Gran Canaria Wellness Trip

Back in July, Michael and I took a trip to Gran Canaria with GC Wellness, who looks after luxury spas in the most beautiful hotels across Gran Canaria island. We had an itinerary which was actually quite nice, it meant we didn’t have to plan what we wanted to do with our days and although we didn’t get a chance to see too much of the island we did have the chance to relax- and that was pretty amazing!

I’m a huge fan of Spain, culture wise it’s quite similar to Portugal (where my parents are originally from) so it feels like home but Gran Canaria is actually a Canary Island just off the coast of Africa and since I’d never been to any of the Spanish Islands I was super excited! The flight was four hours, which is a little longer than to south of Spain and on the drive to the hotel from the airport we realised it was pretty different to what we expected. It’s a very dry island, it’s more what I would imagine the Texan Desert to be like and on the week we visited there was a lot of sand in the air from the Sahara Desert. I’m going to be honest- we weren’t sure it was going to be for us at first but we luckily we were wrong and had the most amazing time!

We visited a few different hotels but were very lucky to be staying in the Sheraton Salobre Golf Resort, it was far more modern than the others we visited and as it’s on a golf course it was also surrounded by lots of greenery. Our room was pretty standard and modern, plus we had a nice balcony with a beautiful view. The layout of the hotel is also amazing, they have lots of smaller pools everywhere so the hotel never feels too full, there’s a great adult-only infinity pool but we also used some of the other ones and none of them were too busy or noisy.

However, the highlight for me was probably the food (because I LOVE food!), we had breakfast and dinner at the hotel every day and although it isn’t fine dining, it was absolutely delicious! Breakfast was potentially not quite as good as dinner and I think, had we been there 2 weeks we’d probably start to get a little bored but there was pancakes, omelets, cereals, cakes and all the standard breakfast foods. Dinner however was amazing and the buffet style really suits my love for food as I had the opportunity to try a little bit of everything. We also made use of the Sheraton Salobre pool and it had everything you’d want from a spa; saunas, steam rooms, all the usual treatments and some great water treatments in the outside pool.

As we were there with GC Wellness we had the chance to try a few treatments at different hotels and also tour some of the hotels.

If you’re into plants you will absolutely love Hotel Cordial Mogan Playa! They have the most incredible and unusual flowers and plants. It’s incredible to see all this greenery in the middle of such a dry island and it really is a beautiful haven. We also had a really delicious Spanish lunch and spent the rest of the day relaxing in the spa area. We had a couple’s massage, which was the highlight of the day, it’s actually not something we’ve ever done but both really enjoyed it-I mean who doesn’t love being pampered?!

We were also lucky enough to have a tour of Gloria Palace Thalasso Hotel and Spa, which is another beautiful hotel with even more beautiful sea views. We had a Thalassotherapy treatment which we initially thought was a very strange treatment, you essentially use mineral charged saltwater to detox the body in a pool. You sit under running water or lie on beds which bump bubbles around you and after a while of being in the pool we totally understood what all the hype was about- it was another great treatment! It was followed by a couples body scrub and massage, which again we both really enjoyed!

Although it probably wasn’t essential, we did rent a car as we love the opportunity to explore and potentially get lost, I think it’s always the best way to see somewhere (other than a city). We visited Las Palmas City, which was beautiful but we chose the wrong day, it was a bank holiday and pretty much everything was closed. However, on the final day we drove to Maspalomas, which are the sand dunes on the island and we both loved it! It was unlike anywhere I had been before and had we been on the island a few more days I would have loved to spend some more time there. We went just before sunset to get a few photos, which just wasn’t enough time to explore.

The other thing I would highly recommend is a boat trip, we done the Canary Boat Trip, which lasted 5 hours and included food. It was the perfect way to see a little of the island whilst relaxing and catching some sunshine. Michael even managed to convince me to get off the boat for a swim which I wouldn’t usually do as I’m just so scared of how deep the water is. Plus, the food was delicious and cooked on the boat.

Huge thanks to GC Wellness for having us and if you’re looking to book a holiday I can’t recommend Gran Canaria and the hotels I visited enough. It was one of the best holiday’s I’ve had and as it’s off the coast of Africa the island is warm (25C) all year round so I’m actually already considering going back, it’s perfect if you’re looking to catch a little sun in autumn or winter- and of course spring and summer.