Riu Palace Aruba: Fantastic Food and Service!

The rooms were exceptionally clean and spacious, the staff were friendly and genuinely concerned that everyone had a great experience. I do not eat meat and this resort had many, many options for me - I was never left unsatisfied!

Riu Emerald Bay: It's going down inside but outside is awesome!!

My 2nd visit, unfortunately the hotel did not live up to my expectations. Upon arrival to our room I knew the a/c wasn't working so we got changed and headed down to notify Sunwing rep - he said he'd get maintenance on it while we went to dinner. We returned after dinner to a still very warm room so went back to the lobby to see reps were gone for the day so notified the front desk, asked to be moved and was told they have no rooms and said they were busy but would send someone up as soon as the [... read more]y could. When repairman showed up, he couldn't get it to turn on either but eventually by some grace from the heaven's it came on very faintly and he even said "work pocita" That night and every night we slept with the patio door open as our room was hotter than it was outside (we were gone all day with a/c "on" and patio door closed) During our 7 night stay I think the a/c turned on twice for 45 seconds each time. Wi-Fi is limited to 2 devices regardless how many people you have in your room (I was with my 2 children, both with phones) An extremely frustrating week to have to rotate usage during our down time. One night we were woken up at midnight by neighbour playing very loud music with company on their patio - remember, we're forced to sleep with our patio door open. I called down to the front desk as I'd met her the night before same thing and she didn't speak English. 10 minutes later, still nothing so called again and was told security said there was no party. I demanded he come up to my room immediately as I wasn't going to tolerate this. Sure enough, standing in the hallway waiting for security, one could hear the music from my neighbours. Security came in, very little English but went out to our balcony, stood on chair and hollered over at our neighbours. He promised me no more noise. A couple nights later, we're on our balcony and return to find our room a wading pool. I immediately thought toilet had flooded but soon discovered it was coming from hallway. We were able to get everything up off the floor quick enough but I hate to think of what would've happened had we not been in our room as this was at 6pm. Water completely covered our entire room and was going onto the balcony, we stuck around to allow them to clean it all up (took 3 people and about 40 mins) before going down to dinner. Unfortunately when we came back up, floors were still wet and slippery so had to use our towels to mop up the floors to prevent any of us falling in the middle of the night. I'm pretty sure housekeeping wasn't impressed as I tossed all the sopping towels in our tub and asked for our room to be serviced the next day. They didn't come to refill our fridge that next day either so I had to call down to the front desk, shouldn't have to if they're only refilling every 2 days. I know there can be elevator issues, there is 2 banks of 3 elevators (1 on each side of hotel plus another that serves lobby to 18) was unfortunate to have 1 elevator down for a few days but overall if you plan accordingly, you can usually avoid long waits. Being outside our room was the best part of the trip, the staff around the pools, in the bars and the wait staff in the restaurants were always a delight and a pleasure to deal with. Geraldo "Jerry" was very personable and a lot of fun & Pedro (bartender around the pools) was great! I didn't make an issue about the a/c thing as my intention wasn't to spend the week in the room, although it'd have been nice for the room to be a bearable temperature during the night. I do like the location away from "it all". Be sure to keep that in mind if you want to go walking to see the local sites etc, you'll have to take a bus or taxi to get anywhere. I picked this hotel specifically for this. Locals play their instruments on the beach around dinner time but at night its quiet around the resort and on the beach (aside from the nightclub which I didn't participate in but 1 of my children did) The food wasn't great, nor was it awful - one morning we were without sausage which I found depressing as I loved my fresh vegetable omelet with sausage for breakfast! I found the bacon inedible. My kids can't eat ice cream - nice to have sorbet as an option, even if only option was lime flavour. By the end of the week we felt it all was tasting the same. The beach is kept clean, but keep in mind it can be rough waters to swim in, especially for kids. The tides are crazy at times!! Nightly entertainment wasn't bad but I saw the same shows 1.5 years ago... my kids weren't with me that trip so they enjoyed the shows. It's extremely unfortunate that a resort of this size doesn't have a proper doctor (or I guess one that doesn't insist on gouging guests) Don't bother asking for hotel doc, make your way to Sharp or Marina hospitals - it'll be WAY cheaper. Overall - I may or may not stay at the RIU Emerald Bay again, right now it's a no as wasn't overly impressed this trip and would hate to think our room experience could get worse. I'll recommend to others with disclaimer on the issues the hotel itself has.

Riu Montego Bay: Fantastic Resort

We enjoyed everything about the resort. Food was great with lots of variety; lots of daily activities and nightly entertainment. Staff was friendly and service fantastic. Would definitely recommend Riu Montego Bay. This was our 2nd visit to this resort. Had a fabulous time.

Riu Flamingos: Good Holiday

Dining, service, pool and facilities excellent. Check in was fast and quick. The rooms and washrooms need upgrades and renovation. Staff was helpful and friendly .Great selection of food and drinks. We enjoyed the buffet food and the rooms were kept clean and tidy everyday. We enjoyed staying in the hotel

Riu Palace Paradise Island: The best resort to stay at in the The Bahamas as per value for money!!!

The hotel/resort was right at the Paradise Island beach, and had amazing staff helping out 24x7. The resort had 4 restaurants on premises, each one unique and amazing in food quality and dining experience. The swim-up bar was the best part of the resort and the bar-tending staff was very polite. Another thing, housekeeping was punctual and kept the room sparkling clean each day. The resort was exactly as shown on the website. There was one thing which should be kept in mind, the room service men [... read more]u was not up to the mark. It just had 4 items, and the lady who answered the phone was pretty rude, but that's it. So I would recommend to eat at the restaurants in the resort, rather than ordering room service. Other than that, it was an amazing stay, and would love to visit again, when in The Bahamas.

Riu Playa Blanca: 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!!!

Riu Flamingos: Great Resort

The service at this hotel is excellent. The staff works hard to make sure you enjoy your stay. The only thing I would say that is a bit of a negative is the mattresses on the beds are very hard and be sure to take some Off so that you dont get bothered by any of the insects you are sure to find here. The food at the buffet is very good with enough choice that there should be something even picky eaters would find appealing. I would return to this resort again.

Riu Palace Costa Mujeres: Beautiful & wonderful resort

Me and my girlfriend stayed here from Dec 4-11th. After weeks of researching resorts we finally chose this one based on a couple things. The main thing we wanted was a swim out suite that was somewhat private. Secondly the resort was brand new and we thought it would be great to experience a new 5 star resort. We also liked the fact that you can visit the Neighboring RIU Dunamar. We arrived at the airport and found the Sunwing rep with no issues and off we went. Took about 50 minutes to get to t [... read more]he resort because we had to drop someone off at another resort first. Upon arrival at the Palace we were met with delicious welcome drinks and proceeded to check in. The lobby is beautiful and elegant. You can smell how new it is.The check in process was very smooth and quick! THE ROOM: We were given directions to our room and our luggage was delivered. The room was gorgeous. We had an end swim out suite. The mini bar is stocked with 4 bottles. Vodka, Run , Gin and Tequila. The fridge has Pepsi, 7up, tonic, 7 beer cans and a few large bottles of water. The bed is soft and comfortable. The swim out looked a lot better in person. Its deeper and bigger than I thought and having the ocean for a view was amazing. The patio itself was a good size as well. The toilet is separate from the shower/sink area and has its own door. The shower and sink area is an open concept with no door which is a little strange and I can see that being an issue for families. I also found the tub in the middle of the room strange and its on the smaller side so if you're a tall guy like me its not useful. The shower is a nice size and I liked the optional rain shower head. Room 9/10 GROUNDS: The resort is BEAUTIFUL. You really feel like you're in paradise being there. It feels, looks and smells new and fresh! There are 5 pools and they were not crowded at all during the time I was there.There is a 24 hour lounge close to the main lobby where you can relax and watch TV as well as get drink and food (the same bottles that are in the room are here). There is another lounge area near the center of the resort that has a bar and a shop called Capuchino where you can sit and order drinks, snacks, espresso, milkshakes, dessert (the cheesecake was delicious!). I spent quite a bit of time here as I found it to be a nice place to relax. The beach is long and beautiful and well shaded with palm trees. You can get a massage down on the beach for around $30-$40 (Not ran by RIU, Theirs is a lot more expensive). There were plenty of chairs available so no need to worry about getting there early for one. Grounds 10/10 The Food: The food was the best I have had at a resort thus far. I was really happy with the options available at the buffet on a daily basis.There are 5 A la cart restaurants; Japanese, Mexican, The Steakhouse, Italian and Krystal (A fusion restaurant). The Italian restaurant was open every night and only 2 of the other restaurants were open ever night (Most likely due to the resort not being that busy). We did not the Japanese or Krystal as nothing on the menu peaked our interest. Our favorite was the steakhouse. The lobster and fillet minion is just outstanding! The Mexican restaurant was pretty decent as well. There is also a lunch restaurant/bar area called Pepe's by the pool area. There's mainly grilled things there such as steak, burgers, pork chops.Overall we couldn't ask for anything more and we were thoroughly satisfied with the food. Food 10/10 Conclusion: This is the best resort have been to. The service is impeccable. Everywhere you go there is somebody there to serve and take your order. The service is great and the staff are very friendly an upbeat. Due to the fact the resort is new it wasn't overrun with people. There was no wait at the bars or restaurants. I loved the peacefulness and the seclusion on the Costa Mujeres Peninsula. We used the 24 hour room service a few times and it came in a timely manner. Housekeeping was cleaned the room well and we tipped them daily. Anything you call the front desk for is taken care of swiftly. There were some small kinks such as the fire alarm going off a few times but understandable as its brand new.The only thing I wished was on the resort are cabana beds. That would have put it over the top for me but overall an amazing experience. I would definitely return. P.S Keep your customs card as you will need it when you return to the airport. We had to pay $30 USD each to replace ours.

Riu Emerald Bay: Third time lucky, first and second too!

This was my third visit to Riu Emerald Bay, and probably won’t be the last. This time I went with my husband and two other couples, we had a great time. The hotel is spotless, food for many different tastes, lots of good drinks from first rate bartenders, nice pools and right on the beach. My two other visits were with my teenage daughter, she loved the hotel as much as I did, and met people her own age to have fun with. Great value!

Riu Playa Blanca: 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).

Riu Negril: Amazing Resort

The resort was great. From start to finish. A thanks goes out to Jairus Maus. Highly recommend Jairus and tripcentral. They always look after us. Thanks again. And we'll be in touch for our next trip.

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Amazing place and resort!!!

Super clean, unbelievable food. Be prepared to be stuffed full your whole vacation. Beautiful country and location. The beach isn't the best but nicer at the Riu right next door which you have access too. You can take a short walk down the beach and hand feed monkeys in the wild near the small souvenir tents. My only recommendation would be a curtain around the bathtub for families or other than couple guests. Hope to return someday in the future I think I have been spoiled for other resor [... read more]ts.

Riu Palace Antillas: Shake your booty!

Pool rocks with boomin music! Classes in pool with enthusiastic leaders who love their job! Great food at the buffett...best desserts ever and a beef wellington that will melt in your mouth! Only one pool, so if u r lookin for quiet downtime...it is not here!! Rooms are clean and great! Aruba is ONE HAPPY ISLAND!

Riu Republica: Great Resort!

The hotel, the grounds, the food, the beach all amazing. I do have a suggestion for your late arrivals though. The only food available in the later hours was at the sports bar(not so good). I think when you have a later arrival, having a space set aside with maybe buns and cold cuts would be greatly appreciated by guests.

Riu Playa Blanca: 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"

Riu Republica: Absolutely amazing!

The resort was perfect for my boyfriends 33rd birthday! The food was great, the staff were always pleasant/helpful and the room was always clean and being replenished of anything that was needed. We are thinking of going back next year. It was nice to be at a resort without children for once.

Riu Guanacaste: Amazing holiday at Riu Guanacaste!!

Just returned from the most wonderful holiday at the Riu Guanacaste. My boyfriend and I had such an exceptional week at this resort. The food was absolutely fantastic with just about everything imagineable to choose from at the buffet restaurant. The chefs at no problem accomodating my gluten free requirements at the pasta bar, making me my own speciality dish upon request. The rooms were very well kept with bar fridge stocked daily. We had a water leak one evening in a vent in the ceiling in  [... read more]our room and it waz fixed immediately. Grounds and gardens were kept impeccable, and the Christmas decorations were done very tastefully throughout the resort. Evening entertainment was enjoyable to watch. We were on a mission to see monkeys in their natural environment, so we walked the beaches early each morning and before sunset and were finally rewarded with being able to feed them bananas as they played in a fielx across from the monkey bar on our final evening there. It was such an amazingly fun thing to experience. The beach could have been maintained a little better. It had been racked on a couple occasions but the piles were never picked up. Unfortunately the water were very rough during our stay and therefore created quite dirty water and poor visibility for snorkelling. My only real complaint would be that the drinks at the upper pool bar were made very poorly and never consistently made the same. Despite it not being busy they seemed to just rush to make them. We did the Buena vista tour with some zip lining, water tubing, horseback riding and hiking to a falls and had a wonderful time. It is physically demanding but so worth it. We also took a van ride into Coco beach and explored the town and shopped which was also a great experience. I would most definitely recommend this resort to anyone of all ages as there is alot to do and it was one of the best vacations we have ever taken.

Riu Emerald Bay: 5 star resort

This resort was amazing the staff was friendly , food was 100% and great selection pools where perfect and loved the swim up bar ( spent to much time there lol ) I was very happy and would come come back

Riu Playa Blanca: 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!

Riu Bambu: Wonderful vacation in beautiful resort

Writer was part of 3 generation multi-ethnic family vacation. This resort was perfect for us. Riu Bambu is one of 5 Riu hotels in the complex. Facilities plentiful, clean and well maintained. Beautiful ocean front with white sand beach and plentiful recliners. ( we did have a lot of seaweed due to winds/weather but staff worked tirelessly cleaning it up) 4+ pools which each provide varied depth and activities to meet most families' needs. Plentiful loungers at all pools eliminating need to re [... read more]serve chairs. We tried 5 restaurants that provided incredible selection of very tasty food. Bars where plentiful and service was quick and efficient. Standard room was clean comfortable and functional, Had some challenges with sliding door to bathroom coming off tracks and plumbing Otherwise great. Manager Ariel was very effective and kind at addressing issues/concerns especially in relocating rooms as writer had difficult with stairs to access initial assigned room. Waitstaff, though very plentiful, kind and efficient, seemed to be moved around reducing that personal connection. Activities staff were very energetic and interactive throughout the day. So many activities that you can participate in if you chose. The staff of the kids club are lovely, loving and patient. Night time entertainment was good with great dancing by the staff and some riveting shows like the magic and acrobatic shows. Plentiful of adjacent shops to buy jewelry and souvenirs without the hard sell for those who like retail therapy. In summary, Riu Bambu great hotel with fantastic setup, beautiful beach, plentiful pools, loungers, restaurants and staff to cater to your needs leading to great vacation for visitors of all ages and backgrounds.