The price of paradise, entertaining a big family on a budget in Tenerife!

Our holiday destination for a week, self-catering with a big family

Everyone was so excited heading to Tenerife. As I boarded the flight with my ‘large family’ meaning my four children and significant other- apparently anything over three children qualifies, I prayed that for our first family holiday we would get to the Island unscathed.

Once we arrived in Tenerife, the dusky sky began to darken at 10pm. The transition was seamless from the airport to the hotel, as the holiday company had a taxi bus waiting to take us straight to the Ramada Wyndham in Costa Adeje, which was very much appreciated. We drove up the almost palatial driveway staring at the stunning lights and palm trees, real life ones, not like the artificial planted tree in my front garden in Ireland.

Hotel outdoors adorned by stunning trees, plants and flowers

“It’s just like GTA,” my son gleefully said. I was thankful at this point for the barrier in communication with the driver, at the mention of a game my 6-year-old was clearly too young to know about.

As we arrived at the reception, like a bunch of weary nomads, we were grateful to be sent directly to our apartment, a beautiful two-bedroom spacious setting with a stunning balcony. Stepping out on the balcony to get a first glimpse of what was going to be home for the next week, I pondered over the night skyline of Tenerife. The beauty of the beach lay in front of me, glistening; a silence was apparent considering what a busy area it is. To the right side of me was an anticipation of the beautiful Mount Teide – my neighbour for the next week. My daydream was interrupted when the food from the local takeaway arrived: BBQ chicken, pizza and a side of chips. Things were already looking promising.

The first day was a day to explore. Being that we were to be holidaying on a budget, that meant most of our excursions were to be on foot, which limited the places we would be able to go. This meant decent shoes, so the first stop was Super Dino’s just down the road from our accommodation. Affordable delicious food, friendly staff, and a free Dino teddy ensured that this was to become our staple for necessities for the rest of the week, oh, not forgetting the original purchase requirements, flip flops and sunglasses!

A walk to the beach proved to be an experience. Intense and insightful. As we walked along the zebra crossings with the four kids, it became apparent that right of way is not something you are entitled to, so the options are to run quickly across the road or get run over.

View of the walk to Fanabe Beach

Despite this, the beautiful scenery along the way, accompanying the luxurious heat against the skin, made the walk worth it. As we headed near to Fanabe, a quick ice-cream stop was mandatory. The kids delighted at spinning the wheel in the cafe to see what prize they had won with their ice cream. Was it sprinkles, another scoop of ice cream or another free dessert? This entertainment lasted a good half an hour until we then came across a ‘celebrity’. I heard squeals of delight as my 6 and 8-year-old sons recognised the ‘Chicken nugget’ man who approached us.

“Do you want to get a picture with the Chicken Nugget man?”. We politely declined, as I had unknowingly taken a picture of him during the initial hysteria. He moved on.

Onto Fanabe Beach. We walked over to the beach taking in the sights and sounds of the restaurants, shops, vibrant colours and smells, a somewhat sensory overload, yet also exciting.

The beach, with its black sand due to the volcano, was simply stunning and hot! However, being on a budget meant that I didn’t purchase any of the blankets, bags or hair braiding that was for sale.

Fanabe Beach

As we made our way back to the Ramada Residences Costa Adeje, in a taxi that was only four euros, we looked forward to our home cooked meal of chicken salad that we were going to prepare from the shopping that was bought earlier, to be eaten on the balcony terrace whilst watching the sun go down. It was a moment that definitely invoked inner peace.

As I looked at many of the excursions on offer, such as Siam water park, whale watching on a boat, or hiking up Mount Teide to name a few, they soon added up given my football team of kids. Therefore, many of the days were spent in the confines of the hotel, which was fabulous for kids. They had a lot of entertainment in the kids club, a club that had different activities daily. Parents can leave the kids in the club and relax by the poolside or the bar right beside the club.

The adult activities were just as valuable and fun with life size chess, connect four, pool, and table tennis fun.

Kids club and the outdoor activities for families

“I’ve lived here for 24 years, I love it” – the childminder from the kids club stated regarding the lifestyle in Tenerife compared with the UK.

The daily poolside fun kept the kids entertained for days and did not cost anything as it was free to use as it was included in the booking; the most expensive part of it was the food if we ate at the restaurant beside the pool, which was very reasonably priced.

Being on a budget meant meals were carefully planned, and we ate out a few nights at the numerous different delicious restaurants near Fanabe Beach. The food there was delicious, with a variety of food being ordered from the mixed steak grill to pasta carbonara, kid’s sausages and chips and fish and sides. There were empty plates all around.

The walk back to the apartment, given that our time on holiday was coming to an end, meant dutiful present buying. Luckily, there were many shops with friendly staff that offered reasonably priced merchandise that was small enough to put in our luggage and cheap enough to buy multiple items. They consisted of fridge magnets, some under a euro, fans, a boomerang, battery-operated toy animals, and the highlight – foam lizards that were handmade for five euros each. They commanded a lot of attention as we made our way home and also collected a lot of the street ‘earth.’

As our final day approached, ironically, we then discovered Sam’s Pantry, a shop within our complex, where we loaded up on snacks for our final session of soaking up the sun. As we boarded up into the taxi, after the hotel staff had kindly gotten my clothes out of the washing machine that I had forgotten, we headed back once more to the airport. Only this time, we knew about the destination we were heading to.

Final day in the pool enjoying the sunshine ©Tracey Horgan

As we lined up in the airport, looking at the monitor showing all the flights, I mentally started planning our return trip. I didn’t want to go home, Tenerife had now been embedded in my and my children’s hearts, and we hadn’t seen half of the Island. We were well and truly hypnotised by the Island’s beauty. Then I thought, “What’s the cost of paradise?” It’s priceless.

To keep up to date on things to do in Tenerife, visit Tenerife Magazine.

If you would like to experience the joys of Tenerife for yourself, book a Tenerife family holiday with IDILIQ Hotels and Resorts.