Another great vacation!!

We loved the resort. Great food, rooms are great, weather was hot! We would definitely recommend this resort and hopefully come back again. Very windy while we were there, windy enough to blow the sand everywhere. Pools were great except for the swim up pool bar, water was cloudy every day but still full of people.

Great Resort

The RIU Playa Blanca was clean and nice. The staff was friendly. Nice beach with brown and black sand. Excellent wifi service. The resort night entertainment was a bit lacking. The beach had great souvenirs at amazing prices, the resort gift shop surprisingly did too. Did a few excursions through Sunwing which were okay. Was hoping to see wildlife at the Canopy at Anton Valley. The Panamome tour was okay, the town was filled with cheap American clothing. Had a great time and would return again [... read more].

Loved the resort

Very clean, rooms were very large and comfortable. Food was good, the Italian restaurant was excellent. The location is not great if you are planning an excursion as they are at least 2 hours away. If you are looking for a place to go and wind down this is the spot. I cannot say enough good things about the staff, very friendly and accommodating.

Amaizing resort

everything very nice spotless vary large assortment of food ocean not to clean but not a big deal rooms clean entertainment nice pool area clean people very friendly airport questionable i don, t like service and waiting are no drinks no food no duty free

Great Time !

This was our first time in Panama and at the Riu Playa Blanca. Weather was fantastic the resort was clean and staff were very hard working and very attentive. Service in the restaurants was very good. The rooms were clean, we had an issue with our lock box and the Manager came up right away to fix the problem. Food was fresh especially the seafood, steak was not on par with a good steakhouse in Canada but besides that, food and beverages were very good especially the coffee which make Tim Ho [... read more]rtons crap in comparison. The Sunwing staff were also very helpful and would definitely recommend Panama and the resort.

Great resort

We had a great time at the Riu. It’s not a massive resort like others that requires a tram or walk a mile to get anywhere. The resort and beach were very clean. The best thing was the short walk to the beach from our room. It was nice not to have reservations for the restaurants. The steakhouse the best, I loved my ribeye. Also love the jungle boat tour, it was a bit of a drive to get there but totally worth it. Will definitely return!! And want to thank the bartender Donny at the swim up  [... read more]bar, always having a smile and made great surprise drinks. Lol

Clean well maintained resort.

The public grounds are kept very clean. The food was fantastic, the staff was very helpful and pleasant, the rooms for the most part kept clean, the entertainment was good, it needs a bit of improvement. The weather was fantastic. A great place to be if your looking for time to relax.

Great Resort

I have stayed at a few Riu resorts in different countries, and although I did not find this one to be as fancy as most, it was still a great place to stay. It was a more modern look, but still elegant. Food and service were excellent, The resort was clean and easy to get around. Everything was conveniently located. Beach was really nice closer to the hotel, but near the shore it was dark and not as warm as I like. Very close to the airport. Overall great hotel. I would definitely recomme [... read more]nd it.

Beautiful resort

The Riu Playa Blanca was a beautiful resort with awesome weather. The food was amazing with always something to eat. Rooms and showers very nice and clean. Beach was ok it’s panama. Depending on where your room is it’s a lot of walking up and down the stairs for they only have elevators in the lobby and that could be a problem for someone who has a room on the 5th and 6th floor. Airport is nice and close but I’d never fly out of that airport again. It’s very small once you went through c [... read more]ustoms there wasn’t enough seats or chairs for people to sit so people were sitting all over on the dirty floor it was super hot in there where it was at the point people passing out from the heat for there was no water in the vending machine it was empty of course and our plane was delayed people were sweating and starting to smell from the heat. Hundreds of people packed into a little space sitting on the floor and they were not happy. I’m sure there will be a lot of complaints and disappointment from this airport it’s not set up for 2 flights going out. It was ridiculous.

RIU Playa Blanca

Ocean view Room was clean and spacious. They did not restock Bar fridge with water and beer as often as they claimed. Food was good at the buffet. A little disappointed with breakfast with no bacon, ham or sausage the two days we went. They called hot dogs sausage. Lunch and dinner were good with lots of variety. Pool bar was lots of fun with foam party two days. Grounds were well kept and check in was easy. Resort is 10 minutes from airport

A great vacation location!!

Both myself and my 12yr old daughter LOVED this hotel. Very clean and modern! Looks of amenities for the young and old. Food was comparable if not better than any other location in the Caribbean (we have been to 12 Caribbean locations in the last 8yrs). Staff very friendly and one thing that stood out for me was it didn’t seem to be a money grab, eg. Not nickel and dimes for everything. Staff were not expecting to be tipped. Hair braiding was free. Bartenders worked their asses off!  [... read more]All around great time!

Amazing resort

Very clean, staff very friendly and accomodating! Grounds are spectacular. Food was somewhat bland but a great variety. The beach was nice but disappointed that ppl allowed horses on the beach and left messed.

Good Price, Great Weather, not the best Hotel

If you are looking for beautiful weather at a decent price than Riu Playa Blanca is the place for you. My fiancé and I went to Panama Dec 17th - Dec 24 2018. We were very excited as we heard that the riu was 5 years old and was expecting it to be a nice lavish hotel. That did not happen. Our view was excellent once we switched rooms. When it came to the room itself it was the greatest. Our bed seemed old as it made noises, the dresser was old and had 4 draws, you have to keep a room key in the  [... read more]slot in order for the lights and ac to work which I have never seen. The Tv Channels were the best I have seen on a resort HBO Plus we watched a movie everyday however they do repeat. The bathroom was ok the shower was big. However the only give 2 bath towels and I have to use 2 so i called down to get more no one came, so I had to find someone and basically get my own towel that was like 20 minutes which is awful. We called down for an extra pillow and we never got it. There is no lotion, or tissues which was weird. I also saw ants in the sink and around most days which I was not impressed. The entertainment was ok I guess to be fair we only went to 1 full show and skipped out the rest as it wasn't entertaining to us. the disco was ok if you like all latin music. the food was good however the do stretch their oatmeal and juices out by adding water which doesn't make it taste good. we went on two excursions panama canal and the jungle tour both amazing. The beach was horrible. we spent most of the time at the pool. The drinks were decent. The hotel staff speak 2% of English and understand 1% so very difficult.Wifi was good worked on the beach, pool, everywhere at the hotel. I would go back to Panama and stay in the city I wouldn't/t stay at Riu. Don't get me wrong we love the Riu resorts as this was our 4th one however I expected much more. You pay for what you get.

Panama Playa Blanca

We were guest here Dec 3-110th/18. Panama is a very beautiful, lush country. The dark sand beach, and sunshine made this a memorable vacation for sure. The food was good, Steakhouse and Italian a la cartel great. The hotel itself is a little dated and in need of a refresher, cracked tiles in the elevator, ice machines not working, and room air conditioners need to get lower than 24! The pools and grounds were well maintained, and bar staff at the pool, (Donny) were fantastic. Travel agents shoul [... read more]d advise travellers of the US fund $15 departure tax per person required at the airport. We had US money with us, but others were scrambling. Sunwing agents in site were excellent and readily available. All in all a great pre-Christmas relaxing vacation!

Second time to resort!

This was our second time to the Riu Playa Blanca. We have travelled to this property twice. I travelled with my husband and two daughters 10 and 9. We really enjoyed the food and beverages. They had legit ceasars there with rimmer and all! It was a nice Canadian touch! The beach is beautiful, the black sand is so sparkly and you can walk for miles in either direction. The ocean is not turquoise blue as it’s the Pacific but we were able to swim daily. Rooms were standard most ocean view. All s [... read more]taff were super friendly and helpful. The pools were small and could use some extra attention as they were kind of dirty and greasy, hence the reason we spent the majority of time at the beach. Dony R at the swim up bar is amazing!!! Great guy!!!

Very good resort, nice beaches , but the water is pacific - not a Caribbean:-)

Superb hotel-from the bottom to the top clean and neat - rooms well maintained, food/variety very good, friendly stuff- from the management to the cleaning, services - one of the best I'd ever experienced (there was no wait for anything).

Sunwing Reps were excellent and went out of their way to ensure we had a great time.

The resort grounds and buildings were clean. Expected better decor in the restaurants for a 5 star. Bars and drink service at the buffet restaurant was a challenge to get service unless you spook Spanish. Recommend that one pool is for "adult's only"

BEAUTIFUL STAY!

We travelled to Panama from Canada. I have absolutely nothing bad to say about this Resort. The staff was very friendly. The hotel is very clean. The food was great. You got an option of an ala carte every night if you liked. Which means you could eat steak every night if you like . We had a tendency at to eat at the buffet always found something to eat. The beach had black sand which was absolutely spectacular never seen anything like it. Wear your beach shoes because its hot!! The room [... read more]s are very modern. It's a non-smoking Resort which I enjoyed. Howevet You can smoke at the beach if you're a smoker. The disco is popping at night if you know how to salsa. The DJ will play a song for you if you request it. Definitely recommend this Resort if you have small children. We had a great time. There is lots of bugs and it very hot so bring bug spray and lots of sun screen! FYI we flew into the airport next door so it was only 5 mins away from the resort! Enjoy!

Great Experience

Newer hotel. 10 minutes from the airport. Nice grounds and gardens. Rooms were large and spacious. Food was excellent. Always enough and many varieties. There are 3 pools and you could usually find a chair with shade. The beach was OK. The tide comes and goes so there are usually large waves and undertow. You could always get a spot under a palm tree. Very family oriented. There were many large families with many children. Many Spanish take their vacation there as well. Sometimes you need to b [... read more]e a little aggressive at the bar. Spanish speaking usually got served first. Sunwing reps at the resort are amazing. They were always there to help and did a great job.

Amazing Resort

The Hotel is well maintained very clean, especially the washrooms (rooms, lobby and at the beach) All surrounding seems to be spic and span, there's always employees around ensure everything is in order. Food is excellent especially the Bar and grill at the beach...awesome food.Employees are very friendly and very accommodating. Our request to be moved to other room as we have small kids, they ensure that we are happy with the switch. Even though they allow locals in the resort, they are all ver [... read more]y nice people and friendly. Just one thing that we didn't really enjoy was the beach, the water was dark and the sand was black and I fully understand due to the rain forest pushing it in the sea. The Sunwing representatives are also very accommodating and answers all questions we had.