Riu Emerald Bay: Wonderful!

The resort is huge and even though it was obviously busy, people are spread out. The service was A+ all around. The food wasn't great but one could usually find something to enjoy. The Mexican restaurant was a huge let down and couldn't understand how it took so long to get a reservation when the restaurant was never full at seating times. We went once and have no desire to ever go back. Highly recommend the restaurant under the stairs for breakfast and supper! (especially breakfast) Asian res [... read more]taurant not like North American Asian but still tasty (we ate there 3 times in the week) The corner restaurant food was hit and miss. Sometimes great or spaghetti soup. Disappointed they tolerate smoking on the lower level despite no smoking signs. As a non-smoking, not thrilled to be waiting for a restaurant to open with smokers smoking beside me. Sports bar is open 24hrs so can always get a drink or really basic food when the restaurants are closed. Can be hard to find a lounge chair outside if you wait too long to go out but overall wasn't too bad. Adult pool patrons can be a little hardcore (all day drinking, never get out until they puke, or just staying) The beach was amazing! Just amazing. But the tide is wild and fast, no swimming. Tell the vendors you don't have money on you or avoid eye contact and they'll leave you alone. Sand is hot hot, be prepared. There is a souvenir type market at the end of the beach, walk on the street side or take a taxi. Have fun bartering with the locals. Room fridge is only refilled every 2 days which can suck but whatever. Room was spacious and clean (I asked for extra pillows) the bed is firm, not hard but quite firm whereas I'm used to a cozy bed at home. All rooms face ocean side of hotel. There were 2 weddings that were quite loud but wrapped up at 10 pm so can't complain. The gift shop charges you in USD but can't accept USD so converts to pesos but being CDN, not ideal. Taxis are waiting just outside the grounds to take you anywhere. Talk price before service, they have a list at the front door (most were on par) Careful of some drivers asking you to timeshare presentations, don't fall for it no matter what! Overall we had a great time and I was sad to leave, I'd definitely go back to the Riu here!

Riu Playa Blanca: Amazing resort

This is our first time to Panama and we will definitely be going back. The Riu Playa Blanca is an absolutely beautiful resort. No matter what room you have, you can see the Pacific. The whole facility was immaculate. The staff were very friendly and always polite. The rooms are new and spacious. We love the beach and never had a problem finding chairs and a shady palm when necessary. Enjoyed the food, the drinks and entertainment. They make amazing Caesars - very important for us Canad [... read more]ians you know. The Nexus Reps were extremely helpful and always available. Like I said, we definitely will be back.

Riu Palace Pacifico: Paradise at the Riu Palace Pacifico

Our group of 14 travelled to the Pacifico from April 7-14 2017. We couldn't have asked for a better resort to suit all of our needs. Travellers ages ranging from 16-87,3 adults needing special services, and 3 of our guests meeting up with us from Scotland. Thank you to our agent, Marnie Savic, for her hard work and special attention to meet all of our needs. It was a wonderful week away with our family. Rooms were beautiful, clean and elegant. My parents were very comfortable in their acce [... read more]ssible room. The poolside area and bars were lovely, and the service was excellent. Food was amazing, and the a la cartes were a treat. I did find that we had better luck booking 3 tables to accommodate our large group. The beach was fantastic. We took a cab into Buccarias for the market and discovered a fab bar on the beach called Fat Boys. It was a great, safe afternoon out. Our kids took a cab into Puerto Vallarta one evening for dinner. Great experience for them as well. It was a memorable family vacation for us, and very special. The Riu Palace Pacifico is wonderful. We will definitely return. Thank you again Marnie for all you did for us. We appreciate you!!!

Riu Tequila: Loved this resort!!

The grounds were beautiful! Service was great all around from house keeping, to waiters, reception...! And the food was amazing not a day we were there were we disappointed!! Hope to be back there again sooner than later :) Thank you To Riu Tequila for an amazing vacation away! Miss it already!!

Riu Emerald Bay: Smaller than usual, but great all around

This was the first time to the pacific side of Mexico for us, very nice hotel, very friendly staff with great service. Our room was nice and had amazing views of the ocean and peninsula. Shirt ride into the city short walk to a really cool water park. Only downside is that we have been to the Caribbean side twice prior to this where the hotel grounds are much larger so we were expecting to enable to take a couple hours to wander the resort and see the sights....ended up being a five minute walk  [... read more]lol. It was still great

Riu Republica: Nice hotel

Lots of beach and pool chairs any time of day, wish there was more alacart restaurants instead of buffets, rooms are nice but if your shy the shower stall is see through glass looking out to the room big resort lots of walking

Riu Palace Punta Cana: Excellent resort

Hand down the best resort ive been to in the Dominican Republic. The buffet had a great selection of foods for all Entertainment and staff were very friendly and entertaining . I would highly recommend RIU to all my friends and family

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: Amazing resort!!

Great hotel with amazing staff, the hotel itself could use some updating but all in all a great experience. Also don't expect great food but there were enough options to make it through the two weeks comfortably. They have a huge variety of activities and excursions for you to choose from at great prices and are willing to negotiate for groups. Will return in the future!!

Riu Playa Blanca: Perfect Resort

RIU Playa Blanca is located just 10 minutes from the Rio Hato airport. The food was excellent both in the buffet area and A la Carte restaurants. The entertainment staff kept the kids busy with various games as well as entertaining the adults (volleyball, bocce, darts, Aquafitness, etc) The night shows were good. Beware that the Tour operators mainly cater to the hotels in Panama City (2 hours away). Book your excursion either at the hotel or on your flight.

Riu Palace Costa Rica: Very nice resort

Very nice resort. Food was good. Friendly staff and helpful too. Rooms are really nice. Was not impressed with the beach as it is dark sand and murky water. Took long to check in as rooms are not ready before 3:00 pm

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: First time in DR!

This was our first trip to the DR and believe the Riu Bachata was a great choice for us! Can't say enough good things about the staff, our accommodation, food was excellent and all services adequate. Can't comment on nightly entertainment as we did not attend any--not night hawks... The only disappointment was the beach itself as it tended to be rocky (gravelly) and not a white sandy type. Considering all the positives of the resort, this was trivial!

Riu Emerald Bay: Superb Staff, Service, and Security

Our experience at this resort was exceptional. The grounds are inviting, relaxing, and fully equipped to accommodate a wide variety customers - families; young, middle-aged, and elderly couples. Our ocean view room was immaculately maintained and cleaned daily, and well-stocked with large towels. The shower water pressure and hot water supply was great! The bed mattress, and room temperature were comfortable which facilitated a good quality sleep experience. An in-room bar was fully stocked w [... read more]ith alcohol and soft drinks. The pool areas were sufficiently furnished with comfy lounge chairs and small tables that were sheltered from direct sunlight. Sun worshippers could relax in any of the many lounge chairs abundantly available on the beach. Each pool area catered a different demographic of guests. The adult only pool with the swim-up bar afforded couples quality time and privacy from families with rambunctious children. A children's pool was strategically situated closer to the bathrooms, and was designed to engage kids in water activities under the supervision of a trained professional. Other pool areas catered to both active and sedate guests. An array of pool side and water activities scheduled throughout the day, created an engaging atmosphere for hotel guests. The hotel spa was relaxing, and the gym was furnished with current fitness equipment. The all inclusive restaurants provided guests with a plethora of culinary options including vegetarian preferences. Food was well-presented, freshly prepared, and appealed to most discriminating customers. The staff was absolutely incredible! Polite, extremely hard working, helpful, enthusiastic, pleasant, efficient, and genuine. We never felt like the staff expected tips at any time. Therefore, on the our final day at the resort, we generously rewarded our housekeeper, the bar tenders, and restaurant servers. Finally, hotel security was phenomenal! Guests were well protected at this resort. The beach was fenced off and personally monitored by security to prevent locals from harassing guests as they relaxed on the beach. Security at the front entrance was strictly enforced 24/7. We have previously visited and stayed at 5 star resorts in Acapulco, the Mayan Riviera, and Puerto Vallarta and felt much safer at the Riu Emerald Bay. The food at Riu Emerald Bay was comparable to other 5 star resorts, but their staff and service is far superior!

Riu Merengue: Great Resort, Great Value

We stayed at the Rui Merengue from April 4 to 11. The resort grounds are well kept. Our room, a little small with limited space for luggage, lots of hot water for showers, but the bathroom got very warm after showering. As i am a fussy eater i was concerned about the food but i never had an issue filling my plate, lots of variety to choise from. The beach has lots of seats in the shade, but the water is always rough and the ocean bottom is rocky. The pool area is very pleasant to relax in but t [... read more]he water was always dirty. Our stay at the resort met or exceeded what we expected and with what we paid was a great value and we would return.

Riu Emerald Bay: Riu Emerald Bay

The hotel is very clean, you walk into lobby and feel like royalty. Food was amazing but sometimes cold. The beach access was great & is quiet. 3 pools good sized & always cleaned and chemicals at night.

Riu Emerald Bay: super

this our 9th time to this resort it only gets better but the first 2 weeks of april are march break in mexico so there are lots of locals at the resort.but its still great.place to go.the staff is so friendly you almost think you live there .it is the cleanest resort we have been to and we travel a lot.

Senator Puerto Plata Hotel: Would not go back to RIU Bachata

Ok were do I start, the beach was one of the worst I seen in all my travels, I have never seen so much garbage in the water, there were days when it was really bad you just stood there and looked and said to yourself do I really want to go in the water it was that bad, one party in our group found a needle on the beach and it was a big needle that really open our eyes. Next is the rooms, the A/C in our room was the worst that I have also seen in my travels, the room had a very bad smell of mi [... read more]ldew in it and my jacket that I worn home had the smell in it I had to wash it upon returning home, I spoke to a lot people who were staying here and had the same problem. I went to the front desk to complain and they sent the repair guy over many times two try to fix it but no luck so we put up with it with the rest of our trip . Problem number 2 my wife went to open a closet door and it fell onto her the whole side of the closet was eaten by Termites so back to the front desk to complain and this time I talk to the Sunwing rep. I had multiple phone calls from the rep. and also the front desk ask if the a/c worked and also if we would like to move to another room I thought about and agreed to it only if I saw the room first I got the key and had a look first thing I tried was the a/c and it was no better than our room so went back to the front desk and told that we would stay in our room, told them that we are on vacation and that were wanted a hassle free vacation no repacking luggage bags, no climbing stairs all our friends were in this building an would be a real inconvenience for us. The food was good and the staff were friendly Stan Riggs

Riu Guanacaste: Beautiful Resort

The hotel was beautiful and the grounds were absolutely stunning. I walked around on our last day and took many pictures of the grounds. I love taking pictures and do catalogue them. The staff were very courteous and helpful. Really enjoyed the entertainment in the evening. Your representative at the hotel from Sunwing "Oryan", was very knowledgeable and helpful " hope this is the proper spelling of his name". Overall our family really enjoyed our vacation.

Riu Guanacaste: Riu Guanacaste

Amazing 5 star all-inclusive resort in Costa Rica. Nothing to complain about, extremely clean and safe, food was good, staff was cheerful, lots of room so you never feel crowded. The only negative was the evening entertainment which was very amateurish. You should also be aware that the beach sand has some stones and extremely hot thus not a beach where you would lay down on the sand to sunbathe. Would certainly would go back but would not fly with Sunwing. Stay away from this airline.

Riu Vallarta: Great beach!!

Pretty good resort. Beaches were perfect and the drinks never stopped at the pool bar where Pedro served. That guy was amazing. My only issue is that the beds are soo hard. By back is still recovering 😵

Riu Cancun: We love this resort. Visited for a 2nd time

This resort is very clean. Everyone at the resort works hard to help everyone. Food was good. Grounds very clean. Very nice people, hospitable. The only thing that is lacking is the night shows. They need to improve on this area. We enjoyed the grounds, the pools the beach. Very nice to have view of the sea from every room. We could go back for another holiday.