- Gran Canaria Holidays
- Las Palmas
- Santa Catalina a Royal Hideaway Hotel
The Santa Catalina, a Royal Hideaway Hotel, represents Las Palmas de Gran Canaria's living history. This emblematic building, dating back to the late 19th century, sits beside the lush Doramas Park, the city's green heart. Just a short stroll from Playa de las Alcaravaneras, it offers convenient access to key attractions. The hotel meticulously upholds local tradition and integrates tourism with civic heritage and environmental respect. This blend creates an authentic, distinctive atmosphere. The 202 elegant rooms offer magnificent garden or sea views. Rest assured, the hotel's comprehensive hygiene program prioritizes guest and staff well-being.
Nice hotel, impressive and staff very friendly and helpful in general.
Rooms nice and comfortable, although did get hot on a night despite the AC being on.
Rooftop bar is incredibly disappointing. Incredibly quiet, very quiet music in the background which is barely audible.
Piano bar is nice during the day / early evening but dead at night, again with no music.
Pool was disappointing. The pool / towel attendant was great but the staff at the pool bar were hardly there and we had to wait ages to order a drink / food. A bell or a buzzer would have been good to get their attention. I just ended up shouting them. Again, no music or atmosphere whatsoever at the pool bar or around the pool. Didn’t feel much like a holiday.
Breakfast was nice. Champagne was available.
Wellness / Spa - had to book, so we did. Got there and were charged €15 each! This wasn’t advertised so felt ripped off. Spoke to other guests who said they just walked straight in and didn’t pay anything. We were not made aware of any of the services on offer (massage etc), so assumed there weren’t any. Turns out they were but they just didn’t tell us about them.
Went to the 1890 Restaurant. Was very nice but once again we ate in silence as there was no music playing in the background.
The takeaway here is don’t expect any form of entertainment, the hotel is very quiet and very boring (despite being beautiful). Probably suitable for a weekend away but any longer and it starts to grate.
Wouldn’t recommend. No character, no soul. Just go stay in a Hilton if that’s what you’re after - it’s cheaper.
We recently spent five nights at the Santa Catalina Hotel, staying in a Deluxe room on a half board basis. Although we enjoyed several aspects of our stay, the overall experience did not quite meet our expectations.
The hotel is a beautiful historic building with considerable character and elegance, and the excellent main swimming pool was one of the highlights of our visit. However, our Deluxe room felt somewhat underwhelming and did not provide all the comfort and luxury we had anticipated. We were also disappointed to find that the rooftop pool was reserved exclusively for suite guests, with no option to pay for occasional access.
The setting is attractive, although much of the surrounding greenery forms part of Parque Doramas, a public park rather than private hotel grounds. The location also felt surprisingly isolated, with relatively few restaurants, cafés or evening options nearby. The main area for shops and restaurants is approximately a 30–45 minute walk away, which may be worth considering when booking.
Santa Catalina is an impressive hotel with charm, history and several notable strengths. However, it did not quite deliver the warmth, consistency and personal service we associate with a five star hotel.
Hotel is very good but the privacy between the toilet and room is minimal and small for a five star hotel
We stayed at the hotel for two nights. On both nights, there was an event, making it extremely busy and noisy. The noise was so loud that we couldn't relax in our room or even sleep until after midnight when the event finally ended. There was loud music and hundreds of people talking right under our window. When I complained, all they could say was 'sorry'. No solution or compensation was offered. I paid €319 per night to stay in a room with loud music blasting until midnight, which is definitely not worth a 5-star rating.
Additionally, I booked a transfer service (in advance) that was canceled at the very last minute. Although I eventually received a refund after complaining, it caused a lot of stress
As always a fantastic relaxing stay at this beautiful hotel. The location, settings, fabulous room, lovely restaurants, bars and great staff are hard to beat if your looking to totally wind down.
