Gran Castillo Tagoro Family & Fun Playa Blanca

“A 100% honest review of the amazing hotel and staff”

Well we're to start?! I really don't know what people have to complain about to be honest, nit picking if anything! I booked this holiday as a surprise 40th for my partner for myself, partner and our 2 year old daughter. From the set go the hotel were amazing, they helped srrange balloons, flow... more

Well we're to start?! I really don't know what people have to complain about to be honest, nit picking if anything! I booked this holiday as a surprise 40th for my partner for myself, partner and our 2 year old daughter. From the set go the hotel were amazing, they helped srrange balloons, flowers and even a bottle of champers for our arrival. They greeted us so warm and friendly and even had a porter take our bags to the room for us and a complimentary drink in arrival (water, but hey its needed after travels) In the room, you have complimentary coffee, tea and milk. In the bathroom, toothpaste and brush, bubble bath, body cream and shampoo (super cute touch) I asked for a quiet room due to the little one and being a birthday we wanted a nice chilled holiday, we were placed 4th floor and opposite the adult only pool. Thank you for this is was a lovely touch to a quiet peaceful evening especially with black out blinds. Heading for breakfast, lunch and dinner... well what can I say?! I've seen loads of negative comments about this but I'm unsure why as its such a huge dining hall you literally forget there's different places to look for food so unless you're one of those people who head to the same spot for food then you may see a similar food spread..so move your feet and loom around the hall haha you'll be truly surprised. The poolside, omg wow, everyone is super friendly, always always a sunbed available by every pool, there are also some photographers going around offering to take photos for cute little memories of you and your family etc (great touch, well done on this..no wet phones). Staff attitude!! Why are people complaining on this?! One thing my partner and I noticed was that the staff respond to how they are spoken too.. of you're not friendly then why should they be I mean completely understandable right? Manners are free so use them! We always said please and thank you and smiled and said hi to staff weather cleaners, bar workers or chefs in reply they were all lovely and we built a great report with them and had some great laughs too, so just be nice and you'll get the same back. We really did not want to leave this place, we met some great people around the pool, our 2 year old made some lovely little friends around the pool and at the mini disco too. Staff, food, hotel and people all amazing. Will definitley see you all again that's for sure! Thank you for making our stay well and truly memorable, sorry for the waffling review but it needed to be said for people like me who continue to look at reviews once holiday is booked. I promise this will be a hotel to remember.

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“Fabulous week with a toddler!”

We’re just back from a fabulous week here with our daughter (just turned 2). I hope the info below is useful to some people. I was a little apprehensive after booking here as read a few negative comments, but was absolutely thrilled with the place. The hotel is one of the most child-friendly plac... more

We’re just back from a fabulous week here with our daughter (just turned 2). I hope the info below is useful to some people. I was a little apprehensive after booking here as read a few negative comments, but was absolutely thrilled with the place. The hotel is one of the most child-friendly places I have been, yet still seems to maintain a calm, adult vibe. Room – we stayed in a family room. It was a huge room with bedroom, living area (which partitioned off), a massive bathroom and large hallway where we could park the pushchair etc. There was a little noise from people above, cleaners’ trollies wheeling about etc as you always get in a hotel with no carpets, but generally it was comfortable and spacious with plenty of room for our daughter to play. We asked for a cot plus we requested the sofa bed be made into a bed as we weren’t sure which half of the room we would sleep in. In the end, we took the bed, but everything was done as we requested prior to arrival. Pillows – yes, the default pillows were a little thin but a quick request to reception saw 2 lovely puffy alternatives delivered to our room. They have a pillow menu just like most hotels do, so no need to suffer in silence or make a complaint on Trip Advisor about it! Block – we were in block D1 in the middle of the hotel complex. It meant we were in between the kids’ end and the main facilities and we quite enjoyed being away from the dragon pool for a bit of peace. We were a short skip from the adults only pool area too which we took it in turns to use during our daughter’s nap time – perfect! Food – we really enjoyed breakfast a dinner (we were half board). It was a little repetitive but there was so much choice that you definitely could have eaten something different every night. The dining room was great with more highchairs than I have ever seen in a place! Staff were friendly and efficient and collected plates quickly (I think someone commented that they were slow, but we saw no evidence of this). Children’s facilities – this was a fab place for children and our 24-month old loved it. The variety of pools was amazing, plenty of room around them. We also enjoyed the small park and managed to find another one near by (next to the Iceland and Dino supermarket). We used the baby club twice and the staff in there were very friendly. Our daughter didn’t seem to enjoy it as much as she does her usual nursery, but that is more a reflection on the fact she is going through a bit of a clingy phase. There were plenty of children in the baby club having fun! Our daughter LOVED the mini disco. Yes, it started at 8pm and yes, usually she would be in bed before 7.30pm at home. BUT, we were on holiday and I am pretty sure most people exercise a bit of holiday flexibility (I refer to the reviewer below who complained about the timings of dinner and disco). With a tiny bit of tweaking on the first and second day, we were good with having dinner at 6.30/7 and doing the mini disco at 8-8.30. And shock horror, our daughter has returned to her usual bedtime of 7.30pm on arrival back home! The disco was cheesy and a little amateurish, but who cares – it’s aimed at the kids and they were all loving life! In addition to the disco and kids clubs, the animation team also put on a show around the pool and a photo session at breakfast one day, all unexpected but enjoyed by us and our daughter. Location – there is a small shopping centre nextdoor with a supermarket and couple of cafes/bars which was very handy to pick up bits for lunch and have a coffee. We also walked to the marina a couple of times which took about 20 minutes (you could presumably get taxis or buses). We would have preferred more bars and restaurants a bit closer, but it wasn’t an issue and is just personal choice. On the plus side, the hotel was right on the sea front and a gate takes you straight onto the promenade and the beach. It’s mostly pebbly but a bit sandy a few metres along to the left. We enjoyed some morning strolls, paddling and throwing stones into the sea. And if you go to the marina with a child, check out the Jungle Vibes at the Marina bar which has animals on the walls and dotted around the tables. Again our daughter loved this. Overall we had a fab time. We probably wouldn’t go back but this is as we have a policy of trying different places. It is not a reflection of the hotel. I can see why people may return year on year with their children as they get older. We were very lucky with the weather which was hot and sunny, and I guess we were fortunate to go outside of the school Easter break so it may have been a bit quieter. But all in all, it was super and even the journey there and back (thanks Jet2) was smooth and painless. All staff we encountered at the hotel were lovely, the setting and feel of the place was stunning (you may get lost on the first day due to the unusual layout, but it’s far nicer than being in a bog standard hotel block), it was clean and tidy (ok, maybe not as pristine as in the photos but where is? – expect a bit of shabbiness everywhere you go). I appreciate everyone has their own experiences and maybe some people will encounter issues, but for us it was perfect and I would totally recommend. If you have booked this hotel and are having doubts due to some of the negative comments, I hope this reassures you.

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“Lovely family holiday to Lanzarote”

We have just returned from a wonderful stay at the Gran Castillo Tagora. This hotel is so well set up for families and the staff cannot do enough for you. It was exceptionally clean, tidy and well looked after. It felt safe and had a good vibe about it. Our room was huge and came with a lovely l... more

We have just returned from a wonderful stay at the Gran Castillo Tagora. This hotel is so well set up for families and the staff cannot do enough for you. It was exceptionally clean, tidy and well looked after. It felt safe and had a good vibe about it. Our room was huge and came with a lovely large balcony overlooking the sea. Pools - The hotel has many pools that guests can use with a couple of them being heated. We always managed to get a sun lounger but towards the end of the holiday when the weather was hotter (and pool busier) we did feel the need to put towels down before breakfast to ensure adequate beds. The pools are salt water which we were initially nervous about but we needn’t have been. It was very diluted and neither of our kids noticed it! Food - there’s a large buffet restaurant that has themed food evenings. There’s plenty of variety and we were happy to eat here most evenings. Breakfast included pancakes, fry ups, bakery, fruits, omelettes to order, yogurts - anything you could wish for. There is also drink waiter service which was a nice touch. We ate at the Italian restaurant one evening (which you need to book in advance) and the food was delicious. If you’re all inclusive, you can eat here twice during your stay for free. You need to be organised and book promptly though (booking opens 3 days before) as we only managed to get in for the one night. The pool snack bar also served burgers, chips, fish fingers /nuggets etc that you just queue up to get which was handy. We used this Drinks all good, plenty of choice and you can even get big bottles of water for your room from any of the bars which is fantastic! Shows - there is a kids mini disco each night at 8pm and a show at 9pm. They were all good but two were stand out - Black Panthers and the circus/juggling one!! Location - the hotel is set within a quiet part of Playa Blanca. With some bars, shops and a supermarket within 2 mins of the hotel. There is also a kids play park. Within the hotel itself there is also a small supermarket selling kids toys, souvenirs, snacks etc. We walked to the Rubicón marina twice along the beautiful coastal path. It takes around 30 mins with kids in tow. On from the marina for around 10 mins is Playa Dorada beach; a sandy beach with pedaloos, paragliding available to book. This was very busy but we just managed to get a couple of loungers. There are shops, cafes and restaurants nearby. You can also get a taxi back to the hotel for €5. We didn’t make use of the kids club but there seemed to be lots of different things for the children to do. The Animation team were so friendly and spoke/ high fived the kids whenever they saw them. Zachary in particular was brilliant! 5D cinema was lots of fun. You get 1 x free ticket each when you arrive. We watched the toy ride film (5mins) and the kids loved it. Excursions - we did the submarine safari and I couldn’t recommend it highly enough! Though it’s not cheap, we saw loads of different types of fish plus 3 shipwrecks. Kept the kids well entrained and included a transfer to/ from the hotel. All in all, a really enjoyable stay and would certainly recommend if you’re looking for a friendly, family focused chilled hotel.

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