Riu Guanacaste review

Overall a nice resort. I would recommend it to others. Pros - Great resort, clean, lots of food and drinks. The animation team was good, better than some we have seen in the Dominican. Pool was good Cons - Awful pillows in the rooms, beach is not great, rocky, food was just ok for flavour, some spice. Far away from things if you wanted to go on excursions.

Pura vida at riu

our third visit and glad we chose the riu Guanacaste for our winter escape. the late February/early march weather was a consistent 33C and sunny. we enjoyed walking the well kept grounds checking out the birds and monkeys. the food was consistently good, whether at the buffet or the theme restaurants. the riu staff were friendly and responsive - a request for a box of tissues at the front desk was completed within minutes. all in all a great vacation!

Lovely resort great locale

The hotel is well kept and clean. Staff are lovely and very responsive. It is located in a remote area which meant lots of local wildlife including monkeys, ant-eater and many birds. We recommend doing a snorkeling excursion via the hotel water program- it is nearby and you'll see lots of different aquatic creatures (Staff were great with younger kids and nervous swimmers so good for all ages and experience levels). If you need quiet for early sleeping, you may want to request an outside  [... read more]room (not in the inner circle) as the nightly entertainment was loud and seemed to echo into the rooms (We were on the fifth floor). You also need water shoes or flip flops for the beach as the sand gets very hot. This was our second time to the hotel and it did not disappoint.

Great property

Hotel was beautiful. Food was very good. Staff is very helpful and courteous. Beach is not the best. Lots of rocks. Rooms need an upgrade but are overall ok. Pillows are uncomfortable Good entertainment very hot climate. Coco beach not too much to see

Awesome Experience

We went with our kids and this trip was amazing, from the food to the zip lining to the people. All wonderful, we have very few complaints and it is most definitely up there as one of our best trips. We visited Congo zip lines, the tour guides were unbelievable, my 5 year old went and felt comfortable with his guide. We fed the monkeys, ate with raccoon like animals and swam with an Iguana, what a memorable experience.

Amazing Resort

The resort was kept in impeccable condition from the grounds to the rooms to the bathrooms. All the staff were very helpful and friendly and did everything possible to ensure we had a great time. The food was absolutely fantastic with plenty of selection for every pallet.

Great Value :)

The RIU Guanacaste is a beautiful resort ! They keep the grounds and the rooms very clean. Pool area is extremely busy and you have to put your towels down early to get a seat. The monkeys and Iquanas are amazing to see :) The food at the buffet is good, nothing special. The Asian and Italian alacart is great :) No complaints....great vacation :)

Playa

had a lovely family holiday. Extra tours are expensive. Need activities for teenagers Lovely warm ( 30-36 degrees) dry climate and quite windy most days. Nightly shows had some marvellous dancing and acrobatic portions. Good coffee but would have liked a coffee pot in the room

Beautiful location, lovely resort, great food for all.

We loved the hotel, the pool, the beach, the restaurants and the proximity to activities for the kids. My kids really enjoyed the sports bar, bingo and other activities they could do around the resort. The rooms were decent, we had a view of the ocean and the resort next door. We could see the sunset from our balcony. The staff were friendly and efficient, the food was a great selection that even my pickiest eater could find something he enjoyed.

Best weather ever!

We stayed at the Riu Guanacaste once before and had a great time both visits. The hotel is lovely and well maintained. The gardens are beautiful and we could watch Howler monkeys most day from our hotel balcony. The food is very good and the staff are friendly and helpful. We went for a beach walk every morning to watch the sunrise and saw two baby turtles hatch and make their run to the sea. We provided "air cover" so that no birds ate them before they made it to the sea. This resor [... read more]t is located far from any towns but there are lots of excursions you can take. It's perfect for a week of relaxing. There are kayaks, paddle boards and wind surfers for guests to use and the sea is beautiful and warm there. We will be back. Thanks for Bill's help in making our holiday a success.

Great Resort

This was a great resort. The grounds were beautiful, food was very good and no problem getting into the restaurants. The bathrooms, hallways, etc. were always clean. The beach was a bit rocky but good.

Beautiful resort

Beautiful rooms .excellent staff.grounds and pools perfect ..food excellent drinks perfect .I can't say enough how perfect this resort and location for lots of excursions I loved everything thank you to Taylor Curtis my travel agent also I will go back

Awesome!!

The hotel was beautiful! The grounds were well manicured and kept clean and beautiful to look at. The staff were so friendly, always smiling and eager to help you out! The rooms were large and clean. We loved the outdoor hallways and layout of this hotel! The food was very good! We definitely recommend this place!

What a place to be at "WOW"

If you wanna see the howler monkeys, zipline good times with great people great food. Wonderful staff.what a wonderful place to be. Did not wanna come home. Don't forget your SUNBLOCK you'll need it. ENJOY

Unforgettable vacation

The trip from start to finish was great. We had a quick check in to allow us to get to the buffet on time before closing. On booking we had upgraded our room and were not disappointed. Beautiful view of the ocean and the well kept grounds. Did not get even get a chance to try all the a la carte restaurants as the buffet alone was exceptional. Friendly , helpful staff. We had beautiful weather and the excursions we chose were not disappointing in the least. We would definitely stay at thi [... read more]s resort again in the future. No complaints at all.

Loved the resort.

The grounds were very well kept and beautiful. Pool area also well kept and stunning. Lobby and restaurants well kept. One issue is with the booking of dinner reservations. System they use is horrible. You end up having to line up in your bathing suit at 6 pm in order to get an 8 pm reservation. There must be a better way so one can enjoy the sun/sunset and then get ready for the evening.

Beautiful resort

Very nice hotel, room was ok. Promised a king bed, got 2 doubles put together. Restaurants were very good, lots of variety in the buffets. There was 4 ala carts which had reservations, we ate at 3 of them, all very good. Grounds were very well kept someone was always around trimming grounds or cleaning up. Nightly entertainment was ok, nothing special. Awesome Pool, grounds around the pool where excellent. Plenty of bars throughout the hotel. Staff was very friendly. Entertainment staff were ve [... read more]ry good and friendly. Could have used a few more restrooms around the hotel, had to walk along way at times. Beach was ok for the area.

Third visit - will return again

Love this hotel - the food is great, rooms are comfortable, the staff is great. One of our favorite places to stay. Also we prefer the Spanish style of this resort - not a big fan of the new modern Rius.

Good vacation with some disappointments

Our flight was delayed due to weather, however the hotel did keep a restaurant open to feed us which was nice. The first full day I reported that the safe was locked, the shower was broken and the hair dryer was barely hanging onto the wall. They did come and fix these items. All the furniture is covered with a glass sheet. I did not report a chip in the glass and a hairline crack in the other glass. Hard to believe, but I saw it with my own eyes...my husband opened the tablet and the glass [... read more] with the crack split in two. I reported it and they said that was impossible, and wanted to charge me $40.00, I said no we did not do anything wrong, well I had not reported the chip or crack so I must have done it....I only reported what was needed to be repaired for our stay, then she asked me if I took a picture of the crack. I said no, I did not know a room inspection was required, so they said they would reduce the fine to $20.00, I said I would not pay it because we did nothing wrong, it I would have broken it I would have paid for. They then proceeded to tell me that they would call the police if it was not paid on departure. So I inquired if the police would speak English, she said no they would translate for me. I emailed our travel agent, she suggested I speak with the Sunwing agent (Hugo) and he ended up taking care of it. We would recommend "Allan" on the beach who booked our 4 wheeler and boat excursion. Most of the wait staff were very good.

Beautiful

We loved the resort. Our room looked over the front of the resort and the ocean so perfect view. Food was good and lots of it but after about 4 days, we were a bit sick of the buffet food. Ate at the Steak restaurant a couple of times and went into Coco Beach for dinner for a change. Bathrooms had a slight smell that never went away but otherwise, the resort was beautifully kept and always clean. The beach was wonderful and not busy. Morning walks everyday with only the residents of the R [... read more]iu hotels which was nice. The massage on the beach was great and inexpensive. Lots of activities to do. Great vacation.