Tenerife Is Becoming the Go-To Destination for Boutique Luxury Wellness

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Every place has its “Oh, that’s where X type of people go when they want to escape the winter.” For Los Angelenos, Cabo has become a notorious place to swarm and flop for warmer weather all year round. New York has…Florida (?) and, of course, the Caribbean. As someone who is in her first year-and-a-half of living in London, it was important to take note of where I could go to seek refuge from a British winter. I kept hearing about one volcanic island in Spain that is technically closer to the Western Sahara / North Africa than it is to mainland Spain. I’m talking about Tenerife (or as the Spanish pronounce it, Ten-ehr-eef-eh).

As the largest island in Las Islas Canarias, with multiple microclimates, and Spain’s highest mountain, Mount Teide, Tenerife sits at the highest point above sea level in the Atlantic Ocean islands. It also carries quite the reputation for being a low-stakes, resort-driven tourist spot for Easy Jet flights filled to the brim with Brits in need of a tan. 

However, Tenerife’s reputation is going through a shift.

What was once thought of as a hub, attracting millions of visitors (many of which are European) every year, is now becoming a new sought-after boutique luxury destination, where nature, gastronomy, astronomy, and retreat-style vacations take precedent.

Since I love luxury, am apparently obsessed with Spain, have never been to the Canary Islands, and have an unhealthy addiction to the sun, I screamed un grande “Sí!” when I was invited to leave the world behind for three nights at Royal Hideaway Corales Villas in southern Tenerife’s Costa Adeje—one of the most high-rent districts on the island (and in the Canarias as a whole).

Not only did I leave the world behind, I also changed my skin tone so significantly that my mom told me to “stop” when I sent her a photo of myself over text.

The Terrain of Tenerife

I was immediately surprised upon landing in Tenerife. The air was filled with calima (which is a haze caused by dust and sand from the Western Saharan Desert)—very different to my island expectations of clear water, sandy beaches, and somewhat flat, tropical land. Tenerife took my preconceived notions and quite literally blew it out of the water…in a volcanic way, some might argue!

That’s because Tenerife, which was colonized by Spain in 1496, is an actual volcano—born from underwater volcanic eruptions—making the entire island feel like the cross between Mars and a summer Mount Everest (it is the third-tallest volcano in the world, afterall). In fact, Tenerife’s previously mentioned Mount Teide so closely resembles the Martian surface that NASA and ESA have tested Mars-rover tech on it. Its unusual landscape is also why action-packed films like Clash of the Titans, Fast & Furious 6, and Jason Bourne have used the wild terrain to create highly memorable cinematic moments. 

What I found most interesting was that the trade winds on the island have created a completely disparate set of microclimates from north to south. The south is where the majority of the island’s tourism and hospitality sits, since the climate provides dryer heat and more consistent sun, blocked from the wind. The north however, which can be just 20 minutes from the south coast, can be humid, always raining, and more tropical. Meanwhile the forest-ridden mountains can be cold enough for snow in the winter, often sitting above the clouds (or as the islanders refer to it, “a sea of clouds”).

Leave the World Behind

Having opened in March 2025 as a part of international hospitality company Barceló Hotel Group (which is also the second largest hotel chain in Spain), Royal Hideaway Corales Villas is the third, most exclusive installment of the Royal Hideaway Corales family, which currently has a two other properties in Costa Adeje—Royal Hideaway Corales Suites and Royal Hideaway Corales Beach.

With 139 sea-facing rooms, consisting of spacious suites and private villas, Corales Villas’ newest modern addition serves as the ultimate space to unwind and disconnect from the outside world. Although it’s not adults-only, the rooms and property have been laid out to create an extremely tranquil space, where guests are made to feel like they’re in their very own world at all times—even when on a chaise lounge next to someone else. 

Different from their other two hotels, Corales Villas is centering itself around wellness as a whole. Their Land House Corales Wellness Center is home to a variety of treatments and amenities designed to reconnect guests with nature and themselves —whether that be through a fully equipped gym, outdoor sauna, yoga studio, or treatments like facials, massages, and body treatments using volcanic mud, clay, and minerals unique to the island.

I was able to participate in their newest two-day wellness program (starting at €475 per person)—the Art of Longevity—which was uniquely curated to reset, recharge, reground, and rejuvenate through a wellness circuit (my favorite trigger word) of grounding, a sauna-cold plunge, a 10/10 massage, a 60-minute personalized facial treatment,  and a sound bath. And if it couldn’t get anymore luxe, they’ve partnered with Augustinus Bader (a TQE favorite), for skincare treatments, making them the first hotel in Spain to sync up with the celeb-beloved brand.   

To complement my day’s-worth of treatments, I received a meditative card with an extremely swanky-cool-cute assortment of high-end products and rituals to keep up a la casa every night during my stay (imagine bath salts, Natura Bissé skincare, essential oils, truffle chocolates, etc.).

Villa-fying My Life

We all have a “I remember where I was when my life changed” moment. For me, that moment was when I arrived at my 2-Bedroom Deluxe Suite. With two bedrooms, a full kitchen and living room, outrageously stocked bathroom with Guerlain products (and a free-standing tub), and a whole outdoor private terrace with a saltwater pool, sea view, and seating area, I was very, very concerned for my wellbeing once I returned to my actual apartment in London, which is the size of a breadcrumb. Omg, I almost forgot the washer-dryer!!

Every day was a day for open sliding doors, screaming, “ALL MINE!!” to the ceiling, and then running outside to absorb a full blast of sun while pretending to read. Take a dip in my very own pool? Sure. Laps? Maybe a few, but oop! Time to get out and answer my daily correspondences until my phone heats up to the point where it’s no longer usable! I was in pure heaven, and every night’s wind-down routine in a bathroom built for 100 people made it easy to get the best sleep of my life. It was so incredible, I considered taking up journaling again, but couldn’t figure out where to fit it in between my self-indulgent interludes.

 I’ve been very fortunate to experience beautiful hotel rooms and properties in my little life, but something was different about this. Wasn’t I supposed to feel guilty for not joining in with the rest of the guests at the hotel pool? Was I missing something for not wanting to leave my room at all? Surely, I was meant to drop my bags and hit the ground running to take in all the sites Tenerife had to offer. Tranquila, the hotel’s Spanish voice whispered in my head. 

As a destination hotel, Corales Villas isn’t asking you to leave in order to find respite, instead providing everything you need within your own quarters. I know many experiences like this exist in the form of all-inclusive hotels and large-scale resorts, but I felt like I was getting the best of a boutique hotel experience within an environment that made me feel like I was in my own home (or the home of my aspirational self, at least!).

Rooms start at €300/night for 2 adults.

A Gastronomic Volcanic Eruption

I’ll be honest when I say my culinary expectations for Tenerife were not…high. I certainly didn’t think I was going to be having the best meals of my summer at a hotel restaurant on an island known for tourism where people body slam themselves into poolside loungers, hoping to melt into the hotel grounds.

Learned during Virgo Season: leave your judgement on the tarmac, Annie Goodman!

Corales Villas is doing something really special with their gastronomy. Their two main restaurants are Bonfire and Cráter (which was sadly closed when I visited!). From the best creamy beef and goat’s milk croquettes I’ve ever had to a 5-day dry aged Atlantic sea bass (which I’ve never seen done before), the food was out-stand-ing. Each dish, instructed by Tenerife-born chef Alejandro Garrido, was incredibly fresh, technique-driven, and expertly crafted—taking inspiration from his time in the Basque Country.

Whether during lunch at Materia (which transforms into a serious cocktail situation at night) or dinner, all of the food and drinks paid homage to the natural elements of the island through fire and flame-grilled dishes. Their open kitchen is using some of the highest-quality tools, methods, and machinery to provide guests a one-of-a-kind dining experience. 

I also—as a Wellness Girlie—appreciated that I could find healthy, LA-infused options during breakfast and lunch, whether on their food or drink menu. I was even able to order a matcha with just water and ice, which is apparently very amaro (bitter) to Spanish people, and found myself with a completely fruitless green juice for a midday pick-me-up. I really didn’t need to leave!! 

Ta Ta for Now, Tenerife

On the last day at my villa (she cries, “MY villa”), I found myself up early, standing atop my very private pool, staring at Mount Teide, as the clouds raced across the sky and the sun climbed into position. I felt magnetically pulled to say “Gracias,” and let the island as a whole know I would be back again (I hope it heard me!).