Choose an apartment if you want space and a kitchen, a hotel if you want meals and no chores, and an aparthotel if you want both a kitchen and a front desk. Arguineguín and Patalavaca have all three, mostly as apartments.
The simple rule: take an apartment if you will cook at least some meals, a hotel if you want breakfast and dinner without thinking about it, and an aparthotel if you want a kitchen but also a reception desk. Arguineguín and Patalavaca lean towards apartments and aparthotels, with two bigger hotels (the Sunwing Arguineguín and the Radisson Blu Resort) on the seafront. Which is better depends less on the star rating than on how you actually spend a day.
This page is about the type of place. For the neighbourhoods themselves, and what each costs across the seasons, see where to stay in Arguineguín: areas, budgets and tips.
Three kinds of place, side by side
| Hotel | Aparthotel | Holiday apartment or villa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kitchen | Usually none; meals on site | Yes, in the apartment | Yes, fully equipped |
| Reception | 24 hours, normally | Yes (often 24 hours) | Varies: key handover, agency or owner |
| Space per person | Smallest | Medium to generous | Largest |
| Cleaning | Daily | Set by the operator | Often at the end only, or by arrangement |
| Food costs | Higher if half-board or all-inclusive, but predictable | You choose | You choose |
| Best for | Short breaks, no-planning holidays | Families, two-week stays | Long stays, groups, anyone who likes to cook |
What you actually find in Arguineguín and Patalavaca
A few operators publish enough detail on their own sites to give a feel for the local mix.
- Servatur Green Beach in Patalavaca is an apartahotel on the seafront: 232 apartments, mostly studios and one-bedroom units with a balcony or terrace, a 24-hour reception, parking, a supermarket on site, a pool area and a buffet restaurant. Its pool area opens onto the seafront promenade, and Servatur says the Patalavaca beach is a short walk away.
- Arguineguín Park by Servatur is a residential complex of holiday homes in 14 five-storey buildings, with two- and three-bedroom units, a main pool, a children's pool and an adults-only pool, a Spar supermarket and underground parking (free, subject to availability). Servatur puts it about ten minutes' walk from Arguineguín beach, Las Marañuelas and the town centre. Dogs up to 5 kg are accepted for a supplement that Servatur gives as €15 a night.
- Sunwing Arguineguín is a four-star hotel with 252 rooms, run by a Nordic tour operator. It is the large hotel on the town's seafront strip.
- Radisson Blu Resort, Gran Canaria has 189 rooms and suites and is listed as five-star by Radisson, on the Patalavaca side of the town.
- Anfi del Mar offers beach-front apartments in four clubs, with kitchens, washing machines, air conditioning and wifi. These are timeshare units, so read the section below before you say yes to anything.
For which hotels suit whom, see the best hotels in Arguineguín and Patalavaca.
When a hotel is the better choice
A hotel wins when the point of the holiday is not having to run a household. Breakfast appears, the room is cleaned, someone else deals with a dripping tap. That matters most on a short break, for older travellers who would rather not shop and cook, and for anyone arriving late from the airport. The airport transfer takes around 33 minutes by road without traffic, so even a late flight usually gets you to a front desk that is still open.
The trade-off is the meal plan. Half-board and all-inclusive rates are convenient and easy to budget, but they tie you to the hotel's dining room, and Arguineguín is a town where eating out is half the pleasure: the fishing harbour, the plaza restaurants and the Tuesday market are all within walking distance. If you only want the hotel for sleeping, book bed and breakfast and walk to dinner. Our guide to eating in Arguineguín shows what you would be skipping.
When an apartment is the better choice
An apartment wins as soon as you stay a week or more, travel with children, or travel in a group. You get a separate bedroom, a kitchen, a fridge that is not a minibar, and usually a terrace. Breakfast on your own balcony and a lunch assembled from the market beat a restaurant bill for four, every day.
Shopping is easy here. The Tuesday market sells fruit and vegetables, and the harbour sells fish. Some of the complexes above have a supermarket on site, which is a real help in the first hours after you land. For the shops in town, see shopping in Arguineguín.
The downside: service is thinner. A reception that is staffed 24 hours is a feature of aparthotels, not of every private rental, so ask who you call at 22:00 if the air conditioning stops.
Aparthotels: the middle road
An aparthotel gives you the apartment plus a front desk, a pool, sometimes a restaurant and a bar. It suits the family that wants a kitchen for the children's breakfasts and a night off from cooking. The catch is that the units are often compact, and the facilities (pool, lifts, restaurant) are shared with many other guests. Look at the unit size: Servatur gives 43 m² for its larger Green Beach apartments, for example, and says they sleep up to three adults and a child.
Timeshare apartments: a separate case
Anfi del Mar is a timeshare resort, and the company still markets membership. Its apartments are good, and the resort has its own beach, shopping centre and marina. If you stay there as a guest, enjoy it. If someone invites you to a "presentation" or a prize draw, remember the law. Under Spanish law (Ley 4/2012), a buyer has 14 calendar days to withdraw, and no deposit or other payment may be taken during that period. The whole picture is in timeshare in Gran Canaria: your rights before you sign, and the resort itself is described on the Anfi del Mar page.
Checks before you book anything
- Distance and slope. Arguineguín is flat near the harbour but hilly inland. A listing that says "ten minutes to the beach" may be ten minutes down. If anyone in your party finds hills hard, see accessible Arguineguín and ask about the lift.
- Air conditioning and heating. Nights in winter are mild but not warm: at the nearest official weather station, which is the airport on the east coast, the average January minimum is about 15 °C. Ask whether there is any heating if you come between December and March.
- Kitchen kit. A "kitchenette" can mean a hob and a kettle. Look for an oven, a microwave or a washing machine if you need one.
- Reception hours and key handover. Essential if you land in the evening.
- Parking. Servatur's Arguineguín Park says free underground parking is subject to availability, which tells you it is not guaranteed. If you hire a car, check this first.
- What the price includes. Ask about cleaning fees, deposits and towels before you compare totals.
- Sun. A south- or west-facing balcony gets the afternoon sun; north-facing can be cooler and breezier.
Patalavaca apartment test: check which side of the promenade you will be on. The seafront path from Patalavaca to Arguineguín is the single best thing about staying out there, so a unit with direct access to it is worth a small premium over one behind a road.
If you cannot decide
For a first visit of a week, a seafront aparthotel is the safest choice: you can test the kitchen without being forced to use it. For a fortnight or more, take the apartment. For a long winter, see Arguineguín for long-term stays. If you are weighing where the whole holiday should be based, Arguineguín, Puerto Rico or Puerto de Mogán compares the three towns. Whether to buy flights and rooms together is a separate question, covered in package holiday or book it yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Is it cheaper to stay in an apartment than a hotel in Arguineguín?
Usually, for stays of a week or more and for families, because you cook some meals and share the space. For one or two people on a short break the difference is small. Compare the total price including cleaning fees and any deposit, not the nightly rate.
What is the difference between an apartment and an aparthotel?
An aparthotel is a complex of apartments run like a hotel: a reception desk, usually shared pools and often a restaurant and a shop. A private holiday apartment is let by an owner or an agency, with less on-site service.
Are there hotels with kitchens in Arguineguín?
Not in the traditional hotel sense; the kitchens are in the apartments of aparthotels such as Servatur Green Beach. Some hotel rooms are listed with a small kitchenette on booking sites, so check the room description.
Do I need a car if I stay in an apartment?
Not if you stay near the centre or the seafront: shops, the market and the bus stops are within walking distance. Further up the hillside, a car or the occasional taxi helps. See buses in and from Arguineguín.
Can I use the pool and facilities if I rent a private apartment?
Only if the complex allows it. Pools and gardens in residential complexes are usually shared, but rules differ, and some areas (such as an adults-only pool) are restricted. Check the listing.
Is Anfi del Mar an hotel or apartments?
Apartments, in four clubs (Anfi Beach Club, Club Puerto Anfi, Club Monte Anfi and Club Gran Anfi), on a timeshare resort. There is a hotel-style Anfi Emerald Club too, but that is in the Tauro valley, not at Anfi del Mar.
Sources
- Servatur Green Beach – the operator's page: apartments, facilities, location
- Arguineguín Park by Servatur – the operator's page: holiday homes, pools, parking, pets
- Anfi del Mar – the resort's page on its four clubs
- Ley 4/2012 on timeshare – withdrawal period and payment ban (BOE)
- AEMET – climate normals for Gran Canaria airport