Gloria Palace Amadores .. in Puerto Rico in Gran Canaria

Gloria Palace Amadores - on the Canaran Islands is a 4-stars hotel in Puerto Rico in the south of Gran Canaria, not more than 15 km away from Maspalomas and Playa del Ingels.

I was impressed when I saw the hotel from the promenade: it looks like marble is carved into the rock: steeply downward sloping is the sea. In the lower part of the pedestrian promenade is a cafe that belongs to the hotel. Inside is a glass elevator, with which I am booted up several floors to the roof terrace and swimming pool. The view down the cliffs to the sea is impressive.

At first I thought that the Gloria Palace Amadores would be a 5-stars hotel. But due to tax reductions on the Canary Islands, many expensive hotels are only 4-STARS, with a few exceptions such as the 5-STARS Lopesan Baobab Resort in Maspamolas. The Gloria Palace Amadores should also be a 5-STARS hotel.

The beautiful sandy beach of Playa de los Amadores is only 2 km to the west and the resort of Puerto Rico is only 1 km to the east. In Puerto Rico is a Central Bus Terminal, from there busses drive to Maspalomas and from there to the Playa del Ingles for 3,50€: the bus trip takes about 30 minutes.

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Playa de los Amadores ... The Lovers Beach .. in Gran Canaria

The sandy beach of  PLAYA DE LOS AMADORES, in English The LOVERS BEACH is a 800 meter long golden sandy beach in the southwest of Gran Canaria, and is located between Puerto de Mogán and Puerto Rico.

The Gloria Palace Royal and the Gloria Palace Amadores, both 4-STARS hotels are just a few hundred meters far away. The tourist center Puerto Rico' is only two kilometers far away and is located in direction of Playa del Ingles.

From the Playa de los Amadores you can see the island of Teneriffa, and also at sunset the Teide of Tenerife, the highest mountain in spain.

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Grand Hotel COSTA MELONERAS.. 4-STARS-Plus in Maspalomas

The Costa Meloneras - a  4-STARS-Plus  hotel -  is located at the end of the many kilometers long sandy beach of Maspalomas, which is well known for its dunes. Below the Hotel Costa Meloneras is a small beach promenade, where you will find many shops and some nice cafes and bars.

The beach of Maspalomas and the "Dunes of Maspalomas" is not far away. It is only about 150m near the lighthouse, and you're at one of the most beautiful sandy beaches of the Canary Islands.
The Costa Meloneras is with over 1,100 rooms currently the largest hotel on the Canary Islands. The hotel is built in the Canarian colonial style, and from the road you drive along a long fountain with lots of green space.

Apartments

The Costa Meloneras has rooms in two main categories: sea view or mountain view. In addition it may also be booked standard rooms and also junior or senior suites, which differ in size and features.
The rooms are well equipped with telephone, safe, television (6 German channels), balcony and two comfortable chairs and a table.
The bathrooms are very comfortable. Beside a bathtub can be found a very nice shower. The bathrooms are with marble and are very clean.

Dinner

With such a large number of beds, the architects of Costa Meloneras did something special. Instead of a huge dining room they just built four small restaurants. These are personalized, so you never have the feeling to eat always in the same restaurant.

For breakfast only two of the restaurants are available, but in both you can have breakfast in the morning on the nice terrace. The selection at the breakfast buffet is very rich, from traditional bread to cold ham, scrambled eggs and so on. Also at the different buffets you get an omelet freshly prepared.

Evening buffet

From 18:00 clock, you can eat in the restaurants: there are two buffet restaurants, a restaurant with a menu, and a very exclusive alá-carte restaurant. The alá-carte restaurant can only be visited for an extra charge, or you book the more expensive suites, then it is included in the price.

At the menue-restaurant, there are two daily menus to choose. And at the buffet they fulfill the guests wish: fish and meat in various varieties and each freshly cooked.Payment is in the restaurants or at the pool-bar with a room-card, so like it is handled this in many other four stars hotels in Maspalomas and Playa del Ingels.

Sport und Animation

The Costa Meloneras has a good range of sports. In addition to several tennis courts, there is also a soccer and volleyball court and a boules court. There is also sauna and massage is offered if you wish.

Child care for children from 4 years

From 10:30 to 13:00 and in the afternoon from 14:00 to 16:00, you can give children in the care. Here each day they play with the childs something new. Whether it isface painting or just a few games in the water. And in the evening after the meal is 20:30 to 21:00 clock clock silently offered a mini-disco.

Resort

The highlight of the hotel is the field around the Costa Meloneras. In total in over 100,000 square meters you can find a beautiful park with six pools embedded. The main pool is very large and a part is designed as a sandy beach. Another pool goes through the landscape of palm, extra waterfalls complete the experience. Who wants to be more separated, may use conventional two pools. In the evening, it is nice to take a drink at the hotel terrace.

TIPP: One of the best swimming-pool facility at all in Maspalomas and Playa del Ingels: the hotel complex of the 'Costa Meloneras' in Maspalomas. The tourists ranked it TOP: it is the best. The Costa Meloneras is only 10 years old, it was completed in 2000. It offers 2500 guests a luxurious holiday. The garden area is 100,000 square meters. Within the garden with its multiple pools, the 'Costa Meloneras' has the most beautiful pool-aera of all hotels in the south of Gran Canaria.

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MERCADONA .. cheap shopping in San Fernando, Gran Canaria

The San Fernando is bordered to the north of Playa del Ingles. The most people living there are Spanish. They have jobs in tourism: in hotels, restaurants, shops, ....

In Playa del Ingles are many restaurants, but who wants to buy his own food can go to MERCADONA The food has nearly the same prices like anywhere in Europe. You can find MERCADONA everywhere in Spain. It is a big food market that offers spanish food and all other products. Altogether MERCADONA offers more than 7,000 products. The customer has the choice between more than 1,000 brand-name products, the price-performance ratio is often good.

The San Fernando is bordered to the north of Playa del Ingles. The most people living there are Spanish. They have jobs in tourism: in hotels, restaurants, shops, ....

MERCADONA in Playa del Ingles
Avenida Gáldar, San Fernando, Gran Canaria, Spain  +34 928 76 02 82

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YUMBO .. shopping-center and Party-Zone in Gran Canaria

Open architecture, spacious gardens, 200 shops and restaurants: this is the YUMBO Center in Playa del Ingles

Yumbo is a very large shopping-center, with many shops, supermarkets, restaurants and cafés.

Fun, food, shopping, dinner, dancing, shows: all this can be done in YUMBO, even drink cocktails in the evening in nice bars or go to a Chinese restaurant.
For older tourists, there is the Cafe Mozart on the top floor also with live music.

A tourist information center is near the YUMBO where you get a lot of information to the island of Gran Canaria and Playa del Ingels.

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BUSCHTROMMEL .. a German magazine in PLAYA DEL INGLES

What to do ? ... Where to go ?  When are events in Playa del Ingles, San Augustin and MASPALOMAS Germans can start a lot of activities in Playa del Ingles !

In other words:  
Where to find useful regional information for Germans?  Where can I get a magazine like BUSCHTROMMEL?

The free magazine for information and advertising in the south of Gran Canaria. With monthly more than 10,000 copies and more than 300 delivery points in the south of the island, from Bahia Feliz, Maspalomas, Playa del Ingles to Arguineguin, and worldwide online the Internet.

The Buschdrum - in German called BUSCHTROMMEL - is a German magazine for the Playa del Ingles. Reading the BUSCHTROMMEL you know a lot what is going on here, and you can also advertise for free. The BUSCHTROMMEL is to get for free in many bars and pubs in Playa del Ingles and Maspalomas. In addition, it can be found on the Internet in PDF format. The last three Magazines, you can download on the Internet yet.

BUSCHTROMMEL
http://www.b-g-c.eu/

SALAMANCA .. cheap accomodation in the PLAYA DEL INGLES

Apartamentos Salamanca

There is no more cheep accomodation throughout Playa del Ingles. Here you can rent a small apartment already for 115€ a week. The equipment is simple and it is without kitchen. But if you wish, the hotel management gives you a freezer into the apartment.
If you rent for 4 weeks, the small appartement costs only 290€. It is also possible, that two people live in it, which costs only 145€ for each guest in 4 weeks: then it costs only 5€ per person a day.
Apartments with a more comfortable equipment costs 350€ and more, depending on its size up to 450€. This is interesting for couples and groups, then it is cheaper for each single person.
In Salamanca is an area called German road. Mostly there live older German tourists and retirees. Most are couples who live in an apartment with kitchen for 450 € a month, and usually they are in Winter for three months or longer in Playa del Ingles.
Apartamentos Salamanca has a special offer for long-term guests. If you rent a small apartment (290€ per month and 4 weeks) an entire year, you can be 12 months in Playa del Ingles, but you must only pay 10 month for that year. However, the total rent must be paid in advance: still a very good offer from hotel management.
The apartement complex of Salamanca has night security, even at the entrance to the reception, there is a security guard in the night, to provide sufficient security to the guests.

Salamanca-Bridge-Cafe

Here you can get snacks, coffee, drinks, chicken, .... again at reasonable prices. Half a chicken with french fries or baked potatoes, salad and a Coke costs 5€.
In addition there's Internet access through W-LAN. A login-code into the W-LAN you get on daily basis by coupon, always with a new access-code each day. So the Bridge-Cafe deserves something, and you can get Internet for the minimum consumption of only 1€ a day.
In the Salamanca-Bridge-Cafe you have Internet using your LAPTOP or NETBOOK for a whole day, and for the 1€ coupon you can drink a cofe or Coke or buy something else ... Many guests of the Salamanca have therefore their LAPTOP, but also outside tourists sit in the Bridge-Cafe for that minimum consumption of 1€ and order for example a coffee for 1,30€ ...

In Salamanca self-sufficiency
Who lives in Salamanca has to supply oneself. Many of the guests prefer to go outside to the many restaurants anywhere in Playa del Ingles. If you would like to brunch in the morning time, you can go to the nearby Hotel Eugenia Victoria, and there you make a brunch All-You-Can-Eat for only 6€.
If you did a brunch like this one in Hotel Eugenia Victoria, you need no breakfast in the next few days. Tourists preferring their hotel holidays with half or full board get this every morning and every evening in their hotels. Most guests in the Salamanca take distance of so much food and buy in the nearby supermarket Mercadona.

MERCADONA
A good and cheap supermarket Mercadona is 200 meter near Salamanca and you are in a few minutes there. An orange juice cost 50 cent, same price like in central Europe, and a liter of fresh milk 85 cent. You see a lot of Germans in Mercadona.

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Gran Canaria - traveling to Puerto Rico by bus

Traveling by bus is cheap in Spain. For example traveling to PUERTO RICO, the ticket costs about 2.50€, and it takes about half an hour. Many tourists use bus or even rent a car or motorcycle.
Petrol prices are in Gran Canaria and on the Canary islands much cheaper than on the European continent. One liter of petrol costs less than 90 cents. Tourists who rent a car or motorcycle to drive by themselfes,have a much higher accident risk. Often the roads are unknown serpentine. But the bus drivers in Gran Canaria know the routes well, so traveling by bus is much more safe.


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In 'Playa del Ingles' at the bus-terminal FARO-II near the hotel Tropical Garden', you can start your trip. Boarding is always possible, for example at the 'Avenida de Tirajana'. After the big road 'Avenida de Tirajana' in 'Playa del Ingles' you pass SONNENLAND, then you reach the bus terminal FARO-I in Maspalomas.

The bus ride continues from Maspalomas to ARGUINEGUIN. In Arguineguin live many spanish locals and it is very different to the tourist center in 'Playa del Ingles' and Maspalomas. Between Arguineguin and PUERTO RICO there are some interesting hotel facilities.

Much tourism, as before in Maspalomas, it is then again in PUERTO RICO.

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How much is traveling by bus in Gran Canaria ?

Traveling by bus on the Canarian islands is not expensive. The buses drive on the main routes several times an hour. Also the buses are very comfortable and air-conditioned.

Some examples:

1,30 €  from Playa del Ingles to Maspalomas

3,30 €  from AIRPORT to Playa del Ingles

5,50 €  from Playa del Ingles to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the largest city on the Canary Islands.

2,50 €  from Playa del Ingles to Puerto Rico

3,40 €  from Playa del Ingels to Puerto de Mogan

FIESTA DE LA PAELLA .. each Sunday in Hotel Tropical-Garden

Every Sunday they cook a great paella in the garden-plant of the TROPICAL GARDEN in PLAYA DEL INGLES in Gran Canaria.

This festival is called FIESTA DE LA PAELLA

In a large frying pan, the cook from the Tropical-Garden cooks the paella. The ceremony may be photographed. And I was there in winter 2011/12 and made this pictures.

Afterwards they cooked the PAELLA the guests can try the paella, one protion costs only 5€. Who wants to have a big portion, must only tell this the cook.

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Beach promenade of the PLAYA DEL INGLES in Gran Canaria

Parallel to the long sandy beach of  Playa del Inglés, are two long promenades, one promenade begins near the ROUNDABOUT. First you go up the stairs, then begins a long walk to San Augustin. On the half way you reach a passage with several floors, inside are restaurants and shops. At this passage is also a large bus-terminal, where buses arrive and depart to the AIRPORT 'Las Palmas de Gran Canaria' and to the big tourism-centers Maspalomas and Puerto Rico and to the nice touristic port Puerto de Mogan. Also at the bus-station is the HOTEL Tropical Garden with its garden-chess and nice swimming-pool.

In the opposite direction along the promenade you walk to the Dunes of Maspalomas and finally you reach the 4-STARS Hotel RIU. Here at the RIU begins the biggest street in 'Playa del Ingles' called Avenida de Tirajana. Walking at the beach from Maspalomas to Playa del Ingles you see always the far away and nice white building of the RIU-Hotel.

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CASINO Costa Meloneras in Maspalomas, Gran Canaria

In the south of Gran Canaria are two CASINOS. The first one is an old Casino in San Augustine. The second is a much nicer and new CASINO in Maspalomas, named Costa Meloneras, not far away from the Lighthouse of  Maspalomas.

The Costa Meloneras is just 100 meters far away from the bus station in Maspalomas, therefore easily accessible. The bus-terminal is only a few hundred meters from the CASINO, and for 1,30€  you can directly drive to Playa del Ingles.

In the CASION you can play games like Black-Jack, Poker, American and French Roulette. There are all kinds of games. Also you get one free drink for free each evening. The casino gambling machines are open every day except Christmas Eve from 11:00 in the morning to 5:00 in the night.
The CASINO itself, and the games-room where the Croupiers manage the games, is open from Monday to Friday from 20:00 in the evening to 4:00 in the night. Intake you get with an ID-card and with long pants. a tie is not compulsory to wear. Your data of your ID-card will be registered in the computer of the casino! .. so be careful !

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Walk on the beach and on the 'Dunes of Maspalomas'

If you start at the beach of  Playa del Ingles and then walk along the beach, you can reach the Lighthouse of Maspalomas in 45 minutes.
This walk among the beach is most popular in Playa del Ingles and many older retired tourists do this for fitness.
After arriving in Maspalomas, there are many nice restaurants and cafes, also the beach promenade is very beautiful there.
You can also walk across the Dunes of Maspalomas from Playa del Ingles to the Lighthouse of Maspalomas, and on the half way you reach the Hotel RIU.

At Hotel-RIU begins the largest street in Playa del Ingles the Avenida de Tirajana
The RIU has very nice swimming-pools, also you have nice views to the Dunes of Maspalomas.

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Hotel TROPICAL GARDEN .. 4-STARS .. a CHESS meeting-point

In Playa del Ingles is a meeting-point for chess-payers in the Hotel Tropical-Garden. Chess players come togehter there at Thursday and Sunday afternoon.

In the garden of the Hotel Tropical is a nice open-air chess game. The Tropical is a 4-STARS resort and has one of the most beautiful garden plants. In the garden is a very nice swimming pool.

The Tropical is only 20 meters from the bus stop FARO-2, that is on the half way from 'Playa del Ingles' to 'San Augustine' and you must only walk at the beach promenade.

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Wirlpool in Eugenia-Victoria .. 3-STARS .. in PLAYA DEL INGLES

Eugenia Victoria: do lots of sports, because of your health, but it is unhealthy to swim in cold water. I noticed, that there are very less hotels and apartments with heated pools.Warm wirl-pools are usually only in huge and very expensive equipment like Hotel Jardin del Atlatico.
But after a few days I found nice pools in less expensive hotels: jump into the wirlpool of the 3-STARS Hotel Eugenia Victoria. In Eugenia Victoria you can walk through the hotel's pool area and there is a beautiful pool - it is a whirlpool system with hot water - near the one bar and the Internet-Cafe is a staircase for going down. This especial pool of the Eugenia Victoria is located in the basement: there you will find two large swimming wirlpools.

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