Barceló Tenerife
Barceló Tenerife is a five-star all-inclusive resort on the south-east coast of Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, set into a protected volcanic reserve right by the sea. It traded for years as Sandos San Blas and reopened under Barceló in 2022 after a full renovation. Families come for one of the shortest airport transfers of any south Tenerife resort, seven outdoor pools, the nature reserve on the doorstep and rooms with a separate bedroom for a napping baby or toddler.
On this page
Is it worth it?
Who it suits, what the all-inclusive covers and the gaps to weigh before the detail.
Barceló Tenerife suits families who want a calm, five-star base with a very short airport transfer and something unusual on the doorstep. It's built into a protected volcanic reserve a few minutes from Tenerife South airport, with a spread of outdoor pools and a quiet setting between a golf resort and a former fishing village, well away from the busy Playa de las Américas strip. The all-inclusive plan covers buffet meals, snacks and drinks within opening hours, and gives 25% off the two booking-only restaurants rather than a free meal. Three things are worth weighing before you book: the beach is pebbly and not made for toddler sea-swimming, the resort publishes very little about its kids' club, and there's no in-house babysitting. You'll get the most from it if the setting and the short transfer matter more to you than a swimmable beach or organised childcare for a baby.
Best for
You want a calm five-star base with a very short airport transfer, a choice of pools and a nature reserve on the doorstep, plus a separate bedroom for a napping baby.
Maybe not for
You want a sandy, swimmable beach for a toddler, organised childcare for a baby, or a lively strip of bars and shops within walking distance.
Best ages
Babies and toddlers, in the family rooms and pools. The kids' club takes older children, with nothing staffed below about four.
What stands out
The volcanic nature reserve beside the hotel, the very short airport transfer and staff that guests single out for care with small children.
What to check
Which pool is heated for a cooler-month trip, and whether you can have a room away from the flight path.
Where is it?
Golf del Sur on the south-east coast of Tenerife, in the Canary Islands, a few minutes' drive from Tenerife South airport.
Quick facts for families
What the resort is like
Where it sits, how the terraced site is laid out and what the rebrand changed.
Barceló Tenerife is a five-star resort run by the Spanish, family-owned Barceló Hotel Group. The five-star rating is Barceló's own classification rather than an official star-board award. For years the hotel traded as Sandos San Blas Nature Resort and Golf, and you'll still find it under that name in some search results and operator listings. It reopened as Barceló Tenerife in 2022 after an €8 million renovation, which was more than a change of sign: the restaurants, room categories and pricing all changed, so older reviews describe a different product from the one you'd book today.
The resort is built into the sloping San Blas barranco, a volcanic ravine, in a run of terracotta-toned buildings that step down the hillside from the reserve to the coast, with streams and cascades through the grounds and a mix of hacienda and North African styling. It's a sloped site rather than a flat one, so moving between the reserve end and the pools and coast means some uphill walking, though lifts serve the upper floors. There are 272 rooms across the resort, including a separate 59-room Royal Level section, Barceló's premium hotel-within-a-hotel tier with its own rooms, pool, restaurant and bar.
Every restaurant and bar
The buffet, the two booking-only restaurants, the bars and how the all-inclusive discount actually works.
The current line-up is three restaurants and a set of bars, all reworked in the 2022 renovation. The buffet takes walk-ins; the two à la carte restaurants need a table booked ahead.
Drago is the main buffet and the hub of the all-inclusive plan: international cooking built around local, zero-food-mile produce, with a Canarian wine list and theme nights that rotate through Canarian, Spanish, Oriental, seafood, Arabic, Mexican and Indian menus across the week. Half-board and full-board guests eat here too. Guests report its serving windows as roughly 07:30 to 10:30 for breakfast, 13:00 to 15:00 for lunch and 19:15 to 21:30 for dinner. Those aren't official times, but they're worth planning around, because a toddler who eats at midday and again around five falls into the gaps between them, so it helps to bring snacks for the in-between hours.
Arrozante is the signature rice restaurant, serving paellas and fideuà, the short-noodle Spanish cousin of paella. It's à la carte and needs a table booked. La Dolce Vita is the Italian trattoria, with pizzas, pastas and risottos overseen by consulting chef Niki Pavanelli, also à la carte and booking-only.
By the pool there are one or two bars, Plaza Pool Bar and Breeze Gastro Pool Bar, serving snacks, light à la carte dishes and cocktails. The two are named separately but described almost identically, so treat them as the poolside food-and-drink stop rather than two clearly different venues. B-Lounge is a terrace cocktail bar for coffees, spirits and cocktails, and Breeze Grab and Go is the quick-bite counter for all-inclusive snacks, pastries, sandwiches, fruit and drinks. There's also a separate children's buffet, listed as its own amenity.
How the all-inclusive and booking work
Drago takes walk-ins; Arrozante and La Dolce Vita both need a table booked ahead. All-inclusive doesn't include a free à la carte meal. Instead it gives 25% off the à la carte restaurants. Beyond the meals, the plan covers snacks at Breeze Grab and Go, a 24-hour drinks-and-snacks station, unlimited drinks within opening hours, water on arrival and a daily-restocked teapot in the room, a pillow menu and 20% off spa treatments and ironing. Food and drink for common intolerances is available, and special-diet menus can be arranged on request.
Rooms and suites
Every room type with its official size, the outdoor pools and the pebble beach below the resort.
The resort has nine room types, from a 33 m² Double up to a two-bathroom Family Suite, plus the Royal Level tier. Most face the sea, the pools or the gardens. The table lists them all with the official sizes; the guidance after it is which suit a family with a baby or toddler.
| Room | Size | Sleeps | Layout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Double | 33 m² | Up to 3 | 2 single beds and a sofa bed, hydromassage bath and a minibar whose contents cost extra |
| Double Side Sea View | 33 m² | Up to 3 | Sea views and light-toned décor, otherwise the same as the Double |
| Double Swimming Pool View | 33 m² | Up to 3 | A furnished terrace facing the pools |
| Suite | 66 m² | Up to 3 | A separate living room, a terrace with hammocks and a hydromassage bath |
| Family Suite | 66 m² | Up to 4 | 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and 1 terrace |
| 2 Connecting Rooms | 66 m² total | Up to 6 | Two 33 m² Deluxe rooms joined by a door, with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and 2 terraces |
| Royal Level Deluxe | 33 m² | Up to 3 | Royal Level tier, a balcony or terrace and a hot tub |
| Royal Level Deluxe Sea View | 33 m² | Up to 3 | As the Royal Level Deluxe, with a sea view |
| Royal Level Deluxe Suite with Sea View | 66 m² | Up to 4 | Refurbished, with sea views and Royal Level services |
For a family with a baby or toddler, the Family Suite at 66 m² is the standout: two bedrooms and two bathrooms mean a separate room for a napping child and a bath-and-bottle routine that doesn't wake anyone. Next is the 2 Connecting Rooms option, two 33 m² Deluxe rooms joined by a door, which gives two full bedrooms and bathrooms and suits a larger group or travelling grandparents. The plain Suite works well too, with a living room that can take a travel cot away from the parents' bed. A standard Double at 33 m² is fine for a single baby with a cot, but tight once a toddler needs floor space during a nap or a wet afternoon.
Every room has air conditioning, free Wi-Fi, a TV, a telephone, a safe, a kettle and tea-and-coffee set, a hairdryer, a balcony or terrace and a hydromassage bath or hot tub. Each also has a minibar, but its contents cost extra; the fridge itself is handy for storing milk or baby food. Cots are available on request rather than as standard, so ask for one when you book and confirm it.
The Royal Level section
Royal Level is Barceló's premium hotel-within-a-hotel: 59 of the rooms, with their own private pool separate from the main resort's, plus their own restaurant and bar and a separate check-in and contact point. It's booked as a distinct package, so you can shortlist it on its own rather than as an upgrade to the main resort.
Pools and water
The resort has seven outdoor pools spread across the terraces, one equipped for children and one heated all year. If you're travelling in the cooler months and want a warm pool for a baby, check which one is heated and think about a room nearby. There's also a navigable lake in the grounds used for kayaking, which has a minimum age, so ask when you book if an older child wants a go.
There are no lifeguards at the beach, so plan to supervise closely and keep toddlers within arm's reach at the water. Guests report that sunbeds stay available after a leisurely breakfast, with no early-morning towel-reserving, though poolside umbrellas can run short at busy times, which is worth knowing if you need shade for a baby.
The beach
Playa de San Blas sits right behind the resort, about 25 m away. It's a pebble beach with a purpose-made 50 m strip of golden sand and around 15 to 20 sunbed sets, plus room to lay a towel. There are no toilets and no lifeguards, and the beach bar only opens when the beach is busy. For sea-swimming with a toddler it isn't ideal: the waterline is coarse lava sand and stone, so it's better for building sandcastles on the golden-sand strip than for paddling. There are no water sports here.
It isn't a Blue Flag beach, and neither is El Médano along the coast. The nearest 2026 Blue Flag beaches are in Adeje, at El Duque and Torviscas, and in Arona, at Las Vistas, about 12 to 13 miles (19 to 21 km) away. For a sandier day out you can drive to La Tejita, 4 miles (6 km), El Médano, 6 miles (9.5 km), La Jaquita, 6 miles (10 km), or the Costa Adeje beaches at Fañabé and Torviscas, about 13 miles (21 km). For those, plan on a taxi or hire car, and ask at check-in whether a beach shuttle currently runs.
Babies and toddlers
The kids' club and what's missing from it, the baby kit you can count on and what costs extra.
The resort lists a kids' club, a children's play area and an indoor play area, but it doesn't publish the club's ages, hours, ratios or a programme name. That's a real gap next to Barceló's own sister resort, Royal Hideaway Corales Suites in Costa Adeje, which documents a full four-to-twelve club and a separate teens' club. From guest reports the club runs for school-age children from about four, with two daily sessions and an evening mini-disco, plus activities that have included face painting, gardening, climbing, archaeology, fishing, recycling workshops, arts and crafts, water games, painting and baking. Older reviews described a small room with one member of staff and activities skewed to the youngest end; more recent ones from 2025 and 2026 are warmer about the range. Treat the ages and times as a guide rather than a promise, and note the separate children's play area and indoor play area for a wet afternoon or a nap-time stretch.
There's no staffed care for under-fours, and no in-house babysitting for any age, so an evening to yourselves means arranging an independent nanny. Several south Tenerife agencies offer this: Mini Amigos, Tenerife Childcare, Care Bear Nannies, Peques Tenerife and Royal Nanny Tenerife. Royal Nanny's rates are €22 an hour in the day (8am to 11pm) for up to two children, rising to €30 an hour at night, plus €5 an hour for a third child, with a three-hour minimum session and a 20% surcharge over Christmas, Easter and New Year (rates last checked July 2026). All five are booked and paid for separately from the hotel rather than as a resort service.
The baby kit you can rely on is simpler. Cots come on request, so confirm one at booking; high chairs are plentiful in the restaurants, and every room has a kettle for making up feeds and a fridge for milk. Guests mention blackout curtains that work for naps, and the on-site shop sells swim nappies, and one family found the double bathroom sinks useful for washing bottles. The resort doesn't provide a steriliser, bottle warmer or baby bath, so pack your own or hire from one of the island-wide baby-equipment firms that deliver to south Tenerife hotels, again an outside service you book yourself. There's a children's buffet, but pack any weaning food a young baby needs.
One family reported a lower-level room door that could be opened from the inside, so if you're on the ground floor it's worth asking about. The spa and wellness centre have a minimum age of 16. What costs extra for families comes down to à la carte dining above the all-inclusive discount, spa treatments above their discount, any independent babysitting, airport transfers and indoor parking.
On the doorstepThings to do
The resort's most unusual feature is the San Blas Environmental Reserve next door, a protected volcanic reserve of more than 500,000 m², with an interpretation centre, a historic experience tunnel recreating past life in the valley, guided canyon walks and stargazing. Guided tours are booked by phone, and the reserve is open Monday to Friday, 9:15 to 13:00.
On resort, the sports cover tennis, a climbing wall, a gym, beach volleyball, a cycling area with bike storage and kayaking on the lake. Two 18-hole golf courses are close by, Golf del Sur at 1.3 miles (2.1 km) and Amarilla Golf at under 3 miles (4.4 km), and guests get special rates and a free transfer for an 18-hole round. The wellness centre has treatments and a gym, minimum age 16, with 20% off treatments on all-inclusive, though not on every treatment. Evening entertainment runs to live music and shows, a nightclub and the children's mini-disco, and there's a shop, a beauty salon and a hairdresser. There's also meeting and event space, aimed at conferences rather than families.
The area and days out
The resort sits between two quiet places you can walk to. One way is Golf del Sur, a purpose-built golf-and-marina resort about 1.3 miles (2.1 km) off; the other is Los Abrigos, a former fishing village with restaurants and cafés, a few minutes along the seafront promenade in front of the hotel. Neither is a lively strip, which is part of the appeal. San Blas village, the small settlement behind the reserve, has cafés and shops too, but you reach it up fairly steep steps that aren't pushchair-friendly.
For bigger days out you'll want a car. Siam Park, the south coast's big waterpark, is 11 miles (18 km) away, Costa Adeje 12 miles (19 km), Vilaflor 13 miles (21 km), the Barranco del Infierno gorge 16 miles (26 km) and Teide National Park 24 miles (38 km). These are the same attractions we cover in the Tenerife guide, so head there for the detail rather than repeating it here. The nearest hospitals are in Arona, a short drive away: Hospital del Sur, which is public, and the private Hospiten Sur used by many UK travel insurers.
Loves and gripes
What guests rate and what frustrated them, how it stacks up against the alternatives, the journey in and the weather by month.
What families love
- The staff, singled out again and again as attentive and good with small children.
- The cleanliness and the space in the rooms.
- The quiet setting and the reserve on the doorstep.
- The very short airport transfer.
- The buffet variety, which several guests rated higher than the reviews had led them to expect.
Common gripes
- Aircraft noise, frequent by day and much reduced at night.
- Buffet food that some found inconsistent or occasionally tepid.
- A few guests questioning the five-star billing against the price.
- The thin official detail on the kids' club, and no confirmed babysitting or baby hardware.
Aircraft noise is the point that divides opinion most. The airport is close, so daytime flights are frequent and then ease off at night; some guests stopped noticing it, others found it a real problem, so if it matters, ask for a room away from the flight-path side. On the review sites the resort scores solidly and consistently. Amimir rates it 9.4 out of 10 from 2,054 reviews, and Wanderlog scores it 4.5 out of 5 from 4,359 reviews, placing it #25 in Wanderlog's list of Tenerife's best family-friendly hotels. Booking.com sits in the mid-8s out of 10 and TripAdvisor around 4 out of 5. Barceló's own site carries an aggregated score too, 4.4 out of 5 from 9,205 reviews, the largest sample of any platform here. Operators including Jet2holidays, easyJet holidays, On the Beach and TUI sell it as an all-inclusive package, and frame it as family-friendly for the kids' club and mini-disco.
Against the alternativesHow it compares
Within Barceló's own group, the sharpest comparison is with Royal Hideaway Corales Suites in Costa Adeje, the more upmarket sister resort, which publishes a full children's and teens' programme where Barceló Tenerife publishes almost nothing. For a family researching childcare in detail, that's a real difference rather than a guess. Against the busier Costa Adeje and Playa de las Américas belt, this resort trades a swimmable sandy beach and a lively strip for a much shorter airport transfer, a quieter setting and the nature reserve, with the aircraft noise as the other side of being so close to the airport. In our own catalogue, Bahia Principe Fantasia and Bahia Principe Sunlight in Costa Adeje sit in a similar all-inclusive family tier and make natural comparisons once we've covered them.
Getting thereGetting there and when to go
Tenerife South airport is about 11 minutes and 2 miles (3 km) by road, one of the shortest transfers of any south Tenerife resort. The transfer costs extra and has to be arranged ahead, so don't assume the short hop is laid on: book it with the hotel or your operator, or take a taxi. Check-in is from 15:00 and check-out before 12:00. There's no minimum stay, and no seasonal closure is published, so the resort appears to run year-round, as most large south Tenerife all-inclusives do. For UK passport holders, Tenerife is part of Spain and the Schengen area, so a passport valid for your stay is enough for a holiday under 90 days, with no visa and no travel advisory to worry about.
The gentlest months for a baby or toddler are October to May, warm without the peak heat, while July and August are hottest, when managing sun and shade becomes the main job of the day. Because only one of the seven pools is heated, a cooler-month trip is more comfortable if you confirm which pool that is and book a room near it.
When to goWeather month by month
Barceló Tenerife sits on the same dry, southern coast as the rest of Tenerife's main resort belt, so the island's south-coast climate applies. The figures below are typical monthly averages.
| Month | Daytime high | Overnight low | Rain | Wet days | Sea temp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 22° | 15° | 18 mm | 2 | 20° |
| February | 22.5° | 15° | 19 mm | 2 | 20° |
| March | 23° | 15.5° | 8 mm | 1 | 20° |
| April | 23.5° | 16° | 9 mm | 1 | 20° |
| May | 24.5° | 17.5° | 1 mm | 0 | 21° |
| June | 26° | 19° | 0 mm | 0 | 22° |
| July | 28° | 20.5° | 0 mm | 0 | 22° |
| August | 29° | 21.5° | 2 mm | 0 | 23° |
| September | 28° | 21° | 7 mm | 1 | 24° |
| October | 27.5° | 20° | 12 mm | 2 | 24° |
| November | 25° | 18.5° | 14 mm | 2 | 23° |
| December | 23.5° | 16.5° | 29 mm | 3 | 22° |
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. Barceló doesn't publish a closure period and the resort appears to run year-round.
Accessibility and getting around
The site is built on a slope, so expect some uphill between the reserve and reception end and the pools and coast. Lifts serve the upper floors, and there's step-free access, a raised toilet, grab bars and wheelchair adaptation; adapted rooms exist but must be booked directly with the hotel, on request and subject to availability. A pushchair should manage the main routes, though a heavy pram will feel the slopes, and the stepped path up to San Blas village isn't one to attempt with a pushchair. The current facilities list doesn't name an on-site shuttle, so plan on walking the site. Pets aren't allowed.
Questions
The things families ask most, the official pages worth a bookmark and when this guide was last refreshed.
Do we need to arrange the airport transfer ourselves?
Yes. The transfer is short, about 11 minutes, but it costs extra and isn't automatic, so book it with the hotel or your operator before you travel, or budget for a taxi from the rank. If you'd rather have your own wheels for beach trips, the hire-car desks are only a few minutes away at the airport.
Will the kids’ club take our four-year-old, and is there anything for a baby?
The club takes children from about four, but the resort doesn't publish the ages, so email ahead to confirm them for your dates. There's nothing staffed for under-fours, so with a baby you're planning around the pools and the room rather than a crèche.
Is there babysitting if we want an evening to ourselves?
Not through the hotel. For a night out you'd book an independent nanny from one of the south Tenerife agencies, well before you travel, since you arrange and pay for it yourself rather than through the resort.
Can we borrow a steriliser and bottle warmer, or should we bring our own?
Bring your own, or hire from one of the island-wide baby-equipment companies that deliver to hotels here. The resort doesn't provide a steriliser, bottle warmer or baby bath, though every room has a kettle for feeds and a fridge for milk.
Can a toddler swim at the beach?
Not really. The waterline is coarse lava sand and stone, so the beach suits sandcastles on its golden-sand strip more than paddling. For a proper swim you'd use the pools, or drive to a sandier beach like La Tejita or the Costa Adeje beaches.
Is there a shuttle to a sandy beach or Playa de las Américas?
Don't count on one. For a sandy-beach day, plan on a taxi or hire car, and ask at check-in whether a shuttle currently runs.
Does all-inclusive include the à la carte restaurants?
It gives 25% off them rather than a free meal, and you book a table at Arrozante or La Dolce Vita ahead; the Drago buffet is walk-in and fully included. If you'd eat à la carte most nights, factor the discounted cost into your budget.
Which room should we book with a baby or toddler?
The Family Suite if you can, for its separate bedroom and second bathroom, and confirm a cot when you book since one is provided on request rather than as standard. If the Family Suite has gone, the 2 Connecting Rooms or the plain Suite still give you a door to close on a sleeping child, which a standard Double doesn't.
Do we need a passport or visa, and does a baby need one?
Everyone needs their own passport, a baby included, valid for the whole trip; Tenerife is part of Spain, so there's no visa for a holiday under 90 days. Apply for a baby's first passport early, as it can take a while to come through.
See more Barceló Tenerife photos
Open the Barceló Tenerife photo gallery →Useful links
- Barceló Tenerife: the resort's own site for rooms, all-inclusive and the facilities list.
- GOV.UK Spain travel advice: entry rules and safety updates before you travel.
- Tenerife with little ones: our guide to the island, its beaches and when to go.
Last updated 17 July 2026.
