negative is that there are only pensioners around, but by the middle of our stay we were already used to it)) especially since we didn’t sit in the hotel.
Here asked a question about smoking in the hotel. So, you can smoke on the balcony without any problems.
In general, the hotel is good, but due to the contingent, I would recommend it to elderly people, and everything is arranged for them in the hotel. And young people can pick up something cheaper and more fun.
Tenerife was very impressive, we fell in love with this island!