The Hotel Riu Playa Blanca is a great resort, but the entertainment at nights lis of very poor quality

Everything was fine excepting the entertainment. Sunwing is not customer oriented. There was a glitch with the movies on the inbound flight and the cost of their food and beverages is excessive. It is disconcerting that a 5 1/2 flight does not offer any snacks and food with the exception of water and soft drinks. I don't plan flying Sunwing any more or taking your tours which have them as the Carrier.

Great Resort

Rooms were clean and spacious. The hotels grounds were always well kept as well the entire inside. Workers were always looking after the resort. Staff were always friendly and had a smile. Entertainment staff did a great job and the shows were good. The disco could have been better, music needs to be for everyone. The DJ needs to play for the crowd not for himself.

Mixed emotions

The convenient 10 min ride to the hotel from the airport was great! You never had to dread the typical 2+ hr commute to get to your bed. The hotel and grounds were very modern and very clean. The food although not astounding was not unenjoyable, in fact there were many things that the RIU did very well. The staff was very pleasant and very helpful. The rooms were speacious and the views were great from whatever room. The ocean although very dark was very warm. The sand being a Black sand/white s [... read more]and mix got very hot in the afternoon. Definitely recommend to wear sandals from your seat to the beach. We did two excursions, jungle boat tour (5/5) and partial canal transit (5/5)!!! Both were amazing. The only thing that actually annyoyed me about this trip was they sucker your into leaving for the airport 2 hours later at a cost of 5 USD per person. There was about 60+ people to book this vs. the earlier one which only about 20 people took. Scam artists! Overall memorable trip with some mediocrity mixed in.

Not amazing , but very acceptable , considering we travel to most .

This resort was very clean , staff were very respectable , knowledgeable and courteous . food was good , although the menu never changed while we were there. I would go there again , although my wife might not, and the reason she wouldn't would be the dirt , not so much at the resort , which was kept in pristine condition , but the beach which was ugly . very bad indeed . The beach had so much garbage , which was mostly washed up , tree limbs etc , it wasn't pretty and considering we a [... read more]re beach people , left a lot to be desired . and if you went on any outside trips , left one with a bad taste about the general garbage everywhere. The resort could have made SOME effort to clean up there portion of the beach , instead of nothing .

Ok resort

Clean resort good food but not a 5 star basic service and basic property. Was ok for the price but not organized at all .did not give us a good impression of the riu hotels. There's no info about restaurant closures. Pool closures. Activities are not posted .rooms are made different avery day sometime its stock sometimes you're missing half the stuff . definitely not a 5 star resort as they claim .now about sunwing all they're trying to do is sell sell sell .been to many many trips never seen th [... read more]is they start as soon as you sit in the plane.and at the resort too.if its not one of there tours they are not interested. We like discovering the area we stay in .but not too helpful.so overall the decameron hotel next door was better for us bigger and easier too get around panama on your own.

Clean resort with friendly staff

The resort was clean and the staff were friendly. Donny at the beach bar was exceptional in his service. It is a great resort for a one week stay. My wife and I stayed for two weeks and found that the lack of things to do around the resort was trying. There are three a la cartes, which is two few for a two week stay. The Italian and Steak House were good, but the Asian with its buffet only style left much to be desired. The buffet was quite good as well. It is a small resort with one walkway fro [... read more]m the main building to the beach. There was no where to walk except along the beach. However, you could walk for hours along the beach if you wanted. There is a lot of sand between the beach lounge area to the ocean, though it is a dark sand rather than the whiter sand of the Atlantic/Caribbean beaches. And it is hot--both the sand and the weather. This resort has no palapas but instead relies upon the palm trees and a beach style patio umbrella to keep the sun off the vacationers. It doesn't work well. The umbrella is a mesh that allows significant light. When it rains it also offers no protection, unlike the palapa. If someone is looking for a small resort with good food and good staff, doesn't mind the beach umbrella lounge area, and is going for a one week vacation, then this is a great resort.

Great Panama Holiday

The Riu Playa Blanca Hotel was amazing.The staff was great,they actually changed are room 4 times till I was happy and no complaint.The maids were amazing,the rooms and balcony were kept very clean. The pools 4 in total were great,however there were no bathrooms close to the pools. the swim up bar I did not go to,seen people in there drinking from 9:00am until after 12;00 and never got out to use the bathroom so to me that pool was definetly off limits YUCK. the meals were okay being a vegeta [... read more]rian and my husband a meat lover it was very hard.The steak house which he loved only offered meat,the side were 2 pcs of broccili and 1/8 cob of corn.We loved the pasta restaurant the best it had a little bit of everything.The nightly entertaiment sucked.

Beautiful Resort

This was a well maintained resort with very good service and food. However, I felt that it was geared for accommodating families and children and not adults. Their guest communication requires some more work as activities and changes to their restaurant schedules were not well communicated with me. The entertainment requires also some work, as they used the same band and entertainers every night and it became boring after three nights.

GREAT RESORT

This was our first visit to Panama we had an amazing time at the Rui this is a great place and resort very friendly staff and beautiful resort the food and atmosphere are very nice would recommend this resort.

Great resort

Great hotel and location, we had an amazing time the staff were all very helpful and friendly great pools and restaurants, very relaxing no one pushes you for anything. The beach and pools were always kept clean and tidy. Would go again.

Truly Amazing Vacation!

My boyfriend Spencer and I went on a vacation to the Riu Playa Blanca resort in Panama, and ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT!!! The hotel was very very clean at all times, there were always staff members cleaning at all hours of the day. They worked very hard to maintain the 5 star quality, and their hard work shows- the hotel is beautifully kept up. The staff was very friendly and made us feel welcome, and always had a warm smile and an "ola" when greeting us. If we had any questions, they would assista [... read more]nt us in any way they could, even if the language barrier made it hard to communicate. They made us feel like they would do anything they could to help us, which we very much appreciated. The entertainment was wonderful, different shows every night, a beach party dance, contests and daily activities and dances by the pool made it hard to even try and be bored. The dancers + entertainment were VERY talented, you can tell they practice the routines and love to dance, it was amazing to watch (especially in the heat... great job everyone!!). Very friendly and modest after the show when we went to compliment them and get some photos, and seemed to just love what they do and were very happy. The bartenders were kind, funny, and entertaining. They had great drink recommendations, and were patient in dealing with the large (at times) amount of people gathered around the bar (and VERY humble with the rudeness they encountered from other guests). They smiled, joked, flipped the cups around, and were very quick in the service. We never had to wait longer then 10 minutes for a drink, and that was at the busiest of times. Drinks were always delicious, and well made. The food + restaurants were SO GOOD! Lots of variety in both food and drinks at the buffet, with a different theme dinner each day. The staples were always present (meats/cheeses/salad bar/breads/pasta), while also incorporating some of the local cuisine and delicious chef specials to try. Food was always somewhere to be found, we never went hungry. They also had a few on-site restaurants which we were able to sample (for no additional fee.. just sign up at breakfast time to reserve your dinner spot!). We went to the Italian one and the Steakhouse- both AMAZING! This is my first ever written review (seriously..this hotel is worth it!). I could go on all day about how amazing the hotel and staff are.. but you have to see it for yourself. Top quality, friendly, respectful, and humble. Not one bad experience with any staff or hotel workers, and we always had huge smiles on our faces from beginning to end. I loved this trip so much, I have been recommending to anyone looking to travel, and enjoy a tropical getaway! THANK YOU Riu Playa Blanca, THANK YOU hotel staff, THANK YOU entertainers + dancers, and THANK YOU to tripcentral.ca for helping to turn this amazing dream vacation into a reality!

Excellent Resort

Amazing and beautiful resort, dining great, Would like to see more English speaking staff. Staff are very helpful, very clean resort a great retirement location. Food and drinks was always available. would go again

Riu Playa Blanca, Panama

The hotel was beautiful, modern and clean. The reception staff were awesome. We booked with trip central but the trip was Signature Vacations. Our representative was not helpful at all with the problem in our room. When we showered, the water came out onto the floor. We ended up going to reception, telling them about the shower leaking. They upgraded us that day. The food and staff were great. The grounds were well kept. Having a choice of 4 pools to use was very nice. The only negative respon [... read more]se about the hotel was the house keeping staff. Everyday we would be left without bath towels, hand towels or face cloths. We had to ask everyday to have them brought to our room.

A very relaxing place

The rooms were very clean and of modern design. The food was very good at all the restaurants. The staff were very friendly! I enjoyed the cultural mix of people from North, Central and South America..The snorkelling is much better on the carribean side.

Great Holiday! Just what the doctor ordered!

Had a great week with family at the Riu Playa Blanca. Food was plentiful and delicious. Staff was extremely pleasant and friendly. Everything was very clean. Entertainment crew was energetic and terrific. Sunwing reps were always there to assist and were very helpful. Great, memorable holiday all round!!

Warning to Smokers and Women

Be warned fellow travelers, your privacy will be lacking. Within 10 minutes of our stay at this resort a male staff just walked right into our room with his keycard - NO KNOCKING. As two single women being in a foreign country my friend and I felt that our safety in this establishment had been inappropriately compromised. We had to double lock our doors every time we were in there in fear of someone else coming in. We also caught another lady (not the maid, but staff) coming out of our room whe [... read more]n we weren't there, and suddenly money was missing. If they take your money, all they make you do is fill out a complaint form and they WILL NOT give you your money back. The manager will just give you a blank stare like you`ve asked for the impossible. Smokers: There is only 1 designated location for smoking, and it is all the way down on the beach path, not remotely close to the hotel. Also, they charged us $250 USD for smoking on the balcony. No warning, and the only explanation was that the maid saw our lighters on the counter. Ya, we're smokers. But just because we have a lighter out, doesn't mean we were smoking there. Smoking aside, because I know not everyone is, fair warning for the service. The bartenders were great, but in the main buffet they were horrible. They refilled everyone's water except our table (walked right past us to get to the others), but more prominent was the fact we had to get our on utensils and napkins most of the time we were down there. Half the staff ignored you completely. All in all, Panama is a gorgeous country with lots of diverse things to experience. I definitely recommend Panama. But stay far away from the Riu Playa Blanca there.

Resort worth the trip

My first impression was guarded , Airport was not impressive but okay' Took less than 7 minutes to get to Rui first impressions it looked amazing. Getting are room was very quick and room was very clean and was well kept all week . The pools were great , and food was exceptional , steak house was lovely meat melts in your mouth, also good for lunch , plenty of shade at the pool side and beach , must say more than enough lounge chairs , one of my beefs is resorts with not enough chairs. Beach is  [... read more]black sand but not bad and must say when sun hits it looks like glittering diamonds. I as an asthma sufferer really liked the fact that their was a no smoking policy and stiff fines if court they had two areas for smokers one down on the beach area and other out front of the hotel away from the people and hotel big plus for me and for all the children. over all this is a great resort and very kid friendly good food good drinks , they could have used a bit more entertainment and better music for the tourists . We found the trip to panama great and it was nice to see the panama canal The airport was good and bad depending on your view it is small and has no duty free and you have to walk over the tarmac to board the plain but and I say this with lots of experience in traveling didn't miss it we were the only ones in the airport as only one plane at a time it was quick wait time was less than an hr and I have to say getting threw immigration and ticketing was not as bad as other country's airports a great trip thank you

Amazing

Our room - 6028- was fantastic. It had huge corner balcony with great views of the ocean and separate shower as requested by Eileen, our agent. There is not a lot of shade on the beach but we were able to find shade near one of the pools every day. The food was much better than I have had at most other resorts that I have visited. Overall, we were very pleased with our stay at Riu Playa Blanca.

Good resort - needs improvements to be great.

A typical, beautiful, clean, well furnished Riu resort building, but with some annoying service problems. Several of the front desk staff were not conversant in English. I'm sure this will improve as more English speaking guests visit the resort. The nearest ATM was in a new supermarket, several kilometers from the resort. The front-desk could not provide change for $20.00 bills (in order to give tips to the staff) and sent people to the resort store that would only give change if you bought s [... read more]omething in the store. There are no coffee machines in the rooms and if you want a coffee in your room in the morning, you have to go to the Sports Bar, on the lowest level, and get a coffee in a paper cup. You get a proper cup if you drink it in the bar. There are four swimming pools, with a large swim-up bar in the largest pool. ( NOTE: The picture of the pool and bar in the Signature Vacations catalog is NOT the pool at Riu Playa Blanca ). There are no washrooms near the bar area. You can guess the result. Some of the noisy patrons even bragged that they didn't have to leave the bar for a bathroom break. Bearing in mind the beautiful clear skies and scorching sun, there are not enough shaded areas for the number of lounger/beds that are provided. Double the amount would stop people having to go and reserve shaded spaces before 6am every morning. HOWEVER, once we accommodated these inconveniences, we had a very good stay at the resort. Our room was PERFECT: Large, clean, very well furnished, with a grand view of the ocean. We were on the top floor, near the main elevators, and in our opinion, we had the best location in the resort. The restaurants were clean and well staffed and the food, which was mainly served buffet style ( there is no "Fine Dinning" as such ), was well prepared with a great selection of fresh and prepared dishes. It was very hard not to over-eat at every meal. The only improvement would be the addition of some shell-fish once in a while: crab or lobster. The resort is in a beautiful newly developed area and apart from walking along the beach, which has black sand which gets extremely hot, there are no local amenities within walking distance. However, rental cars are available and the road signage is good if you want to visit the local towns and beautiful mountainous countryside. The day trip to Panama City and the Canal, arranged through the Nexus rep at the resort, was very interesting and educational. It should not be missed by anyone visiting the resort. In conclusion, I am sure that Riu management will continue to fine tune the service at this fairly new resort, to accommodate the North American and European tourists ( I learned that until recently, most of the visitors have been Spanish speaking South Americans ), and provide the excellent service previously experienced at Riu resorts.

Lovely resort

Hotel is highly recommended The only major problem we could see was the need for more bathrooms by the swim up pool Food was amazing in all restaurants and the buffet was excellent. Wonderful holiday and definitely enjoyed the weather