Cordial Mogán Playa opened in December 2004 as a Canarian village rather than a block: nine buildings named after plants, spread over a 48,000 m² plot behind Puerto de Mogán. More than 10,000 m² of it is subtropical garden, holding over 450 plant species, waterfalls and a small chapel. A gate from the grounds leads up to Las Crucecitas, a pre-Hispanic burial ground on the slope behind the hotel, part of the protected Cañada de los Gatos archaeological site. The resort is a four-star run by Cordial, a Canarian group, with 487 rooms. The gardens make it feel smaller, and another gate at the bottom opens onto the village, four minutes on foot from the sand.
The rooms are traditional and roomy rather than new. A Double Room is about 30 m² with two single beds and a balcony or terrace. Superior Rooms add a private 15 m² terrace with sunbeds, and the Honeymoon Room puts a jacuzzi on its balcony. The Junior Suites, 39 m² with a separate living room, and the 70 m² duplex Senior Suites with private gardens are in Jazmín, a cluster of low two-storey houses at the far end of the grounds, with breakfast in their own restaurant. Guests praise the space and the housekeeping; the recurring complaint is that the decor and furniture show their age.
Families are what it does best. The Family Room is two rooms joined by a hallway, 63 m² with a bathroom each, for up to two adults and three children. The mini club, La Alpispa, takes children from 4 to 12, and the animation team runs a day and evening programme, bowling and trampolines included, with a mini disco in the evening. Of the two pools, both heated in winter, the one near reception is kept quiet, with no inflatables or ball games; the family pool, with a children's pool and a playground beside it, is where the water games happen. Sunbeds with mattresses, parasols and pool towels come with the room. For a night off, Los Guayres, the hotel's MICHELIN-starred restaurant, serves Canarian tasting menus from Tuesday to Saturday, with a terrace over the gardens.
The trade is the routine of a big resort. Dinner is a buffet in two fixed sittings, starting at 18:15 or 20:15 in winter, and the hot stations queue as each one opens. The spa is adults-only and charged per visit. It is also a long way west: 43 minutes from the airport and about an hour from Las Palmas. Book it for a winter or half-term week with children of 4 to 12, when a beach, a village and a starred table are within a short walk.
