Awful

The hotel was extremely outdated. My air conditioning did not work and they did nothing about it for 3 days. There was a leak in my ceiling that they did nothing about. The overall resort was very unorganized in the way they do their entertainment and plan their shows. I will never return to or recommend this resort

Meh

If you're going on a vacation to have good food and to be entertained I would not go here unless you're going to spend money on things outside of the resort. Food was the same everyday and nothing was organized so you had no idea what was happening each night. My friends and I had to entertain ourselves basically. Weather and beach was beautiful though. This resort is more for young children and older adults not for ages 13-35

Not Great

Definitely not a 5 star resort. Beach was nice but nothing else. Horrible entertainment and very low key. Food was ok but it did not change. The a la carte restaurants were just ok as well. Would not recommend going to this resort. I have been to many resorts for equal or less money and this was by far the worst experience. If you are going to have fun, do not go.

Good but....

We have been to other Riu''s but this one did not live up to it's name. We were in room 823. It was close to all amenities. The room was damp, musty and moldy. The air conditioning was not working. My husband suggested looking at the filter. When the vent was opened and the filter exposed, there was at least an inch of filth clogging it. It took 20 minutes to clean and 5 days for the room to clear of the smell. On the weekend they allow Dominican residents to come in. They were loud, rude to t [... read more]heir own people, but in line and push you out of the way, drunkards and had no consideration for other guests. It was not nice. There is an Internet room to the left of the front desk. The food was repetitive but no one got sick. Always hamburger's, hotdogs, french fries. Not a lot of vegetables but enough to get by. The wine is watered down and tastes like it is coming out of a pop dispenser. The chairs are so tight together at the pool that it is hard to sit on one without touching another person. It is a great place for people with disabilities because everything is very level. The red flag is always up because of the rocks and waves at the beach. There is no reservations for the a la carte restaurants so you have to wait on the sidewalk at 6:30 each night to see if there is enough seats for you to eat there. It just was not what we have experienced at other Riu''s.

Good times!

Had a great time at this resort been there before. It has changed a bit though was disappointed that they didn't remember my sisters birthday when we saw others they celebrated..our toilet did not flush well at all. Food wasn't bad but is the same all week got a little sick of that..but over all entertainment was good at the pool and place was kept clean. They work very hard and it shows!

Resort has gone downhill

This was our forth time at this resort. We will not return. The resort has gone downhill. From rats scurrying in the lobby to cockroaches on the buffet and large bugs in the room. We had a large bug lost in our room somewhere. We don't know what is was because it scurried out of a sandal too fast and climbed the curtains but it was quite large. The front desk offered to fumigate our room but I couldn't stay in the room knowing that was in there so we asked to change rooms which they accommodated [... read more]. They used to have something going on in the lobby each evening so you would have something to do after dinner but they have done away with that as well. :( We made the best of it and had a great time with our friends anyway. This used to be a great resort It's sad to see it go downhill like this.

Awesome resort!

This is our second time to this riu resort. I was pleasantly surprised to see alot of the same staff still here. Gigi is so much fun, and Manuel, the gentleman behind the pool bar is also fantastic. All the staff are so friendly. The nightly shows are extremely well done! The rooms are very nice, they restock your fridge daily. There is a bar in your room. The food is delicious. So much fruit to choose from, a salad bar, dessert bar. And of course the meat/potato /pasta line. Cannot boast enoug [... read more]h about this resort. Highly recommend it to anyone.!,

This was our second time to the Riu Bachata!

My husband and two sons aged 19 and 24 stayed at the Riu from April 19 to 27. Food was good. Lots to choose from. Especially good if you like fish which was always cooked in front of you. Most of the time we ate our meals on the on veranda. The side facing the beach is non smoking. Julia took care of us most of the week at breakfast and lunch. We had excellent service. The red flag was up all week on the beach and there is a very strong current that will take you down the length of the beach. Ov [... read more]er all it was a great value and we had an excellent trip.

Very good

Very clean resort and rooms, very friendly personnel and all the problems were resolved immediately, good food, excellent professional entertainment and much weaker entertainment involving public (which I personally do not like but some other do).

A bit dissapointed

Rooms were fine , lots of food. The very big disappointment was the beach. The small pebbles long the beach are loose and you sink in when you enter the water. There is also a cross current that you have to watch for. Another area of concern is that the nearby Rio are allowed to use these facilities with the exception of the a la carts this often lead to getting up very early to find a spot at the beach. I have been to Dominican several times over the last few years. I can not see myself returni [... read more]ng to this resort.

Great resort

The people were very friendly the service was great . the food was better than average the cable car tour was a blast. The ocean was beautiful and it was fun watching the cruise ships come in. The only issue was that they ran out if ketchup if u can believe that.

Wonderful resort

Place was just lovely! The grounds were lush and tropical and the rooms were very nice. The beach is not overly long, but still makes for a nice walk. It was quite windy, but apparently that is normal. I liked the winds, otherwise it might have been a little too hot. Shouldn't complain though......was happy to leave Canadian temperature's behind. The food in the buffet was delicious. Lots of variety and very attentive staff. I would definitely return, as it was a perfect vacation.

Fantastic staff!

The grounds were beautiful and very well looked after, food got boring after the 4th day, was windy all week so we didn't spend a lot of time on the beach. The a la carte process was ridiculous. Stood in line for 40 minutes to be told that the Steakhouse had been booked but the staff member didn't bother announcing that so we only by chance over heard somebody say it as they walked by. Our room didn't have water a couple times but they quickly made the repairs so it wasn't off for very long. Th [... read more]e air conditioning wasn't quite up to par - we were okay sleeping but if it had been much warmer we wouldn't have been comfortable. Staff were fantastic - always saying 'hola' and smiling - absolutely no complaints for them - except . . . . . a pair of brand new shorts disappeared out of my luggage . . .

Stunning beaches

My 8 year-old granddaughter and I spent a sun and fun-filled week at Riu Bachata. when it came to swimming with the ocean and numerous pools we were spoiled for choice. The room was clean and comfortable. Entertainment first rate and staff friendly and helpful. Food and drink plentiful. All in all, great value

Riu Bachata - good value for what we paid

The Good: Price/value, beach, clean rooms, ocean, sunshine, heat, location, landscaping. Lots of palm trees, lots of shade if desired, nice waves for sea kayaking The Okay: Room size (smallish size), decent food (not great, but pretty good), water is not the clearest because of the waves, beach is rocky in sections (better at east end Riu Merengue The Bad: Mattresses, a-la-carte restaurant choices, swim-up bar (loud and classless), loud drunken guest making noise late at night (near disco). T [... read more]he worst of the drunken tourists were the Canadians. It's was so embarrassing to see them with their big, insulated bubbas making fools of them selves. One day the pool at the swim-up bar had to be drained because someone vomited in it. All-in-all it was a good value for me and my family. We stayed at Gran Bahia Principe resorts the 2 prior years and preferred them but this was much cheaper. You get what you pay for I guess. Would I go back to this Riu complex? Probably not, but I like the area and would head east of Puerto Plata instead (to Sosua or Cabarete). The best part of our vacation was the awesome and well-priced private excursions we had with Pedro Suero, a local tour guide, who showed us the most interesting places. His cost was roughly half what the big tour companies charge and it was private for our group (ranging from 5 to 6 on 3 separate excursions). Pedro was amazing and a wealth of information. Room Tip: A room far enough away from the entertainment lobby

Awesome place

This resort has really well kept grounds and public areas. the food was good with a big selection. the rooms were always cleaned. you had a terrific view of the cruise ship terminal .we were there feb 28/16 to mar 06/16 and in that time frame 5 cruise ships docked there. amazing

Restful Week!!

I got back yesterday from Riu Bachata. We had a great time! We never left the resort - we ate, slept, swam, drank, beached and sunbathed - then did the whole thing again the next day. The food was good. The steakhouse is not great, and we did not like the menu so did not try the caribbean a la carte. But we DID eat at the Italian restaurant 3 times - it was by far the best! Their steak was better than the steakhouse. We thoroughly enjoyed our breakfasts at the Bachata, always ate on the patio an [... read more]d the coffee was excellent! Lunches can be had at any of the 3 resorts, but breaky and dinner only at your own property. Mambo had the best lunches. The beach is beautiful, but the swimming is only so-so as the only posted swimable beach is at the far end of the 3 hotels (in front of the Riu Village or what was before known as the Mambo. The ocean floor is quite uneven and weedy even in the posted area. There are also a couple of quite visible rip-tides which are not well signed and we felt were quite dangerous. There is NO lifeguard on this beach, and it's more than a kilometer long. Winds were very high all week, redflagged. And there is no catamaran to borrow, only windsurfing, paddleboats and kayaks. They only let those into the water Sunday afternoon. We tried to go diving, but the weather was not in our favour. One of the nicest things is that there are no palapas on the beach - all of the shade is natural from the existing trees. And there is PLENTY of shade, even very close to the water. It made for a very beautiful landscape. The trees and gardens all over the resort are mature and impeccably maintained. Only a couple of glitchy bits - in order to book an ala carte, you had to be at the desk by 7 am or it would fill up before you got a chance to reserve. Reservations were almost always done before 8am for both sittings in all restaurants. Makes for a very early morning while on holiday. The other glitch was that there was no available porter service for the morning we left as the porters didn't start till after we had to be checked out of the room. Safes and rooms were both key-locked, not coded or carded. Meant we had to carry both with us always. We had room 1219 - on the 2nd of 3 floors, facing the beach and Cruiseship port next door to the Bachata. The view was great and private and quiet. We also had a nice real kingsized bed (not two doubles pushed together). Rooms also come with a fully functional self-dispensing bar which they keep filled, as well as water well stocked in the bar fridge. We would return, though I think we'd prefer a more swim-friendly beach next time. If swimming isn't a priority, we would highly recommend this property.

Had a great time!

This RIU is a bit dated but boy was it clean! Not only the rooms but the premises and the landscaping were immaculate. We enjoyed the food and they had a bbq on the beach on our second day. Having one swim up bar which is actually really large, helped everyone to get together each day and meet new people.

Great time!

The hotel itself is a little outdated, but other than that the Riu Bachata had great entertainment every night, the staff are very friendly and helpful.The food was good! We would recommend this hotel to others.

Management needs work

Visited this resort a couple years ago and it was amazing. Recommended it to friends and 8 of us went down. so disappointed. Took them 4 days to fix our air conditioning, toilet kept clogging and our key would not work in our door. Servers, bartenders, maid and entertainment staff are what saved our trip.