Hotel Gala

I like to catch up with British news, sports etc in the afternoons when my wife takes her siesta. The only English language TV was Canadian business news. OK if you like looking at pie charts of how various share and currency prices have moved.
I and several other UK holiday makers complained and the answer was that they had trouble with their sattelite. I also complained on the official Thomsons complaint form and never even received a reply. I doubt if anything has changed, so don't go there if you want to watch TV. Also, it's a bit in the middle, and too far to walk in the nights to the action in Costa Adeche, or Americas/Los Christianos.
The hotel, food, facilities were OK, but we will never go there again. They are treating English speaking holiday makers with contempt.

Large clean hotel catering for mainly German guests although there were quite a few Italians staying when we were there, very few Brits. The TV had lots of channels but only one, Eurosport,was in English with interviews and commercials in German! We paid for a superior room with a sea view but the view was very restricted and the north facing balcony got hardly any sun. Included in price for the superior room was use of the spa which was great especially on the day it rained, although some of the facilities were out of order. We found the food good in parts, the salad bar was excellent but the hot food wasn't very appetising. We mostly chose the continental breakfast as they haven't got the hang of cooking bacon properly yet! The staff in the dining room were OK in the main, the exception being the bar staff who were surly and unhelpful. Forget the entertainment which is aimed at the elderly or very young Germans who appear to like tripe. To sum up this hotel has seen better days although still quite pleasant, more of a 3* than a 4.

My partner and myself had a very enjoyable holiday at the Gala Hotel, we loved it! The coach transfer (we travelled with Thomson), although we were the last drop-off, only took approx. 10 mins as the hotel is in the heart of Tenerife so the airport was not far. When we were there in June, there was road works at the front of the hotel and in some other parts of the island but this was never a problem - you will never find anywhere in this world that does not need work, etc.
When we arrived at the hotel (which was around 1am) we were the only couple and so we checked in and got to our room within 5 minutes. We had read reviews on here that the hotel is a rip off and there is loads of hidden costs, but there is not. There is a few additional costs but if you know about them, you will be fine - which I will cover later.
When we got to our room, we were in total disbelief - it was GORGEOUS! We loved every aspect of the place. One of the drawers in the wardobe was broken but this was not problem as it was still useable. The air conditioning was good and we had that on every night as it was absolutely boiling. When we first arrived we asked about the safe and it was 2E a night - we were there for 7 nights fo it came to 16E for the week but I think they gave us discount because we were only charged 12E. Obviously you have to use the safe as it validates your insurance. You cannot expect this to be free. The water that the hotel provide in your room is charged at 3E, however, turn left when you get out of the hotel down to the top of the road and you will find a corner shop open 24/7 which sells huge bottles of water for around 70c. The minibar in the room also requires payment to keep the water cool but we never bothered with this. Alot of people think that because you have paid to stay in the hotel that you get all of the facilities free but this was not the case but it didnt bother us. We were staying at the back of the hotel and so it had nice views and although you could hear the music from the clubs on a night time if you had the balcony doors open, you cannot hear anything when the balcony doors are closed as there are double doors. This hotel is a lot nicer than most of the hotels we passed in Tenerife.
The pool is lovely - there are sunbeds, however, you have to pay for a matress for the day at around 2E. We didnt bother with this, we just put towels on the sunbeds, this was never a problem.
The food was not really catered for the British, but you do not go on holiday to eat British food, you go on holiday to try out lots of different things and so we loved the idea of varied food. We were on full-board - the breakfast was lovely, but we only had this twice during our stay when we woke up very early to go on day trips to Siam Park and Loro Parque, etc. Dinner was varied and really enjoyable. There was not a large selection of choice but you will find out what you like. Towards the end of the week, we were getting quite bored with the midday meal. During the evening they put on BBQs which was very nice. You could sit outside but there was only a few tables in which you could sit at outside as the waiters would not let you sit in some outdoor areas. The waiters are not very friendly or smiley - they just come over, ask for your room card, ask if you would like any drinks, etc, then just go. We only got drinks a few times as they do add up on your bill. One time we ordered a drink and the waiter took around 20minutes to bring it to us.
You can pay off your bill whenever you like. We paid ours off through half of our stay and they issued us with a "receipt". We did not realise it was a "receipt" and we threw it away. We then went and paid off more a few nights later and we discovered they had charged us for 7 meals which came to well over 100E. They receptionist thought we were on half-board but when he got our documents he discovered we were full-board and took the meals off our bill. It then came to 30E instead, which we paid off there and then. The night before our departure we had a few drinks in the resaurant and after, we decided to go and pay off the rest of our bill, which to our surprise was still 30E. We asked the receptionist and they said we had not paid it off and we had thrown away our "receipt" which is not really a receipt because it does not prove you have paid anything, it just states what is on your bill. So, we had to wait until the next day, which was our departure date, to speak to the receptionist who had taken the money for our bill but had not taken it off. He never showed up, but the woman receptionist said she believed us and she simply cleared our bill :) Also, I would like to mention that the cleaner came around every day around the same time. She would just simply take the dirty towels that were left in the bath and straighten up our bed sheets.
The spa, which is 15E per person is VERY worth it. I would highly recommend visiting - it is so fun testing all of the showers and going in the giganic jacuzzi, etc. We went once but we wanted to go again but simply did not have the time.
The hotel is in the heart of the island. It is very central to all of the bars, clubs and restaurants. If you turn right out of the hotel you will find yourself on Veronica's Strip. This is where all the bars and clubs are. There are a lot of PR's and you do get hassled a lot. I found it hilarious that in one night we would be stopped around 50 times but obviously that has nothing to do with the hotel. The PR's do give you good deals, for example - for 5E each you get a jug, 5 shots and a bottle of wine. I would highly recommend you going to Mett Bar - this is the place for HipHop and R&B. Loved it! Vivo is also good for mini golf. There is a strip club called String Fellows which also has PR's but we did not go lol. Do not go down the beach at night as there is Moroccon's that go there and if you speak to the locals you will find out why this is not a good idea.
There is a little English cafe if you turn left when you come out of the hotel, follow the road up and turn left again. The owners are very lovely but do not stop speaking to you lol.
As we were with Thomson, our rep (Keiran) came round twice or three times. He told us in the "meeting" that he is only supposed to come round once but he comes round more, out of his personal time, which I thought was nice. This is the time where you will pay for all of the expiditons you want to do. We paid for the Siam Park and Loro Parque pack meaning it was 75E per person for both of the days out. If you didnt get this pack it is 50E for a trip to Loro Parque - which is HIGHLY recommended, and 30E for a trip to Siam Park. As we went a second time to Siam Park, it was only 16E per person which we paid for at the park.
Hope this helps :)

2 readers found this review helpful

the hotel can not be faulted in any way. we found the staff very helpful and pleasant, clean rooms, and food plentiful. would not hesitate in going back to them.
the fault lies with the scratch card dealers who can make holiday folk unhappy by thier pestering. that would be the only reason for me in not returning to tenerife. although i love the island and have visited many times

1 reader found this review helpful

Most of the rooms in this hotel seem to face north; unfortunately we like to sit in the sun on our balcony. We also paid extra for a sea view, what we got was more of a sea glimpse.
At present the roads adjacent to the hotel are dug up to make them semi-pedestrianised, the area looks like the Somme. They seemed to be trying with the food but we are not sophisticated enough to appreciate chicken in a rich chocolate sauce or sugar on the grilled tomatoes. Also many of the dishes were not kept hot.
There are very few British guests at the Gala. We chose this hotel because of positive reports and it grieves me to be so negative: the only good thing I can think of are the sunbeds which are good and plentiful. However you have to pay for mattress and towels.

4 readers found this review helpful

I have read some reviews on this hotel and think that I must have been staying in a different world! This place was superb!
The food was fantastic. If you cannot find something to eat at night then you must have strange eatimh habits.
If you can afford it, then get the twin superior rooms.
Included in this package is a free mini bar, bath robes, sea and pool view (the cheaper rooms seem to face a wall), and free pool towel and sun bed pads.
Evening entertainment is the usual nonsense, but then after you have had dinner it was nice to take a walk.
All the hotels seem to have the same entertainment. So what's new!!
If you like news channels then you'll be happy. There is Sky News, CNN, and Eurosport. If you’re English then that’s it!
We want to go back again next year. Can't wait!

9 readers found this review helpful

Before going to the Gala, I had read some reviews that stated their food was not too good and other 'bad' points.
However, the hotel looked nice in the pictures and was a good price, so we (my boyfriend and I), decided to go for it.
We were pleasantly surprised: the Gala is fantastic hotel, and the food was brilliant!
When we first arrived, our first thought was how much better our hotel looked than any of the other hotels we had seen on our journey to the Gala. (We caught bus #487 from South Airport which took us to a bus station about an 8 minute walk from the Gala).
From the outside, the Gala looks very smart- it is white with lovely shrubs and flowers trailing from all the balconies.
Once inside, we were greeted by Reception, who are very friendly and welcoming and speak good English, German, Spanish etc. Then we were taken to our room, which was on the same level as the pool.
The rooms are quite basic, not really much to shout about, but they have everything you need. The bathroom was great, however, with a large marble effect worktop and basin, bath and adjoined shower, toilet and bidet.
There are safes in the rooms, which you have to hire, and it's worth it for peace of mind.
The one thing that I found misleading, however, is the fact that on all websites I looked at, it described all rooms at the Gala as being soundproofed, although this is not necessarily true.
I suspect 'soundproofed' refers to the double doors leading out the balcony, but I found these to be hard to lock and not very secure- let's just say you could open them from outside with a hard pull.
The front entry door is definitely not soundproofed- on one occasion I was woken up at 7 in the morning by some Italians having a conversation in the corridor which I didn't find at all pleasing.
The rooms also have T.V, although most of the channels are forgein so you have to flick through to find any English ones.
Excluding the rooms, the hotel is visually fantastic, with marble floors, trailing flowers and shrubs and a beautiful indoor fountain. It's very spacious and cool and nice to come into after an afternoon in the sun.
There is a pool table in the foyer, Internet facilities, TVs, lifts to every floor, a beauty salon and 2 restaurants (one outside and one inside).
We never used the outside restaurant, instead preferring the inside one, which was excellent. We stayed for a 8 days, and every single day there was a different nationality on the menu, ranging from Italian to Canarian; Spanish to Mexican.
The food was lovely, and because it's a buffet, you can eat as much as you want, and there's a whole range of deserts for after also.
The service was second to none: the waiters were fantastic, really friendly and attempting to make conversation a lot. One had a thing about football, which my boyfriend loved.
The Gala is situated in the best place for all the nightlife, although you cannot hear it in the hotel, so we always got a good night sleep. It is right opposite all the bars, next to Veronicas Strip, although we found the bars opposite the hotel were the best.
Our favourite bar was Yates, which is popular with most people and does delicious potato skins in the day.
The beach is a five minute walk away and you can also walk to the Aquapark, which is a must as it has a brilliant dolphin display and is generally a great day out, in about 15 minutes.
The best beach is the golden sand one, which is on your right if you go down Veronica's strip and there's lots of water sports here. When walking around in Playa De las Americas, watch out for all the people selling jewellery and sunglasses etc: say no firmly and walk away as they really don't take a hint!
The pool at the Gala is really great, however, and pictures you see on the Internet don't do it any justice.
Overall, this holiday was the best holiday I have ever been on and I would definitely recommend the Gala to anyone. I will no doubt be back soon!