Cedric White
DO NOT STAY HERE: Extremely Disappointing Service Experience
While some of your services at the property have been good, others have been absolutely unacceptable, and my upcoming review will reflect that.
At your pool and bar area, my wife and I have been consistently treated as if we were invisible. We have personally witnessed multiple groups come in after us, receive immediate service, and enjoy full attention, while we sat waiting—often without so much as an acknowledgment. Over the past three nights, the only way we were able to get served was for me to physically go to the bar myself.
On the beach, the experience was no better. We waited over an hour and a half for seats. We arrived on the shuttle with several other families, who all appeared to be seated quickly with no issue. It wasn’t until we questioned the long delay that we were told we would be next. Even then, we waited so long that we ultimately gave up and returned to our room.
This is incredibly disappointing—especially as this trip was meant to celebrate my wife’s birthday. We specifically chose your resort expecting quality service and hospitality, but instead, we’ve experienced the opposite.
Unless you want to be ignored, stared at , not serviced, have to flag down staff, and then have them lie right to your face . People of color DO NOT STAY HERE!
Konrad
I generally consider my stay at the Ritz Carlton Abama to be enjoyable. I expected more, but there were a few things that disappointed me.
Positives:
• Very friendly hotel staff, including everyone at the reception, pool, beach, and restaurants.
• Delicious breakfasts.
• Room cleaning twice a day.
• Taxis arrive quickly and will take you anywhere you need.
Negatives:
• The restaurant does not offer a buffet for dinner.
• The two best Michelin-starred restaurants were closed, even though we came for vacation in July, which is exactly when they should be open since this is when travelers come for holidays. We had to use other restaurants with a limited theme and a very small selection of dishes. Several of the remaining restaurants aren’t even open every day, but for example only 3–4 days a week.
• In the restaurants, there are many dishes on the menu that are only available for two people, and when my girlfriend wanted to order just one dish, she couldn’t, as they would only prepare it for two. There were many such dishes. This is a complete red flag.
• Everything is far from the hotel.
• The pool is small, and it is impossible to swim there because it is crowded with children, while the retreat pool is only available for villa guests. This is extremely unfair
• When I would turn on the air conditioning in the room, water was dripping from the ceiling
I will probably not return there, as the lack of a dinner buffet is a red flag, and the on-site restaurants are outrageously expensive. Also, the inability to use the retreat pool forces you to swim in a small pool crowded with screaming kids, which is simply unacceptable. Because guess what… other pools were also closed for holidays. How can you close 2 main restaurants and the pools for the most important vacations month of the year!
James Open
Staying here.
In all 6 nights here so far not once has a member of senior staff introduced themselves to us, or asked about our stay - which we’d expect from a ritz Carlton. Managers should be present.
There are issues, the room has drainage issues and smelt like sewage for our first four nights, after 2 complains it has improved - but no apology or follow up to check we’re happy it’s resolved. I am stunned a room that smelt like sewage doesn’t even flag an apology - or offer a move to an alternative room, but this hotel doesn’t care about guests from what I can see.
The restaurants we tried are excellent but the staff often forget at least one of the drinks we order. In Verde Mar we added a veal steak as a side, the menu said EUR 10 extra, when the bill came EUR 18 extra. We could make a comment but we don’t think anyone would care or there would be an improvement.
We asked for our mini bar to be removed - that’s a EUR 10 charge - that’s a bit cheap and a bit Nickel and Dime, I get the impression this hotel is going the Nickel and Dime route, so be careful - stuff other hotels will do for goodwill are expensive problems here!
The hotel is good but not excellent - we won’t come back here. I wish Marriott would open another resort in Tenerife.
Fatima N
My husband and I stayed at the Ritz Carlton, Abama in January 2025 for our honeymoon. The trip itself was beautiful—stunning grounds, luxurious accommodations, and a peaceful atmosphere. We truly enjoyed our time there.
However, shortly after returning home, we noticed an unusual charge on our account that did not match anything we spent during our stay. We found this suspicious and immediately reached out to the hotel. Since then, we’ve contacted the Ritz Carlton multiple times—by phone and email—but have received no resolution.
Each time I call, I’m told to send an email and that someone will get back to me. It’s now been several months, and no one has followed up. No explanation. No refund. No accountability.
It’s extremely disappointing that a hotel of this caliber would be so unresponsive to a billing issue. Because of this ongoing situation and lack of support, I’m forced to give one star for service. It’s unacceptable that I’ve been chasing this since January with no resolution in sight.
Update: someone from the hotel finally reached out to me below responding to my message and as I sent information over to the email provided, no one replied.
Trevor Naudi
This is a fantastic resort with great facilities and dining options.
The rooms are very comfortable and spacious. We also had a wonderful view looking onto the main pool and golf course.
If you are after a relaxing time, you can get a sunbed by the main pool or even find your way down to the hotel's private beach (transport by mini train is offered daily).
There are numerous restaurants in the hotel (a number being Michelin star restaurants!). Service is great and food is excellent.
The hotel's buffet breakfast is brilliant with a wide choice of hot and cold items including live egg stations. For breakfast you can choose between indoor as well as outdoor seating.
You will also find a great lobby bar which is the ideal place for a drink in the evening while live music is played in the terrace.
There are also a number of boutiques in case you are after some shopping ;)
The hotel is a little distant from other towns and beaches so you will need a car if you'd like to discuss south tenerife.
Great hotel overall!
My Booking
