Lopesan Baobab Resort
Lopesan Baobab Resort is a five-star, African-themed resort in Meloneras, at the quiet southern end of Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands. Seven outdoor pools wind through savannah-style gardens, one of them a lazy river of more than 2,000 m², and the Maspalomas dunes, the lighthouse and the seafront promenade are all a short walk away. Families come for the pool complex, the swim-up family rooms and pools that range from a shallow baby pool to a lazy river.
On this page
Is it worth it?
Who the resort suits, the two things that shape a week here and the facts to skim before the detail.
Lopesan Baobab is a 5-star resort run by Lopesan Hotels & Resorts, which has two more resorts in the same corner of Meloneras: the Lopesan Costa Meloneras next door and the Villa del Conde a little further along. It opened in 2009, and the whole site is built around an African-explorer theme, with savannah planting, palm-lined pools and bars named after Victorian-era explorers.
The draw for families is the water. Seven outdoor pools run through the gardens, the largest a lazy river you drift around, plus two dedicated children's pools and rooms you can swim straight out of. It's a big place, 677 rooms, so there's room to spread out, and the Maspalomas dunes and beach are close by on foot.
Two things shape a week here. The beach is about a 10-minute walk rather than on the doorstep, and there's no all-inclusive board and no heated or indoor pool, so a winter stay leans on the buffets and the gardens as much as the water. The quality signals are strong even so: Mumsnet picked it as its best overall family hotel in Gran Canaria, and it won the World Travel Awards' Spain's Leading Resort title in 2013.
Best for
You want a big pool complex with a lazy river and swim-up family rooms, two children's pools and a five-star setting a short walk from the dunes and beach.
Maybe not for
You want all-inclusive, sand on the doorstep, or a heated indoor pool to fall back on in winter.
Best ages
Babies and toddlers upwards. There are two very shallow children's pools, and a Mini Club whose age range you'll need to confirm with the hotel.
What stands out
The African-themed gardens, the lazy river of more than 2,000 m² and rooms with direct pool access.
What to check
The Mini Club age range and hours, whether the outdoor pools suit a winter trip, and the airport transfer, which you arrange yourself.
Where is it?
In Meloneras, at the southern end of Gran Canaria, about 30 to 40 minutes from the airport.
Quick facts for families
What the resort is like
The setting, the theme carried through the gardens and what the size means for getting around.
Lopesan Baobab sits in Meloneras, the quiet, upmarket end of the Maspalomas area on the south coast of Gran Canaria. It's almost all hotels and a seafront boulevard here, with little in the way of nightlife, which is part of the appeal with young children. For the rest of the island, and how the sunny south compares with the greener north, see our Gran Canaria guide.
It's a big resort, 677 rooms, and the whole site is themed around an African savannah: dense sub-tropical planting, palm-lined pools that wind through the gardens, colonial-style buffet halls and bars named after Victorian-era explorers. Reviewers often compare the grounds to a film set, and there are live freshwater turtles in the garden ponds, which small children tend to go looking for.
The other side of that scale is distance. The rooms, pools, restaurants and gardens are spread out, and it takes a day or two to learn your way around.
Two sister resorts sit alongside, the Lopesan Costa Meloneras next door and the Villa del Conde a short way along. On the half-board plan you can eat at all three, which widens the choice of dinner without leaving the group.
The Lopesan group runs on 100% renewable electricity and reports large cuts to its carbon footprint and food waste across its hotels. Check-in and check-out times aren't published for Baobab, so confirm them with the hotel if an early arrival or a late flight home matters.
Every restaurant and bar
The two buffets, the two à la carte restaurants, the five bars and how the booking works.
Meals here run on what Lopesan calls the Gastro Experience: two large buffets and a half-board dinner circuit, with two à la carte restaurants that sit outside standard half board and carry a supplement. Board runs across six tiers: room only, bed and breakfast, a Unique VIP Breakfast for guests in the UNIQUE room categories, Half Board Gastro Experience, Premium Half Board Gastro Experience and Full Board Gastro Experience. There's no all-inclusive, so drinks and the à la carte rooms are extras beyond whichever board you book. Nine places to eat and drink in all, made up of two buffets, two restaurants, three bars and two pool bars.
The Baobab Buffet is the main one: an international spread with live cooking stations and African-inspired recipes, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and included in the board. The Marula buffet is the second, on the same Gastro Experience plan, with themed dinner nights and its own live cooking, open for breakfast and dinner. Guests who find it tend to prefer it, since it's quieter and the food is the same, and it's one many families never discover, so it's worth seeking out.
Akara is the à la carte restaurant, African-inspired cooking served for dinner only, from 18:30 to 21:15, with a dress code and booking required. It carries a supplement on standard half board, or comes with the premium half board, and first-hand reviews rate it highly. Pili Pili is the outdoor charcoal grill, open for breakfast and lunch, with a children's menu and a dress code. Being outdoors, it's less pleasant on a windy day.
The five bars
Samuel Baker is the all-day lobby bar, open 09:00 to 23:45, and you walk straight up to it. Dodori is an evening cocktail bar, 19:00 to midnight, and Richard Burton is a second evening bar in the same style, open from 11:00 to midnight. Down at the water, two pool bars, Henry Stanley and Mungo Park, serve drinks and light bites from 10:00 to 18:00. Drinks aren't included on any board, so they're charged as you go.
On children at meals, Pili Pili has a children's menu, and the buffets carry a broad enough range to cover most tastes. For a specific dietary need, speak to the maître d' when you book rather than sort it at the counter.
How booking and the board plans work
Akara needs a reservation, by phone or online. The Marula buffet takes an optional booking, and the two pool bars and Samuel Baker are walk-up. There's a dress code across the restaurants and buffets. Half Board covers dinner at one of the two buffets plus breakfast, and it also lets you dine across at the Costa Meloneras and the Villa del Conde with advance booking. Premium Half Board upgrades dinner to the à la carte restaurants. One thing to know for a festive trip: the Gastro Experience isn't available on the Christmas Day and New Year's Eve gala dinners.
Rooms and suites
Every category with its official size and how many it sleeps, and which suit a family with a baby or toddler.
There are twelve room categories. The sizes below are the official total dimensions, which fold in the room, any separate lounge, the bathroom and the terrace, so they run larger than the bedroom alone. The six top categories, from the Double Deluxe Pool up to the Royal Suite, sit under the UNIQUE by Lopesan tier. The table is the full line-up; the guidance after it is which work with young children.
| Room | Size | Sleeps | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Double Standard | 33.38 m² | Up to 3 | Street view. Fits a cot, but tight for a family spending time inside |
| Double Standard View | 33.85 m² | Up to 3 | Pool and garden views |
| Double Standard Economy | 47.05 m² | 2 adults | Street view. Listed for two adults with no children, so a couples or solo room despite its size |
| Double Standard Adapted | 31.41 m² | 2 adults | A fully accessible bathroom and garden views |
| Family Room | 43.68 m² | Up to 5 | Two queen beds and pool, garden or street views. The most practical non-premium family room |
| Double Family Pool | 49.45 m² | Up to 5 | Two queen beds, direct pool access and a 14.52 m² terrace, the larger of the two family rooms. The swim-up family room |
| Double Deluxe Pool | 57.24 m² | Up to 3 | Direct pool access and a private terrace. UNIQUE category |
| Double Superior | 80.94 m² | 2 adults | A 42 m² terrace. UNIQUE category |
| Junior Suite | 59.09 m² | Up to 4 | A separate 14 m² lounge. UNIQUE category |
| Senior Suite | 69.11 m² | Up to 4 | A separate 22 m² lounge. UNIQUE category |
| Superior Suite | 117.14 m² | Up to 4 | A 60 m² terrace and a 28 m² lounge. UNIQUE category |
| Royal Suite | 268.11 m² | Up to 4 | The largest room, with a 79 m² living room and a 75 m² terrace. UNIQUE category |
For a family, the two rooms set up for the job are the Family Room at 43.68 m² and the Double Family Pool at 49.45 m², both with two queen beds and listed for up to five. The Double Family Pool is the one reviewers single out: its 14.52 m² terrace, the larger of the two family-room terraces, opens straight onto a pool, so a toddler can be in the water a step from where you're sitting, and it gives you pram-pushable outdoor space. The Double Standard fits a cot but is tight for a family spending much time inside. The Double Standard Economy is roomier at 47.05 m², but it's listed for two adults with no children, so it reads as a couples or solo room rather than a family one. For a guest with reduced mobility, the Double Standard Adapted has a fully accessible bathroom.
Interconnecting rooms aren't listed as a standard option, so if you want two adjoining rooms for grandparents or older children, ask the hotel when you book. Up the tiers, the UNIQUE suites bring a separate lounge you can shut off, from the Junior Suite's 14 m² to the Royal Suite's 79 m² living room, which is the useful thing for multi-generational stays or a baby who naps behind a closed door.
Every room has a private balcony or terrace, air conditioning and Wi-Fi included, with a minibar that's chargeable unless you're on the UNIQUE tier. Two details that help with a baby or toddler: rooms come with blackout curtains and a large bath, so a dark room for daytime sleep and a proper bathtime are both covered. The complimentary toiletries aren't topped up after the first night, so bring your own if you get through them.
What UNIQUE by Lopesan adds
The six UNIQUE categories come with a package of extras: a VIP breakfast, an exclusive pool and solarium area kept separate from the main pools, a VIP lounge, priority check-in, in-room touches like a Nespresso machine, a pillow menu, a bathrobe and a welcome treat, one spa circuit per stay at the OM Spa in the Costa Meloneras and, if you book direct, the return airport transfer. For most families the deciding factor is space and the private pool area rather than the room service touches, so weigh it against the cheaper Family Room and Double Family Pool, which give you the family layout without the premium price.
Pools and water features
Each pool named, with its size and depth, and the two children's pools that matter most with little ones.
The pool complex is the reason most families book, and it's the most praised thing about the resort. Seven outdoor pools run through the gardens, from the lazy river down to a baby pool the size of a large paddling pool. All seven are freshwater.
| Pool | Size | Max depth | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Río & Mungo | 2,062 m² | 1.45 m | The lazy river that winds through the gardens. The signature pool |
| Ruinas & Cascadas | 1,586 m² | 1.7 m | Cascading waterfalls and a tiered ruins design. The deepest pool |
| Volcán | 565 m² | 1.45 m | A nature-inspired design |
| Chocolate | 414 m² | 1.4 m | A quieter satellite pool |
| Palmera | 165 m² | 1.4 m | A quieter satellite pool |
| Kids Big | 69 m² | 0.5 m | For toddlers and early walkers who can stand up in it |
| Kids Small | 8 m² | 0.3 m | A very small pool for babies and crawlers |
The Río & Mungo lazy river is the headline: at 2,062 m² it winds through the landscaped gardens in gentle curves and you drift along its current, and it's the single feature reviewers mention most. The Ruinas & Cascadas pool is the other large one, at 1,586 m² and built around cascading waterfalls and a tiered ruins design. At 1.7 m it's the deepest pool on site, deeper than adults will stand comfortably in most of it, so it suits confident swimmers and parents holding a younger child rather than toddlers finding their feet. For the youngest swimmers the two children's pools are what count, and they're small: Kids Big at 69 m² and 50 cm deep suits toddlers and early walkers who can stand up in it, while Kids Small at 8 m² and 30 cm is a tiny pool for babies and crawlers.
Parts of the main complex have gently sloping beach-entry sections where the shallow edge meets the water like a shore. It's a pool feature rather than sand by the sea, so picture a shallow, walk-in pool edge rather than an on-site beach. UNIQUE guests also have a separate private pool and solarium, the Solarium Unique, away from the main pools.
None of the pools are heated and there's no indoor pool, so from November to April the outdoor water can feel cold even when the air is mild. Pool towels are included in the stay, with UNIQUE guests given their own exclusive towels.
The beach
The beach is about a 10-minute walk from the resort, along the flat, paved Meloneras promenade, El Faro Boulevard, which has no stairs and takes a pram easily. There are two stretches of sand to aim for. Playa de Maspalomas is the long sandy beach at the lighthouse end, and Playa de Meloneras is a quieter strip right beside the promenade.
Both shelve gradually, which is what you want with a toddler, but this is open Atlantic rather than a breakwater-enclosed bay, so on a windy day there's a shore-break at the edge. On a calm day it's fine for small children paddling. Playa de Maspalomas has held Blue Flag status in the past; the award is renewed each year, so check the current-season list before you rely on it.
Babies and toddlers
The kids' club and what's known about it, babysitting, the baby kit and where a very young child fits in.
A Mini Club is included in every stay. The gap is that Lopesan doesn't publish its age range, its hours or its programme on the Baobab pages, and that's the single fact a family with young children most needs before booking. The closest official age band comes from a different product, the resort's day pass for outside visitors, which is open to children aged 2 to 12: it doesn't tell you the Mini Club's own age range, but it does show the resort caters for children across that span. Contact the hotel to confirm the age your child falls into and the operating hours, by phone on +34 928 154 400 or email at [email protected], rather than assuming a Spanish resort's usual bands.
Babysitting is available to all guests as a paid service, booked separately, and the resort doesn't publish ages, hours or rates for it, so confirm those directly. Cots and high chairs can be requested when you book, so check availability and any charge with the hotel. The resort has a strong track record with babies: one Mumsnet reviewer travelling with a 10-month-old described staff who couldn't do enough for their son.
For the entertainment, there's an animation team, daily and weekend shows and a mini disco for children in the evening. Where a very young child fits depends on that unpublished Mini Club minimum age. If your child is below it, the two children's pools, the shallow beach-entry pool sections and paid babysitting are what you'd lean on, so it's worth settling the age question before you commit.
Things to do
Sports and the gym, the spa, the entertainment and everything within reach beyond the gate.
Included in the stay are tennis, table tennis, darts, billiards and aerobics or fitness classes, plus the Titan Gym, a fitness centre kitted out with Hammer Strength equipment and running DJ-led sessions. Padel and golf are paid extras. For golf there are two courses within 5 to 10 minutes, Meloneras Golf and Maspalomas Golf, arranged through the resort, which also sells excursions.
The entertainment is one of the things guests rate. There are evening shows, live music and the children's mini disco, and reviewers describe it as professionally run rather than naff.
For wellness, the on-site spa is run by BodyCare, which does massages and treatments for a charge, open daily from 10:30 to 18:30. UNIQUE guests also get one spa circuit per stay at the OM Spa & Thalasso in the neighbouring Costa Meloneras, an adults-only space for over-18s, booked ahead.
If you're staying nearby rather than at the resort, Lopesan sells a day pass that includes a buffet lunch, use of the pools and parking, with a welcome drink at the Samuel Baker bar. It runs 10:00 to 18:00 in winter and 11:00 to 19:00 in summer, and it's valid for children aged 2 to 12, with under-2s free alongside a paying adult. A Day Pass Unique upgrade adds an à la carte lunch at Pili Pili, the private Solarium Unique pool area and a bookable BodyCare treatment.
Off the parkThe area and days out
The resort's position is one of its strengths, since the best of the area is on foot. The Maspalomas Dunes, a protected reserve of rolling sand, are a 5-minute walk to the access point near the lighthouse, free to visit, and the edges and boardwalk are pram-navigable, or you can carry a baby onto the sand. The 19th-century Faro de Maspalomas lighthouse is the same short walk, and El Faro Boulevard, the Meloneras promenade of shops, cafés and restaurants, runs flat right beside the resort.
For everything further you'll want a car or a taxi. Aqualand Maspalomas, a waterpark with a toddler zone, is 10 to 15 minutes away, with free entry for children under 90 cm, and Holiday World, an evening funfair, sits alongside it. Palmitos Park, a bird, butterfly and aquarium park with a dolphinarium, is 15 to 20 minutes by car.
Puerto de Mogán, a fishing village with a harbour beach and canal bridges, is 25 to 30 minutes, and its submarine trip takes children from age 2. Puerto Rico, 20 minutes away, is the hub for boat trips, including glass-bottom dolphin-watching. If the open sea at Maspalomas is too rough for a toddler, Playa de Amadores, a calm man-made beach with flat water, is a 20-minute drive and the reliable fallback. Further out, the island capital Las Palmas is 45 to 60 minutes, with the long Las Canteras beach and the Poema del Mar aquarium.
Loves and gripes
What families rate and what they flag, and how the resort sits against its neighbours.
What families love
- The pool complex, and the lazy river above all, the most cited feature by far.
- The range of pools, with a space for every age from baby to adult.
- The swim-up family rooms with direct pool access.
- The food quality and variety across the Gastro Experience buffets.
- Staff who are attentive, singled out for their care with babies.
- The safari-themed grounds and design, likened to a film set, and the live turtles in the garden ponds.
- The resort rarely feels crowded, even at full capacity, given its size.
- The location, with the dunes, lighthouse and promenade all close on foot.
- The evening entertainment and the children's mini disco.
Common gripes
- The beach is a 10-minute walk, not on-site.
- No all-inclusive option, unlike some Gran Canaria family rivals.
- No heated or indoor pool, and the children's pools are very small.
- The scale can feel daunting, with real distances between areas.
- The Mini Club age range and programme aren't published, so you can't plan for an under-club-age child.
- À la carte restaurants carry a surcharge on half board.
- Room quality varies across the resort: some rooms are modern and well kept, others dated with impractical bathrooms, so it's worth asking for a recently refurbished room when you book.
- Dim lighting through the rooms, cosy but dark, noted first-hand.
- Noise carrying between rooms, corridors and from the evening entertainment.
- The in-room TV isn't a smart TV, so no streaming for a bedtime wind-down.
The quality signals line up behind the praise. Mumsnet named it its best overall family hotel in Gran Canaria, and it won the World Travel Awards' Spain's Leading Resort title in 2013, four years after it opened. Review scores move, so check the current ratings yourself before booking.
Against the neighboursHow it compares
The closest comparison is the Lopesan Costa Meloneras next door, the sister resort. It has six heated lagoon pools and an artificial beach on its own grounds, so there's no walk to water. It houses the OM Spa, and it holds a higher guest-review score on Booking.com. For families who want a warm pool through the winter, that's the stronger choice. Baobab wins on the African-explorer theme, the lazy river and the swim-up family rooms, and the half-board plan lets you eat across at the Costa Meloneras anyway.
For under-3s specifically, TUI BLUE Orquídea, about 20 minutes away, has a formal Baby & Tots Club for 0 to 36 months with qualified staff, which Baobab has no equivalent of, given its unpublished club age. Baobab wins on scale, pools, theme and its position by the dunes. HD Parque Cristóbal offers self-catering bungalows with a splash park and baby-pack Kids Suites, so it suits families who want a kitchen, where Baobab is a five-star, board-based stay with far more pool. Tabaiba Princess, 5 minutes away, is a value all-inclusive with six pools and a splash zone, in a lower price tier than Baobab's five-star setting.
Getting there and when to go
The journey in, whether you need a car, the months that suit young children and the weather behind them.
Gran Canaria Airport, LPA, is on the east coast, and the resort is on the south, so the transfer runs about 30 to 40 minutes depending on traffic. Airport transfers aren't part of the standard rate. UNIQUE guests who book direct at lopesan.com get a return transfer, but it has to be requested ahead, with online pre-check-in and 48 hours' notice, so it isn't automatic. Most families arrange a private transfer or a shared coach.
There's underground parking on site. It's listed among the services that aren't included, which points to a charge for hotel guests, so confirm the current rate with the hotel before you arrive.
You don't need a car for a pool-and-beach stay. The promenade, the beach and the dunes are all walkable, and the resort is self-contained. You'd only want a car or taxi for the days out further afield, to Puerto de Mogán, Playa de Amadores, Aqualand or Las Palmas.
The resort is open year round. October and November pair the warmest sea with quieter, term-time weeks, and February is the reliable UK half-term window with warm afternoons. From November to April the unheated outdoor pools can be cool, so a winter trip with a toddler leans more on the gardens, the buffets and the promenade than the water.
Month by monthWeather
Baobab sits in the Maspalomas corner of the south coast, which is drier and sunnier than Las Palmas and the north of the island. The figures below are for that south-coast zone. The sea is comfortable for a paddle from about June to November and cool the rest of the year, and a 19°C winter sea will feel cold to a young child.
| Month | Daytime high | Overnight low | Rain | Wet days | Sea temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 21.5° | 15.5° | 20 mm | 3 | 20° |
| February | 21.5° | 15° | 27 mm | 3 | 19° |
| March | 22.5° | 15.5° | 10 mm | 2 | 19° |
| April | 23° | 16.5° | 4 mm | 1 | 20° |
| May | 24° | 18° | 3 mm | 0 | 21° |
| June | 25.5° | 19.5° | 0 mm | 0 | 22° |
| July | 27.5° | 21° | 0 mm | 0 | 22° |
| August | 28° | 22° | 1 mm | 0 | 23° |
| September | 27.5° | 21.5° | 4 mm | 1 | 24° |
| October | 26.5° | 20.5° | 16 mm | 2 | 23° |
| November | 24.5° | 18° | 17 mm | 3 | 22° |
| December | 23° | 16.5° | 19 mm | 4 | 21° |
Typical monthly averages from weather-station records. Sea temperature is the open-water figure, so a sheltered bay can feel a degree or two warmer.
Questions
The things families ask most, and where to see the photos.
How old does a child need to be for the Mini Club?
The Mini Club is included in every stay, but Lopesan doesn't publish its age range or its hours on the Baobab pages. The only child age band the resort states officially is for its separate day pass, which isn't the same thing, so email [email protected] or call +34 928 154 400 to pin down the age and hours before you book, especially with a baby or toddler.
Is there an all-inclusive option?
No. Board runs from room only up to full board, plus a premium half board that adds the à la carte restaurants, all built on the Gastro Experience buffets. There's no all-inclusive band, so budget for drinks and any à la carte meals on top of the room.
Will the pools be warm enough in winter?
Not reliably. Every pool is outdoors and unheated, so from about November to April the water stays cool even on a mild, sunny day, and there's no indoor pool as a backup. Families travelling in those months tend to swim in short bursts and fill the rest of the day off the water. If a winter swim is central to your trip, ask the hotel for current pool temperatures before you book.
Which room suits two adults and two young children?
The Family Room or the Double Family Pool. Both sleep up to five on two queen beds, and the Double Family Pool opens straight onto a pool, so the water is within reach of the terrace. If you'd rather have a door between you and a sleeping baby, look at the UNIQUE suites, which add a separate lounge, or ask whether adjoining rooms are free for your dates.
Do UNIQUE guests get the airport transfer laid on automatically?
No, it's never automatic. The return transfer is a UNIQUE benefit only, and only when you book direct and give the hotel online pre-check-in and 48 hours' notice. On any other booking, and in the standard room rate, the airport run is down to you, so budget for a private transfer or a shared coach.
Is there a children’s menu?
Yes. Pili Pili, the outdoor grill, has a dedicated children's menu, and the two buffets have enough variety that most children find something. For a specific allergy or dietary need, tell the maître d' when you book so the kitchen has it noted ahead.
Does Maspalomas beach have a Blue Flag?
It has in past years, but Blue Flag is awarded fresh each season, so a past award doesn't guarantee the current one. Check the latest list at blueflag.global before you count on it.
What are the check-in and check-out times?
They're not published for Baobab, so confirm them directly with the hotel. If you land before the room is ready or fly home after checkout, ask about leaving your bags, as most resorts will hold them for a few hours.
See more Lopesan Baobab photos
Open the Lopesan Baobab photo gallery →Useful links
- Lopesan Baobab Resort: the resort's own site for rooms, the board plans and the Mini Club.
- GOV.UK Spain travel advice: entry rules and safety updates before you travel.
- Gran Canaria with little ones: our guide to the island, its beaches and when to go.
Last updated 16 July 2026.
