Like a lot of other reviewers I always consult Trip Advisor before booking a holiday and rely on the balanced opinion of the reviewers. However, this time, I think I was swayed too much by the excellent reviews of this hotel and didn't consider the other elements of the holiday. The Tres Islas is indeed a lovely hotel.
What we really liked were:
- The Hotel is extremely comfortable, rather than luxurious. It has a really nice feel to it, helped by the fact that so many of the staff are long serving and seem very happy in their work. The greetings always appear to be warm and genuine and the service is really second to none.
- The nice little touches, welcome fizz on arrival while you check in, then when you get to the room, a chilled bottle of fizz on ice awaits, fresh flowers, fruit and sherry. The rooms themselves are very comfortable, I had the best nights sleep of any holiday I can remember as the beds are firm but wide and the blackout curtains ensure a good long sleep, plus the hotel is generally quiet after 10.30.
- The food in the hotel is generally very good, though the breakfasts are a bit samey after a week, there were only freshly cooked omelettes on offer one morning. It would have been nice to have a bit more variety from one day to the next. We like to eat breakfast on the terrace, but often it was too cold and windy in the morning to do this, which was a shame. Dinner choices are generally excellent, but we really enjoyed having a choice to eat in Krystal Restaurant a few nights for a change. The setting down there is lovely, very modern and stylish and only about a dozen tables (booking in advance is essential - via the Maître' D at least one day before). A nice touch is you are greeted with a glass of pink fizz on arrival. The menu is modern fusion but it the same each night, with a choice of about 4 dishes on each course. So, despite the food being lovely, we only ate there two nights. The portions are not huge but with tapas to start with and three courses to follow, it was more than enough for us, though we did hear a group on the next table to us one night complaining about the lack of food!
What we didn't like:
- The Entertainment in the evening was generally lacklustre, a duo called Magazine played in the main bar most nights, on one evening however they had a Drifters tribute band on, they were excellent, and the place was packed -for one night only.
- The location, as noted earlier, I was swayed by the great reviews of the hotel and didn't do enough homework on the location. Fuerteventura is, in our opinion, a not very nice island. We walked along the beach into Corralejo a few times and the further away you got from our hotel the worse the scenery became. The town itself is tacky, the only redeeming features being a few little restaurants dotted around the harbourside. However, we began to appreciate Corralejo a bit more after hiring a car for the day and discovering that the rest of the island resorts are even worse. The only place we discovered with any charm was the old hillside village of Betancuria, which a was lovely.
So, if you want a holiday in a very nice hotel, on a lovely stretch of beach and are prepared to put up with the constant wind and the lack of diversion outside the hotel then maybe this is the place for you. Despite all the charms of the hotel and it's staff, we will not be going back, but it's clear from talking to other guests that many choose to return year after year to this excellent hotel.
- Riu Palace Tres Islas Corralejo
- Riu Palace Tres Islas Hotel
