My wife daughter and I have just returned from a weeks stay at the Anthelia Grand in Costa Adeje. We travelled using Sovereign holidays and got a great last minute deal with half board included.

On arrival at the airport our private taxi was waiting to take us to the hotel, what a difference that makes I can tell you! I was in the pool by the time the first lot of people on the coach got off (probably).

Hotel check in was very good and no language problems, we were offered some fizz and a fruit juice for my daughter,.....sadly there was no teddy for her :( this despite earlier reviews ....U know the story....she read the reviews and was therefore expecting a teddy! lol poor wee soul....I did warn her that this might NOT actually happen on OUR holiday...so parents with small kiddies...tell them not to expect it ok? :)

Anyway, we requested to see if there were any upgrades available...we had booked a partial sea view and just had a notion to see what you could get for the money. Really glad we did, we upgraded to a larger room with a double aspect...one bay window overlooking one of the pools and the other (veranda) had a full sea view! Wonderful. It cost us about £270 for the week to upgrade. Accomodation was spotless and always maintained to perfection.

Our upgraded room would require the addition of a seperate bed...they said that it would be here in 10 minutes...however it still had not arrived by the time we had eaten our evening meal and returned from our night out at 2230. A phone call to reception however sorted this out in 20 mins.

Food in the hotel was fantastic! Breakfasts the usual 5 star buffet arrangement with every possible fresh fruits, cereals, cakes, breads, juices (Oh...the fresh rasberry juice.....my God!)...all this was available as was caviar red and black each day with "Champagne"/ Cava..Full english was availble too and the chef cooks omlettes to your requirements direct on the griddle :P

Evening meals were a similar delight, sirloin steak, fillet Steak were available each night but the selection of fresh fish including Tuna, swordfish, Langoustines, herring, Lemon Sole, Sea Bass etc was to die for.

The deserts were similarly fanastic....I hope they have the coconut ice cream available when you go...I have rarely enjoyed a desert so much.

The pool areas are immaculately maintained, we preferred to laze by the large sea water pool, although this was not heated...you most definately don't need it to be in July. Only gripe was (and it is NOT the hotels fault) that there was a burst pipe underneath the pool area...they spent two days trying to fix the leak! This involved some mechanical digging and noise. We did move however to a much quieter part of the pool area as there was always plenty of space, sunbeds and parasols available. Although the hotel was busy you never felt crowded or hassled.

As a location in Costa Adeje the hotel is located half way between Playa Fanabe and Del Duque. Del Duque is lovely especially at night however there is not much around that end for children. Playa Fanabe is the usual bright lights, gawdy crap shops, trampolines, mini golf...but if the kids are happy then you tend to be happy I guess, We found the perfect balance this holiday I think.

Kids club (1030-1300, 1500-1700) in the hotel was super however having been to Princessa Yaiza last year NOTHING could compare to the kids club there. In the evening there was only a mini disco (2030-?), whereas the Yaiza in Lanarote actually coreographed evening shows with the kids involved on stage...that said, my daughter is getting on a bit now at 8 and was happy this year not to be involved in EVERY single thing. That said, she loved the day time activities (albeit to me they seemed slightly limited).

During our stay, the swipe card entry system proved troublesome to say the least. Lost count of how many cards we had to get replaced due to them failing. They are used for entry to the hotel complex, entry to your room and room safe. The hotel are in the process of upgrading this to a smart chip system though I don't know what the time table is for the upgrade. If you are going keep the cards away from your mobile phones!

Theres a most posh shopping centre up the road, however there is a netto downstairs which is excellent, good for that room sundowner bottle of chilled wine.

Usual 5 star costs in the hotel, however I actually thought it quite reasonable at 3.5Eu for a large beer in the hotel. Outside 1.5Eu seems the going rate in Fanabe and 2.5-3 in Del Duque. Cokes etc about 1.5 in the hotel...way much cheaper that Playa Blanca last year in Lanzarote.

Gents note, take a pair of long trousers with you, its a 5 star hotel...you will need this for evening meals, though there were people with 3 quarter length trousers on shorts however tailored are not tolerated. This is NOT to say that there is anything stuffy about this hotel...far from it! It has all the facilities of a 5 star (euro/med) and NONE of the pretentious baggage. It is a family friendly hotel, so if you want the kind of holiday where you get the stuffiness then keep searching....try possibly the Gran Hotel Del Duque (I think).

Would I go again? YES, one week was just about enough for me, this kind of brain melt holiday I find harder to do each year however my family adored it and I would return to the same place, and hotel again. Well Done Iberostar and all the staff at the Anthelia Grand.