Red Level at Gran Melia Palacio De Isora

We made the mistake to reward ourselves a Christmas gift by booking 2 nights at RedLevel a DeLuxe room for over ??? 500,00 per night (included a discount of 20% on promo code). Being Residents in Tenerife, it is not something we would normally do, but with the pandemic and 22:00 curfew we felt it might be entertaining. We had emailed the reception prior to find out if there were any restrictions at all, we were informed that other than the curfew and a 2 meter distancing policy there were none. We had great expectations from the 5+ star accommodation. Check-in was smooth enough, but getting to the room it started to go wrong. The room is very dated and not very big, not what you might expect for ??? 500,00 per night, old tv on the wall (not even Smart, no internet/wifi). Toilet and shower are tiny with a phone in the toilet placed in a spot where you would not want it. Then we checked out the tv, we were looking forward to watching the Christmas eve show on the BBC channel. To our surprise there were no International channels at all, this not what you expect at this level. We reported the problem to reception who said they would send a technician, knowing full well that it was not a problem in the room, but the whole hotel had no International tv signal. They assured us they would get it fixed, by late afternoon there was still no signal and we went to reception once more, to be told that the whole team was working on it. Breakfast and dinner was included in our stay and as we were advised to book a time on arrival we had booked restaurant Pangea for Christmas dinner on advice of the reception manager. It was not good weather and all dining is taking place on covered terraces exposed to the elements so it was not very comfortable. There was a set menu which to our surprise consisted of a fish appetizer, a fish starter and a fish main course followed by a pork dish. There was no choice between courses, one of us likes fish the other does not so we did not understand the menu choice at all. We did eat our food and it was presented well, but lukewarm on cold plates which made it a bad experience. Staff was nervously hopping about everywhere not seeing a thing, not at all how it should be at this level, where you do not see staff, they just there when you need them. When ordering a glass of wine at the start of the dinner, the waitress poured such a small amount in the glass that we had to call her back and asked her to correct it which she did. However, when ordering a second glass the exact same thing happened and again we had to ask for it to be corrected. Drinks are not included and a glass of wine costs ??? 5,00 surely you can expect a normal measure of wine, just like the tables around us. No excuses were made! We went back to reception to find out if the tv channels were on, but we were informed they were not. At this time I complained about this fact and the poor dinner and indicated that we were not enjoying our stay and were contemplating checking out. We went to the room and ended up playing games on a mobile phone. This was Christmas eve for us. Nothing in the room or the entire hotel makes you feel it is Christmas, including the dinner. The next day we went to the pre-booked breakfast. It was windy and there was no buffet service so you had to order from the waiters. There was plenty of staff about, but again all running about nervously not seeing anything. When we finally got to ordering breakfast we were already cold from sitting in the wind. We ordered bacon and eggs on toast and coffee (with sweeteners). The toast came first in the form of a chunk of whole wheat baguette, so we asked once more for toast, it came in the form of 2 slices of warm integral bread. The coffee came, but without sweetener, we had to ask 3 different waiters to bring the sweetener which eventually came when the coffee was cold. We ordered a second cup which we had to ask twice for. We then left as the gusts of wind were getting to strong to sit out there comfortably. On our way back we went passed the reception to see about the tv channels and they said they were still working on it, somehow, it being Christmas day i did not quite believe that. On arrival we had also booked the Spa of which we are both fans having lived in a country where every house has a sauna. At 14:00 we went to the spa where we enquired about the type of sauna and to our surprise we were informed that the sauna and jacuzzi were not open due to Covid. This is exactly what we had enquired about prior to staying at the hotel. Had we been informed that this was the case we would have cancelled. I went to the reception once more and informed them we would not be staying that night as we would be far more comfortable in our own home. We had booked the Oasis restaurant which 2 hours prior to us having dinner showed a set menu online, with choices, but on arrival it turned out to be a la carte. We ordered our meal (not everything was included in the RedLevel stay) and it was pleasant enough although I question the menu choice and the level of cooking skill, not 5 star! Then came the bill, wrong, too many drinks on it. We asked the waitress to correct it, it came back, again wrong, still to many drinks on it. So after 3 times they got it right, amazing how a 5 star hotel has waitresses using scrap pads to note the drinks and food, even our local back street bar uses handheld pos devices. So it was time to check out, we had already put our luggage in the car so we only needed to pay the bill for drinks at the reception. Upon scrutinizing the bill I noticed a item that I could not place, it was supposed to be a drink we had in a bar we did not even know where to find. When telling the reception manager he proceeded to go through each and every docket from that bar and of course could not find it but charged us anyway, by this time I had enough and it did no longer matter because I had decided to claim a refund as non of it was as promised. I had already written that I would do so by email and followed it up with more or less the above once we were home. The hotel director was very sorry that we not had the experience we were hoping for, but in no way apologetic for all the mishaps and offered us an upgrade when booking again with them. An upgrade to what, the same level we were in already, what a slap in the face. We demanded a refund and then put a figure of 50% on it. Every email i sent got answered with a lengthy reply from the experience manager who also found it necessary to call me in person to explain once more their point of view, despite the fact I straight away told him I would prefer to do things in writing. He insisted to speak, constantly interrupting me, quite unusual for someone supposedly trained to deal with guests at all level. The final result was that the hotel stood by their offer of an upgrade on a future stay and would not refund a cent, the reason being we had stayed till 9 pm on the night of departure. Total disregard for the extreme poor performance on a multitude of occasions, not an apology in sight. Our recourse is to file a formal complaint with the consumer office, a process that takes over a year so we decided to give them the worst public review hoping that some people read this and stay away from this highly overrated superficial place that should not have 5 stars at all, not in any department! Goes without saying we will never set foot again in any Melia hotel anywhere in the world.

As a negative PCR test was required,after the 19th of November, many people had probably cancelled their stay. Therefore, there were very few tourists and the atmosphere was very quiet. The draw back is that only 2 or 3 restaurants were open which limited the choice of food and that the services at the Red Level lounge were reduced . The staff are very friendly and smiley. We had a Red Level deluxe room with large terrace and whirlpool bathtub which is presented on the website as a 89 m?? room with a 42 m?? terrace, but we now understand that 89 m?? include the terrace, so that I would not recommend staying 3 in this room. We enjoyed the large terrace with loungers, comfortable chairs and a parasol. The food is excellent, especially at the Asian Nami restaurant. The Oasis restaurant was a bit cold when it was windy. All in, all a very pleasant stay.

Wonderful Experience Stayed for just under 4 weeks and had a very relaxing time. The hotel is doing a fantastic job in these very challenging times. Gym - had to be booked and only 2 persons allowed. New equipment and is the best gym I have used in any hotel I have visited. Restaurants - the Asian, steak house and the Italian (open only at weekends) is definitely worth a visit. Breakfast is very good with lots of choice. Staff in the Red Level area are friendly and helpful, but were stretched at times and needed help. They are doing a great job. No management around to help/assist! Room - 4068 has frontal sea views with hot bath on the terrace. The maids were very thorough when they cleaned. Happy Hour - 5-6 daily. A nice touch by the hotel where they offer complimentary drinks and tapas. Unfortunately, there are some guests that make it a cat fight and are very greedy. Expect to queue to get a drink! The evening entertainment in the square is very good and the show they put on a Saturday night is in the Las Vegas class; don???t miss...Alejandro who works the bar is excellent. Tip for the management: advertise the shows better. Missed the first Saturday as unaware the show was on! In summary the hotel is excellent and would recommend. However, remember there is very little to do, or visit outside of the hotel unless you get a taxi, or hire a car. Finally, I would like to say a massive thanks to 2 JEWELS IN THE CROWN Vero and Gala and of course all their team. The Meli?? group should be very proud of you all. Well done 👏👏 The GM (who I didn???t see in nearly 4 weeks!) has an all round fantastic team. Once again, we???ll done Meli?? and thank you.