Fifty years is an awfully long time for a grande dame to be locked away. Originally opened in 1890 the Gran Hotel Taoro was Spain’s first-ever luxury hotel, a palatial address atop a lush hillside in the north of Tenerife. It was lavish enough to play host to the king himself (Alfonso XIII) as well as Agatha Christie. Yet by the mid-20th century tourism to Tenerife had turned against the cooler subtropical north in favour of the island’s hotter, drier south and the hotel closed its doors in 1975.
Apart from a brief, unsuccessful stint as a casino, it has stood empty since then.
Now, finally, after a £44 million investment from the Cabildo (island government), which owns the hotel, the Gran Taoro has reopened. I was the first journalist to check in.
First impressions were good. I arrived at the top of Taoro mountain, a volcanic hump overlooking the town of Puerto de la Cruz and the Orotava Valley that leads down to it, to find lush gardens and a fountain beckoning me towards the neoclassical building, with its creamy white walls and dark wooden balconies. Doors were swept open as I walked into the airy lobby, staff whisked away my luggage and I was immediately struck by the view. It was a corker: cobalt skies, palms, the Atlantic glinting in the November sun.
What you need to knowHow much does it cost? Seven nights’ B&B from £1,369pp, including flights.Who will love it? Agatha Christie fans, winter sun seekers and those more interested in Tenerife’s nature and culture than its bars. Insider tip This is your chance to try Canarian wine: there are more than 20 by the bottle and half a dozen by the glass on Amalur’s list and staff can recommend the best pairings.
It was appropriate that I had fled the onset of a London winter to be here, jumper discarded as I stepped from the plane, the temperature hovering around 20C and barely dropping as day turned to evening. This is what the hotel was made for. It originally opened to cater to the English gentry who had a penchant for the subtropical air of Puerto de la Cruz — said to cure tuberculosis.
Puerto de la Cruz with Mount Teide behind
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For decades this was the place to see and be seen, the hub of Tenerife’s high society. An Anglican church was built on its land, then an English library. Taoro mountain became a little England and Christie fled here in her darkest hour (after her divorce and her mother’s death), finally finishing the story she is said to have struggled with the most, The Mystery of the Blue Train, at the hotel in 1927.
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Agatha Christie came here to write
I could imagine holing up to write in the Agatha Christie room, just off the lobby, whose wooden bookcases are soon to hold a complete set of the writer’s works. Or maybe on my balcony, which overlooks the three swimming pools and allowed me to sit in the sunshine and gaze straight up at Mount Teide, a pleasingly pyramid-shaped active volcano of 3,715m that is the highest point in Spain.
The hotel is big. Its 199 bedrooms are mostly doubles and all the same size: a relatively compact 30 sq m. They differ depending on which side of the building they’re on, both in terms of view (some overlook the gardens, others face straight out to sea) and configuration, but the style remains the same. My room on the second floor is awash with a lot of whites and creams, from the walls to the curtains, to the fabrics upholstering the twinset of armchairs, contrasted with dark wooden furniture. Wall-hung paintings by the local artist Alejandro Tosco add earthy tones of sage and copper.
A room at the hotel with views over the grounds
ROGER MENDEZ FOTOGRAFO
By next month a series of spacious suites will be ready, mostly up on the third floor, and the four best higher still, at the top of the hotel’s corner towers, their fourth-floor position commanding panoramic views.
It was all calming and chic, but I couldn’t quite shake the feeling that more could have been made of the building’s history.
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A bright and airy gallery space behind reception will be hung with pictures showing the hotel in its former heyday. But I can’t help thinking they’re missing a trick by not hanging these pictures throughout the hotel, or throwing in a few early 20th-century design elements — vintage mirrors, velvet fabrics — as a nod to its heritage. For me it’s crying out for some art deco ritz, or perhaps an Agatha Christie-themed murder mystery afternoon tea.
Dinner might include beef wellington carved at the table
As darkness descended over the Orotava Valley, I headed downstairs for dinner on the terrace of Amalur, a Spanish bistro where the menu is divided into the four elements (mains from £19). It was the fire section I was most drawn to — Tenerife, after all, is an island forged by volcanic heat — and I ordered a smoked steak tartare followed by Canarian-style beef wellington. It turned out this would be carved tableside, on a sleek wooden trolley by a waiter wearing a black glove. I was also presented with a selection of knives to choose from and a small wooden box containing two black truffles to grate over my wellington (yes please). It was all delightful theatre, and since the wellington contained red mojo (a classic Canarian sauce made with red peppers and garlic) also one of the most tastiest dishes I’d eaten all year.
The restaurant is a highlight, says Helen Ochyra
ROGER MENDEZ FOTOGRAFO
In charge of Amalur — along with Lava, opening at the hotel in December — is Erlantz Gorostiza, a Basque chef who’s been a leading light of Tenerife’s restaurant scene since arriving on the island in 2010. His other workplace is the MB Restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton Abama in the island’s south: it holds two Michelin stars, an accolade the Gran Taoro has in its sights.
There are other plans afoot too for a further restaurant, Oka, serving Japanese-Mediterranean fusion from the acclaimed Spanish chef Ricardo Sanz, as well as a wellness centre offering treatments using the French skincare brand Anne Semonin. A gym with windows looking out over the valley and a sauna will be added too.
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The main focus by day, though, is the pool terrace, where a week would easily slip by, with languid lunches taken poolside at La Carola. I enjoyed tuna on toast here, the tender rose-pink fish from the neighbouring island El Hierro, as well as a moreish homemade Basque cheesecake, served with a selection of tangy white wines from the Orotava-based winery Tajinaste and the Lanzarote bodega El Grifo (mains from £15).
Stroll down to Puerto de la Cruz for coffee
I could have become quite slothful here, but I was keen to stroll down to Puerto de la Cruz, to linger over coffee with the locals among the laurels and palms of Plaza del Charco and to get closer to the sea. Puerto is both a well-established resort and a proper town, and its seafront is home to a glorious bathing space designed by the Canarian architect César Manrique. Lago Martiánez is more than just a place for a dip –– it’s a garden and open-air sculpture park, where I perused the moving metal sculptures and fountains between soaks in the saltwater pools (£6; lagomartianez.es).
The pretty town of Puerto de la Cruz is a stroll away
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As a base for exploring Tenerife’s north, the hotel is perfect and it has partnered with a guide, the island-born Roberto Martin, to offer private bespoke tours. Since Martin grew up here these take guests to places others could never reach — the studio of his cousin, the ceramicist Gonzalo Martin, to learn how to sculpt a plate from clay, or the finca of Felipe García Rodríguez for a tasting of natural wines made using traditional methods. He will take guests up to the summit of Mount Teide for sunset, or into the Teno mountains to trek among giant cactus plants and lush laurel forests before a tasting of the famously strong local goat’s cheese (a day’s guiding from £210).
Dinner on my final night at the hotel was a giant carabinero prawn from Lanzarote, stuffed with Canarian sobrasada (a soft cured pork sausage) and its shell a striking red. I looked out across the Orotava valley and sipped another gorgeous wine, this time a listan blanco (a local white grape variety) from Suertes del Marques. The terrace around me was full, the atmosphere buzzing. Finally Spain’s first luxury hotel is back to doing what it once did best. The grande dame is back on her feet.
Helen Ochyra was a guest of British Airways Holidays, which has seven nights’ B&B at Gran Hotel Taoro from £1,369pp, including flights (britishairways.com)
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Other places to stay in Tenerife’s northBoutique Hotel San Roque, Garachico
Boutique Hotel San Roque is among the streets of Garachico
This 18th-century hot-pepper-red mansion is tucked away among the cobbled streets of Garachico, an attractive coastal town. It houses 20 elegant rooms, with polished wooden floors and high vaulted ceilings. There’s a swimming pool in the courtyard and a rooftop terrace that’s the perfect spot for a sundowner — complete with Atlantic views. A two-minute walk takes you to the seafront and Garachico’s natural volcanic swimming pools.
Details B&B doubles from £216 (hotelsanroque.com)
Hacienda del Conde Meliá Collection, Buenavista
All 117 of the Hacienda del Conde Meliá Collection’s rooms have a balcony or terrace
There’s a soothing tranquillity to this large, adults-only hotel in Tenerife’s northwest corner, arranged around two lagoon-like pools and backed by the rugged Teno mountains. Golfers can get into the swing on the oceanfront Buenavista Golf course, designed by Seve Ballesteros. The 117 bedrooms all have a balcony or terrace, there’s a spa with hydrotherapy pool, daily yoga classes and bike hire.
Details B&B doubles from £245 (melia.com)
Hotel Laguna Nivaria, La Laguna
Hotel Laguna Nivaria is in a 16th-century mansion house
San Cristobal de La Laguna was the first city to be established in the Canary Islands and the centre is a Unesco world heritage site. Fitting then, that the town’s best hotel is in a 16th-century mansion house. Rooms are traditional in style, with wooden floors and ceiling fans, while the small spa offers a hot tub, sauna and steam room. Book the Nivaria Suite and you’ll also get a private whirlpool bath and sun terrace.
Details B&B doubles from £102 (lagunanivaria.com)
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