3 nights in Lanzarote

Getting to Lanzarote

After a very early start for our 7am British Airways flight from Gatwick South to Lanzarote, we boarded a very full flight.  The winds were on our side and we arrived earlier than expected.  We flew in outbound in Economy and it was comfortable enough, even though I am tall.  On our flight back we treated ourselves to an upgrade to Club Europe as there was a special offer on.  Outbound in Economy meant we needed to purchase drinks and food but, on the return, this was all included.

Lanzarote airport arrivals was pretty small, we left the plane via the connected jetway straight into the airport and took a short walk straight into baggage collections.  After a little wait, our bags arrived and we were straight out to meet our private transfer driver to take us to our hotel.

The journey to the hotel took approximately 30 mins.

Where we stayed

We stayed in a standard Suite at the Five-star Princesa Yaiza Suite Hotel Resort.  This is a Canarian colonial-style hotel with 385 rooms, 6 pools, a spa and choice of 9 restaurants.  Located in the south of the island in Playa Blanca, situated between the Rubicon Marina and the fishing village of Playa Blanca.

As you walk into reception you are greeted with a welcome drink of Champagne, orange juice or water while you take a seat at the reception desk to have a comfortable check-in.  Your bags are taken from you when you get out of your vehicle and taken straight to your room/suite when you have checked in.

The suite was very clean and large.  There were plenty of wardrobes, a large bathroom with double sinks, WC, bath and spacious separate shower which was filled with plenty of Rituals toiletries. In the hallway, there was also a hidden fridge, microwave and small sink.  At the end of the hallway is a large lounge area with table and chairs, 2 sofas and large coffee table and a large TV, the balcony is off the lounge and we had a view over the pools.  The bedroom is large with a separate dressing area where 3 of the wardrobes are.  In the wardrobes, you will find a safe, dressing gowns, slippers, flip flops and scales. There is another large TV in the bedroom.   There are several different suite types as well as accessible rooms.

There are 3 choices of board here, Bed and Buffet Breakfast, Half Board (buffet breakfast and buffet dinner with showcase cooking) and Half Board Deluxe (Buffet breakfast, Dinner in either the buffets or in one of the 4 Al a Carte restaurants) with the Half Board Deluxe you also have a minibar included in your room with water, soft drinks, wine and beer.

You can book for an Al a Carte breakfast for an extra €5 per person and it is totally worth it.  Men are required to wear long trousers for dinner in the Al a Carte restaurants.   The food in the restaurants is lovely whether it be breakfast, lunch or dinner.  There is a choice of a tasting menu, Teppanyaki, Italian, Tapas, Pizza, Mexican and Canary Island cuisine poolside for lunch. There is also a choice of bars.   The restaurants can vary in times of low capacity at the hotel.

As well as the selection of pools you also have the Thalasso Spa with treatment rooms, hydro pool with a starlight ceiling (better at night) sauna, steam room and hammam.  You do need to wear a swimming cap though, but you can buy them there for €2 each if you don’t own one.  At the spa, they have a small grassy outside area to sunbathe in, which was lovely and peaceful.

There is plenty to do for children, known as Kikoland and this includes an indoor soft play, children’s evening shows and mini disco, all of which is away from the main areas so the adults are not interrupted by other people’s children enjoying their holiday making this hotel suitable for couples and families of all ages.  Babysitting is available.

Adults have their own entertainment too in the way of music, shows and various daytime events.

The hotel has a gym that does classes and has personal trainers available for use, tennis courts available for use and you get 1 hour per day use included in your stay, a soccer pitch, table tennis, games area and a small array of shops.

The sandy beach is just across the promenade.

To the left of the hotel, along the promenade, it’s about a 10-minute stroll to the Marina where you can find shops, cafes, bars and restaurants.  To the right of the hotel, on the promenade, there are bars and shops a few doors down and a short walk from there you will head towards more shops, bars, restaurants and beaches. Heading out of the front of the hotel will give you a couple of streets with more restaurants, cafes and shops.

This is not a busy resort at all, and nightlife is more about the bars that have live music in rather than clubs but there is just the right amount going on if you are wanted a chilled holiday.

As we were only there for 3 nights and with friends, we decided to stay local so didn’t really explore the rest of the island.  The island is very baron, but you can still do jeep safaris and buggy rides.  There are plenty of beaches to visit, the national volcanic parks and caves, surfing, villages, natural pools or play golf.

Where we ate

As we had taken the Half Board deluxe option and there was so much choice we mainly ate in the hotel.

Our arrival was lunchtime, so we ate at the outdoor restaurant by the pool.  The menu had a huge range of food and I went for a club sandwich which they made gluten and dairy-free for me and it still tasted lovely.  We washed this down with a lovely cold bottle of rose wine.

We chose to eat one of the hotels Al a Carte restaurants Los Lobos restaurants tonight and, sitting on the veranda overlooking the sea, we weren’t disappointed.  There is a choice of al a carte menu or 3 different tasting menus.  As I am wheat and dairy intolerant and my friend cannot eat seafood, we thought a tasting menu might be a challenge for them, but they rose to the challenge and did themselves proud.  I did lose count, but I think it was 7 dishes of absolute deliciousness with the amendments made where necessary.  It was a really relaxed evening.

Breakfast the next morning was taken in the buffet restaurant and they had everything you could think off, from pastry to a full English and the service was spot on. 

At lunchtime, we ventured out and had an amazing tapas and sangria at Restaurante Tipico Espanol.  The staff couldn’t do enough and even popped to the supermarket to see if they could get me some gluten-free bread. It was also very reasonable.

For dinner, we ate at another of the hotel's Al a carte restaurant, Don Giovanni Italian, where the pizzas and pasta were made fresh.  Once again, we were not disappointed, and the service was great.

This morning we decided to try the Al a Carte breakfast, which is held in the Los Lobos restaurant.  It is included in our chosen dining package, but you can pay an extra €5 per person and it is totally worth it.  You could actually order as many things from the menu as you like, and we saw some guests trying their best to make their way through the menu.  Fresh coffee, orange juice and bubbles are offered when seated and fresh bread is offered to start.  They made me a plate of gluten-free toast, gluten and dairy-free muffins and biscuits, then you can choose from an extensive breakfast menu probably the best I have seen anywhere.  We did in fact eat breakfast here the following morning too.

Rugby was on today (England v Wales) so we went to the Irish bar a couple of doors down from the hotel to watch that, drink cocktails and have a late lunch.  For a bar and a busy one at that, the food was lovely, plentiful and again very reasonable. I had a lovely steak wrap, the others had chilli cheese nachos (a huge plate) and a tasty burger and chips.

Later we had dinner at the +Tapas at the hotel, after all when you’re in Spain, Here the tables are out on the Veranda with music from the bandstand. The dishes are quite large so don’t over order but there is everything you can expect from a tapas menu.  Out of the 2 tapas restaurants we ate in this trip I preferred the other one as it felt more traditional but there is nothing wrong with this at all.

As mentioned, before we did the Al a Carte breakfast on our last morning, but this wasn’t until 1030 so we didn’t have time to test any more restaurants before we headed home.

The hotel has an app which is very handy as it has a map on it and you can make your meal reservations on it, view the menus and see the entertainment programs

The weather was around 20-24 in the day with a warm breeze but at night it got quite nippy, although as the few days went on the evenings got warmer.  

I would definitely come back here and recommend it highly.

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