If you dismiss Tenerife as a holiday destination because of its reputation as party capital for youngsters - think again, says Martin Dutt.

TENERIFE, 70 miles off the coast of North Africa and a four-hour flight from London, is the hot spot of Europe during the winter with January temperatures around 20 degrees C.

Its south coast resorts also have a reputation as being strictly for the young.

But there is a conscious move to change all that with the development of a string of four and five star hotels principally in the area of Costa Adeje, some two miles west of Las Americas.

With British Airways now running daily scheduled services to the island, possibilities exist for luxury holidays and tourists have not been slow to take up these possibilities.

Adeje is no more than 15 or 20 minutes by taxi from the south airport and my destination was the five-star Hotel Gran Tecande.

My room was a standard double room, one of 205 such rooms in the hotel and it was palatial with twin beds, sofa and armchair, mini-bar, satellite TV, safe and the most enormous and well-equipped bathroom.

The balcony, with its comfortable wicker chairs, boasted a delightful sea view with Las Americas away to the east and the island of La Gomera in the distance to the west.

The hotel has three restaurants, swimming pools and a hugely popular spa, complete with jacuzzis, saunas and offering arange of facial and body treatments and massages.

Breakfast and dinner were served in Zurron, the buffet restaurant, where the choice was overwhelming.

There is also a grill restaurant open at lunchtimes and an a la carte restaurant open in the evenings.

The Tacande also boasts suites with separate living and sleeping accommodation, each with their own jacuzzis.

In the case of the most luxurious suites the jacuzzi is on the balcony.

Five minutes walk up the hill is the Costa Adeje Gran, another five-star hotel, with all the luxuries you would expect plus a bit more. The swimming pools are on the roof and there is one reserved for nudists.

In Playa Las Americas is the four-star Dreamplace Noelia Sur where the facilities are again luxurious, the swimming pools still inviting and the surroundings a little more lively if you should be looking for nightlife.

The island of Tenerife is dominated by the 12,000ft peak of the volcano Mount Teide.

If you visit nowhere else on the island you should visit this national park and take the cable car up to the peak (return fare 20 euros).

On a clear day you can see all the Canary Island and the drive across lava fields and past strange rock formations is unforgettable.

I hired a car for the trip, but there are excursions and even bus services to this must-see spot.

A taxi ride will take you into the centre of Playa Las Americas, bustling with clubs, bars and restaurants or for the quieter life there is a safe sandy beach behind the Gran Tacande.

Golf is also big business on the island, with five courses in the south and one in the north, and most of these are linked to hotels to fulfil another fast-growing tourist boom.

And so the new Tenerife continues to expand. More hotels, four and five-star only, are going up in Adeje and more tourists are discovering that a little pampering is worth the extra money.

FACTFILE: Prices for a night's stay at the hotel Gran Tecande start at about £43 per person.

Useful websites for information and offers for all featured hotels

www.luxury-escapes.co.uk

www.jetleisure.co.uk

www.hallmarkleisure.co.uk

www.expedia.com