Grupotel Tres Vidas

“Honest review”

I’m hoping this review will help people make an informed decision as I know it can be difficult with a resort that has mixed reviews. To give an understanding of previous TUI Blue experience, my family and I have travelled to TUI Blue Nevis in Bulgaria a few years ago and enjoyed our time there. … more

I’m hoping this review will help people make an informed decision as I know it can be difficult with a resort that has mixed reviews. To give an understanding of previous TUI Blue experience, my family and I have travelled to TUI Blue Nevis in Bulgaria a few years ago and enjoyed our time there. We mostly travel to various Holiday Villages which are very similar to TUI Blue in terms of the offerings, entertainment, kids club etc. We like the concept of the Holiday Villages and like having everything we need in one place. We usually go All Inclusive as like the idea that the kids can get drinks, snacks, ice cream etc whenever they want, but decided to try self-catering this time round and were glad we did (reasons below). I have read numerous reviews which state that it wasn’t made clear that the TUI Blue resort in Gran Canaria has 4 resorts all sharing facilities, however this information is readily available when browsing holidays/conducting research. The resort is made up of the following; TUI Blue Orquidea TUI Blue Playa Feliz TUI Blue Tres Vidas TUI Blue Las Pitas It is only around a 20 minute transfer from the airport to the hotel. There are pools at Orquidea and Feliz. There are no pools/facilities at Tres Vidas or Las Pitas, however the apartments are a maximum of 5 minutes’ walk away so nothing to worry about in that regard. We have stayed in some Holiday Villages that have a longer walk from the accommodation to the pools. We travelled on 14th July 2025 as a family of 4, (kids aged 16 and 10). We had booked a studio room through TUI in the Tres Vidas section, however always planned to upgrade to a 2 bedroom apartment on our arrival (this option wasn’t available through the TUI website when booking). We arrived around 2330 after being on the go since 0900 and were met with a huge queue at the desk with only 2 staff processing new arrivals. Although we were staying at Tres Vidas we checked in at the Orquidea hotel which is where all the main facilities are located. It took about 45 minutes to get to the front of the queue and the staff member was friendly and informative. She gave us our keys and sent us on our way to the apartment. The Tres Vidas and Las Pitas apartments are on the side of a hill and if you are allocated an apartment at the top of the hill this would be challenging if you have mobility issues. As we were walking up the hill there were a few cockroaches that jumped across our path, but they were the only cockroaches we seen in our time there (inside or outside the apartment). The studio apartment consisted of a bathroom, bedroom area with a double bed (standard 2 singles pushed together), a fully equipped kitchen, and a sofa bed/camp bed in the lounge area. There was ample storage throughout the apartment. The kitchen has a half fridge with a small freezer in the top section, 2 hobs, a microwave and all the pots/plates/utensils etc. Our initial assessment was that the studio was of a sufficient size and we decided not to upgrade to the 2 bedroom apartment. We did move the furniture around so my son and daughter had their own little areas. There was a huge balcony/terrace area with sunbeds and a seating area with a partial sea view. TUI list Tres Vidas as 4 star apartments, however the “official rating” is 2 keys. I would say that the Tres Vidas apartments are probably 3 star. They were dated, however were very clean. The resort itself is lovely and well maintained. As stated above the swimming pools are located in the Orquidea section and Playa Feliz section. We found that the pools were always extremely crowded, however this was to be expected in mid-July – it may be better when it isn’t peak season. The TUI Blue app is a must if you want to see what is on throughout your time there. It documents everything on there, including fitness classes/sessions, activities around the pool, and kids clubs etc. Kids clubs are included in your stay and my 10 year old attended on a few occasions and enjoyed her time there. The evening entertainment is in the Orquidea entertainment bar with a variety of different shows/quizzes etc. I would say the entertainment is better at Holiday Villages, but TUI Blue follows the same kind of structure. Although the resort/pool felt crowded there was always ample sunbeds if you aren’t fussed about being by the side of the pool. We always found beds looking out over the sea around mid-morning and it is less than a minute to walk from here to the swimming pool at Orquidea. The resort is right on the beach front, and although it is mostly a rocky beach there are sandy areas where you can enter and play in the sea. There is a SPAR and a DINO supermarket within a couple of minutes walk from the resort – both are competitively priced and have everything you need if staying self-catering, including cereal, bread, milk etc. A can of coke is 85 cents, Fanta is 80 cents, beer from 75 cents, and a bottle of Kopperberg cider from 2 Euros. There are a handful restaurants in the square across from the hotel, all offering takeaway food as well as sit down meal options. We got takeaway Pizza from one of the restaurants one evening, takeaway Chinese another evening, and got some fries on other occasions to bolster meals we made in the apartment. We weren’t getting picked up until 1910 for our flight home and I attended at the reception a couple of days before to book a late checkout. I was told that this wouldn’t be possible as the hotel was at capacity and they were expecting other guests for our room in mid afternoon on the day we checked out. For reference it was 40 euros until 1500 and 60 euros until 1800. Although they couldn’t offer a late checkout they did offer a complementary room that we could use for 30 minutes and get a shower etc. I was told to go back a day before departure to book this which I did. I would advise attending early to book this as it does fill up. The room we were given was in the Orquidea hotel and this is much more modern and befitting of the 4 star grading that TUI give this resort. On the last evening we planned to eat at one of the restaurants in the square before our bus back to the airport. We looked at various menus which seemed to be competitive in terms of pricing, however I assessed/estimated that we would probably spend around 150 euros if we all had a starter, main, and a couple of juices each. I had read that you can pay to eat in the buffet restaurant in Orquidea for 20 euros per adult and 10 euros for children under the age of 12. We decided to do this instead and were glad we did. The food was good and there was a decent variety for starter, main and deserts…definitely worth the 70 euros for the 4 of us before heading off to the airport. I said above that I was glad we went self-catering and the reason for this was just how busy the resort was. On the last night when we ate in the restaurant it was just so busy, and it was good to have our own space away from the hustle and bustle of the buffet restaurant. It was also good to not be dictated by restaurant mealtimes as we usually are in all inclusive – we were able to eat when we felt like it rather than when the restaurant was open. We done the dolphin/whale watching excursion and my family thoroughly enjoyed this – although I wouldn’t recommend this is you are prone to sea sickness as it is extremely choppy on the water – I was sick! We also went to Holiday World one night and thoroughly enjoyed this – we booked this through the TUI app and it included a game of bowling, a box of popcorn, and a wristband for the rides – there isn’t much in terms of rides but it kills a couple of hours and the bowling also broke it up a bit – there is a decent arcade too. There is a bus stop right outside the hotel and you can go anywhere for only a few euros. I downloaded the GuaguasGLOBAL and Rome2Rio apps which help with timings etc. We got the bus into Playa Del Inglis to go to the beach one day (would recommend) and also when we went to Holiday World – doesn’t take long at all. We got a taxi back from Holiday World around midnight and it only cost around 15 euros. Some tips if you do decide to travel; *Take Stanley cups – we just filled ours with iced water (available in Orquidea snack/pool bar) and added a little diluting juice – was really refreshing in the heat. Whenever we wanted fizzy juice we just filled up the cups at our room or bought cans from the shop across the road. *Download the TUI Blue app to see what is going on every day – you will need this to book the kids club. *Download the Global bus app and the Rome2Rio app. *Take items from home such as cereal bars, cereal, sweets, chocolate, crisps etc. We took a fajita kit for one of the dinners and bought the chicken/peppers/onion at the shop across the road. Think about dinners you could make easily with a couple of hobs, microwave etc. *Use the restaurants across the road for takeaway. We got 3 pizzas and large fries one night and it was around 35 euros, a few dishes from the Chinese another night which was also around 35 euros. There is a McDonalds in Playa Del Inglis which is similar in price to the UK. *Consider paying for dinner in the buffet restaurant one night – I thought 70 euros for a family of 4 was very good as we were able to get starter, mains, desserts and drinks all included. I think you can also pay for breakfast and lunch in the restaurant (not as expensive), and I can imagine it would get a bit repetitive but for a one off it was really nice. The resort is listed as a 4 star resort (but as per above I believe the official rating for Tres Vidas and Las Pitas is 2 star). I would say a fair assessment would be that it is around a 3/3.5 star resort. Like I say the rooms in Orquidea seemed a lot more modern, but Tres Vidas was dated. Comparing it to some of the Holiday Villages such as Egypt, Majorca, Cyprus which are all 4 star resorts – this resort wasn’t on the same level as them. That being said we had a really nice holiday, all the staff members were polite and helpful, and the resort was extremely clean and well kept (despite being dated in some areas). Although we were self-catering you can choose to stay in the apartments (Tres Vidas, Las Pitas, Playa Feliz) and still choose to be All Inclusive – this will give you a bit of flexibility in terms of drinks/meals etc. TUI Blue and Holiday Villages are catered towards children – probably younger children under 12. That being said there is always loads going on throughout the day and I would recommend.

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