Travel: Golden hours with family on blissful Canaries break

Sunshine has been called “the most precious gold to be found on Earth”, and there’s no denying the positive effect that a few warm rays can have on your wellbeing. It’s late January, and while millions of Brits were pulling on extra layers to stay warm and dry in the UK, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky in Tenerife as I sipped on a sweet sangria, looking out over the calm Atlantic Ocean from behind my sunglasses.

Tenerife has long been one of Britain’s favourite holiday destinations, but it’s not just the guaranteed warm weather that makes the largest of the Spanish-overseen Canary Islands so popular – particularly in winter. With its golden and black sandy beaches, a world-class water park, golf courses, hiking and biking trails, varied and affordable food and drink, and a wide selection of hotels, Tenerife has everything families could want from a holiday. Following a four-hour flight from the UK with Jet2, we arrived at HOVIMA La Pinta Beachfront Family Hotel in Costa Adeje on the south-west coast of the island.

At home in the Canaries

As soon as my wife Rachel and our two teenage daughters Isla and Evelyn stepped inside the all-inclusive complex’s foyer we felt at home. The half-amphitheatre design of the hotel means that most of the rooms and suites have ocean views, and the La Pinta beach vista from the wrap-around corner balcony in our Excellence Family Room was gobsmacking. Inside, the room itself was huge, meaning we could relax without having to tidy up after the kids, and it had all the mod cons you’d expect from a four or five-star hotel, with a kitchenette containing a coffee maker and pods, kettle and a fridge replenished daily with water and all-inclusive sodas and Tropical beers. Two separate bedrooms meant we all had our own space, while the two sizeable bathrooms, each with a rain shower, avoided any tetchy queues in the morning or evening.

As well as the beach, our room also looked down on HOVIMA La Pinta’s chic swimming pool.

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Although our girls are now both Insta-obsessed teens, they still like to lark around in the pool, while Rachel and I were spoilt for choice when picking which south-facing lounger to park ourselves on before chilling out with a cocktail. Despite being all-inclusive, there is plenty of choice food-wise in the large buffet restaurant.

However, you can also book a slot in the poolside à la carte themed restaurant on an evening and we spent a couple of nights there, enjoying set menus of tasty fish and seafood dishes and delicious Italian pasta and pizza.

As my eldest daughter Isla has coeliac disease, we were a bit apprehensive about heading to an all-inclusive Spanish hotel.

But we needn’t have been. The chef Ana took Isla on a personal tour of the buffet, explaining what she could safely eat and what gluten-free alternatives could be quickly prepared in the kitchen.

Although HOVIMA La Pinta is a haven, you’re missing out if you don’t get out and about and see more of Tenerife, whether it’s strolling down the harbour to Playa de Las Américas and Los Cristianos, or going beyond the southern strip on trips up Spain’s highest mountain, Tiede, or to Loro Parque zoo on the outskirts of lively northern city Puerto de la Cruz.

While Rachel took Isla for some lane swimming at sports complex T3 Caleta, Evelyn and I explored Playa de Torviscas and Playa de Fañabé, calling into Waxy O’Shea’s on the seafront for some lunch.

Family fun

For part of the week, we met up with my dad Allan and brother Nicki, who were on the island.

On our penultimate day, they accompanied us to Siam Park – Tenerife’s world-famous water park – riding Saifa, its new high-speed watercoaster, as well as Kinnaree, Mekong Rapids, Dragon and the terrifying Tower of Power freefall slide. The best part of multi-generational holidays is everyone coming together for quality time.

Our destination on the final evening was Hard Rock Cafe on Las Américas’ famous Golden Mile.

After the six of us munched on burgers and washed them down with cocktails and mocktails, we strolled down to Leonardo’s and The Travellers Rest, just down from the infamous Veronica’s strip.

The next morning, it was time to get ready for our flight home, but Isla and I still had a couple of hours to get our feet nibbled by tiny carp fish and pick up some Canary Islands aloe vera after-sun specialities from the beachfront shops.

Although both the tickly pedicure and soothing lotions did us good for a short period of time, it was the precious golden shot of vitamin D provided by the sunshine and the hospitality at our lovely Tenerife hotel that were the real La Pinta warmers.

P.S. Teide National Park is located in the centre of Tenerife, and receives, on average, 3.5 million visitors per year. The park’s highlight is the Teide peak – Spain’s highest summit at 3,718 metres. Teide National Park is home to a vast array of wildlife and plants, and is also the location of the largest solar observatory in the world.

Factfile

Jet2holidays (jet2holidays.com and jet2.com) offers seven nights all-inclusive at the four-star HOVIMA La Pinta Beachfront Family Hotel (hovimalapinta.com) in Costa Adeje, Tenerife, from £1190 per person. Price is based on a family of four (two adults and two children) sharing a one-bedroom apartment, and includes return flights departing from Glasgow on January 27, 2025, a 22kg baggage allowance and return transfers.

Get more for your money on this holiday with one of Jet2’s free child places. Please see: jet2holidays.com/free-child-place-finder

For more information on things to do in Tenerife and on the other Canary Islands, please visit: hellocanaryislands.com