Gara Suites Golf & Spa is located in the Las Americas area of Tenerife. The complex is located out of the hustle and bustle of the Las Americas strip approximately 0.5 miles from Siam Water Park, although there is a hill to contend with! The suites are a 15 minute walk to the strip which is a lot easier coming down than it is going back up. This didn't bother us as by the time we had walked to the bars and restaurants on a night "H" was already fast asleep in her pram! The hotel is located around a golf course so there are lovely views over the course and over towards the mountainous terrain in the distance, ideal for family travel.
The Facilities at Gara Suites
The hotel offered a number of amenities including: 2 large swimming pools & 1 kiddies pool, Spa & Fitness Centre. The hotel offer a range of different board basis including an all inclusive option, although we booked the self catering option as we intended to eat out every night. We did often have lunch at the terrace bar where i can highly recommend the freshly baked pizzas! A tip i would give is to make sure you have a debit card that can be used overseas as the hotel has a card only policy.
A Nightmare at Gara Suites
We were staying in the Gara Suites in February 2022 when we booked a package holiday with Jet2 and we were having a lovely family holiday. We had popped out for the afternoon to meet the in-laws who were staying in a separate adults only hotel for some peace and quiet! "H" was only 10 month old at the time so wasn't yet purely eating solids, so we were regularly boiling the kettle for making up formula for her bottles. As we had done everyday we boiled the kettle to make her an afternoon bottle up ready and headed out to enjoy our day, now this is where the holiday took a turn for the worst... follow on for my travel tips and reviews.
When we returned to the room later on the room windows and the balcony doors were wide open. There was a strong smell of burning plastic as soon as we opened the door and there was a note slid under the door saying "please contact reception." Instantly we made sure "H" was kept well out of the room while I went in to find the source of the smell. When I went in to the kitchen i saw what used to be the kettle. It had completely melted into liquid and dried up on the kitchen worktops. There had clearly been an electrical fault with the kettle.
There was bits of ash floating all around the room and there were burn marks on some of "H's" bottles and bowls that were on the worktops too. I spoke to a friend who is a firefighter and he explained that anything that is used for consumption or to be eaten or drunk should be thrown out as the plastic chemicals can even penetrate through refrigerator seals and be extremely harmful. This meant we would have to throw out a full fridge of food, a full tin of baby formula and all of "H's" bowls, dummies and bottles (except the one we took out for the afternoon). We had to go find a local pharmacy to buy some more bottles and some new formula as "H" was on a prescribed lactose free formula (not an ideal way to prepare for your final night).
After quickly assessing the damage i went down to reception to see what had happened. The gentlemen behind reception had explained that there had been an electrical fire caused by the kettle and then expected us to go back to the room to spend our final night with a 10 month baby inhaling plastic chemical fumes! We immediately told him that this was unacceptable and needed to be moved.
We were given a room that didn't appear to be clean, there were dirt marks all over the floor and the bath was flaking and rusting with sharp edges in the bottom of the bath which we needed to bath our baby in this, not only that but we hadn't been supplied with a kettle or a baby cot either. Key things we needed to care for our baby. We tried contacting reception again and were told a kettle & cot would be brought to the room (they never arrived). I told my wife that I wasn't prepared to let this ruin our final night and didn't want to make this negative experience change the fact that we'd had a great holiday up to this point. We decided that we would not bath "H" and would get some boiling water from a bar & she could sleep in the big bed for the night with Mam & Dad.
The next morning we spoke to the Jet2 rep for the hotel and she couldn't have been anymore help, she was great. She explained to us that the hotel were under the impression that it was our fault for leaving the kettle on! We all came to the agreement that it doesn't take a genius to work out that a kettle is meant to switch off when boiled so we were in no way to be blamed. The Jet2 rep managed to get us moved rooms to spend the remainder of our day as we didn't fly home until late which was a great help and explained to us that there was to be an investigation into how and why this had happened.
A Complaint to Jet2 about Gara Suites
Once we returned home we chased the complaint with Jet2 asking for an update on the situation and how we were concerned with how the hotel was quick to try and pin the blame on us to mask their own wrong doing. This also brought into question why the hotel fire alarms had not gone off and if the hotel appliances are PAT tested by electricians. Jet2 were quick to defend Gara Suites. The response we got from Jet2 left us gobsmacked...."We’ve investigated your comments with the Hotelier and our In Resort Team, they mentioned that the kettle had been left on during the day which caused it to melt. Our Risk and Safety Team have been in contact with the Hotel management and I can assure you that the Hotelier had safety procedures in place which meant the smoke detectors alarmed the Technical Team who immediately entered your room to unplug the kettle and enter the apartment." How on earth can a kettle be left on? They are specifically designed to switch off when boiled.
This angered us as it seemed as though Jet2 were just taking the hotels word for it with this response "I’m unable to determine how the kettle was left on and how this incident occurred" and were just dismissing the fact that if this would have happened while we were sleeping this could have been catastrophic for us as a family!
This was disgusting from Jet2, as a reputable package family holiday company, how they just backed down and let the hotel tell them what they liked! I am not going to say avoid this hotel because we had a really nice stay up until the end of the holiday. It was the way the situation was handled and how we were made to feel as this was our fault like typical brits abroad. I would just recommend to be cautious with the electrical appliances and consider alternate options first!
Click here for more travel tips and reviews from my adventure blog or get involved on the forum and let us get to know you.
You may be thinking "When is the next travel update?" Subscribe here for all the latest tips and reviews from your Dads travel republic!
Comments