Very nice resort

Grounds,restaurants, pools ,staff were all great. Love the bartenders at the swim up bar and pool areas. The entertainment was amazing around the pools and at night. Beautiful country would recommend frank the tank services great service

Good

Our thoughts on the hotel Riu Palace: the grounds were well kept that being the grass trees flower beds etc etc. As for the pools they needed to be cleaned more often. Daily debris leaves bugs and often sand & rocks. The washrooms at Papago/Steak House was kept clean (but it better be given its the only washroom around the pool area outside of the one back in the lobby or your individual rooms). Dining areas clean prompt service. However, we feel the individuals handling the food should be wea [... read more]ring gloves, often we saw them touching the food with there bare hands. One time my husband ordered pasta and the cook took the plain pasta with her hands and placed it in the pan to be served. Entertainment by the pool was good. Entertainment in the evening was good.

Nice resort

The grounds and area are beautiful, the rooms are very dated, have a smell and aren’t cleaned very well. The first level suites with outdoor hot tubs were nicer than the suites and standard rooms. There was a horrible sewer smell every evening between 2-5am, so keep your patio door closed. It’s very isolated from everything except the zip line park, which is fun. All the other tours to waterfalls and volcanoes are up to 3 hours away. Snorkelling and catamaran tours were fun.

Beautiful Resort

This was our first family vacation to Costa Rica and we can't wait to go back! Everything was 5 star from the food, grounds, staff, and entertainment. We had a small room issue when we arrived but the front desk people fixed it first thing in the morning (as we arrived late at night and we were exhausted). Our rooms were adjoining as we requested but in our kids room there was a king bed and a cot instead of 2 double beds. (Our 13yr old son is 5ft9 and 180lbs so a cot for the week was not go [... read more]ing to work). The front desk took us to check out 2 different sets of adjoining rooms and we were able to choose which worked better for us. We did a full day tour with Frank The Tank-Cr on Christmas Day and it was Amazing! We also visited Coco Beach on another day and it was fun too! Our only complaint is that we really missed the beach part of our vacation. We always love to spend time at the beach but because it wasn't our usual white sandy beach we only swam in it twice. The resort provides may great pools to choose from!

Pretty good resort

Let's start with a few major positives. The SERVICE was OUTSTANDING. The staff really could not have been more attentive and friendly and did a great job. The FOOD was what I would call GOOD. The buffets for breakfast and lunch were fresh with lots and lots of variety. We did stop by the dinner buffet for a quick desert a few times and it seemed fine but we can't really comment on that as we didn't eat there for dinner. The restaurants were ok. We ate at the Italian restaurant a couple of  [... read more]times and both times there was a very heavy handed use of salt. The Japanese restaurant was pretty good. We didn't particularly care for the steakhouse it was just ok. Lastly on the sit down restaurants we weren't really a fan of the system to get a table. Service for dinners started at 6PM (great for kids but way too early for us as adults). The 'system' for getting a later seating was that you would have to wait until the restaurants would fill up with the first seating and then you put your name on a list with a beeper. It's just odd. At 6PM you would literally have to line up, wait for restaurant to fill up, put your name on a list to get into the second seating. The beeper system did work well. BAR SERVICE and drink quality everywhere was EXCELLENT. The 24 hour food area was bad. Our 4 hour delayed flight landed us at the hotel at 1:00AM and everyone needed something to eat so we tried to grab something and really it was just plain bad. On the resort overall it's pretty tired. We had two rooms between us and our adult children. Both rooms looked pretty used up. Our room as an example had a purple glass block divider between the room and the bathroom and multiple blocks were cracked. Both sinks barely drained (for sure the housekeeper should have noticed that), the safe didn't work, there was no lock on the sliding glass door and some other stuff. In fairness we didn't say anything and give them a chance to fix stuff but still I guess our expectation is that someone would be looking. Overall service and quality of food did make up for the tiredness but Riu definitely needs to plan a remodel to update this property. Do take the 10 min walk over to the off resort Monkey Bar. That was neat. Diamonte Park next door was great for ziplining and horseback riding and seeing some of the animals. We did a full day excursion combo to see a rainforest, waterfall and a cocoa/coffee plantation. That was fun but a full 2.25 hours ride there and we had major traffic back so it took over 3 hours to get back (departed 730AM and back at 630PM). Beautiful country and wonderful people.

Beautiful Resort

The property is beautiful. The room and beds are good. The food was very good. The staff are outstanding. More shaded areas are needed. The entertainment was mediocre. The beach and views are stunning.

Great resort!

The hotel was great, staff were amazing! If you are booking with Sunwing, their reps are amazing especially Sharley- she was very helpful. If you are debating which resort to book with from Riu palace and Riu Guanacaste, choose Riu Palace if you want room service and a chilled resort. Not sure if it was the time I went- end of November or if it’s always like that, but the pools weren’t busy and it was chilled with great entertainment at night. I booked my vacation with trip central, reps nam [... read more]e was Susan. She booked based on my needs and I was satisfied!

Great Resort with Excellent Service and Food! Avoid Sunwing as travel provider.

The customer service of the workers at the resort was fantastic. The resort was clean and well maintained. All of the Food was very good the only down side was not being able to book in advance for one of the 2 supper seatings. Worst part of this trip was Sunwing itself. So many flight delays, baggage delays and disorganization. Plus Sunwing gouging you at their terminal for food and their shuttle bus ride is hell. Pick another travel group if you go here.

Nice resort

Food selection needs more options. Same stuff everyday for breakfast, lunch and dinner Resort was well kept. Rooms were cleaned everyday. Not a lot of entertainment on site. Resort is far away from everything. Far in the bushes

Awesome holiday

Awesome, clean resort. Bedrooms starting to look a little dated. Friendly staff. Nice quiet beaches. Food was okay, but that's to be expected. Would definitely go here again. Experience with tripcentral was great as well. Knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. O'Neil went the extra mile for us. And tour staff in Costa Rica were helpful and available when needed.

An amazing resort & vacation

I adored this hotel and the grounds. The workers are so friendly and hardworking. The food was good and had a wide selection of different choices daily. Plenty of activities throughout the day & evening. Room was perfect. Views were amazing. I loved the beach and area around the resort. So much to do in and around the resort to keep you busy. I would go back for sure! Unreal experience!

Good place to de stress

My first visit to an all inclusive. I was not disappointed, the entertainment was good, the staff friendly, room well appointed and overall the food good. My only complaint would be that no reservations are taken for the speciality restaurants. You have to get in line well before scheduled opening time and hope that you get one of the two sittings available. The Japanese restaurant was below what I was expecting.

A Terrific Time at Riu Palace, Costa Rica

Eva and I had an excellent stay at this resort! All was top notch from our room to the condition of the grounds, pools, lounging areas and food options. Activities around the pool were fun and service from staff everywhere was great making sure you had everything you wanted and a good drink was in your hand whether in the restaurants or around the many pools. Entertainment could have been a little better but overall I would not hesitate to recommend this resort to others and we are planning to r [... read more]eturn in the not too distant future!

Totally amazing resort

The grounds are extremely well kept and beautiful. The food was 10/10…we were there for 2 weeks and never got tired of the choices..the chefs making omelettes in the morning were top notch. ALL the staff were fantastic…well trained, super friendly. Loved Jordan at the Daiquiri bar, Bariliuo and Ivannia at the Coconut and pool server Steven. That is just a few…oh and Freddy. If I had one fault is that the washrooms are too far from the pool area. I would be making the Riu Fit and Riu Ar [... read more]t into washrooms.

GOOD RESORT

VERY NICE AND CLEAN RESORT - JUST A BIT BIG FOR OUR LIKING 3 POOLS - IT SAYS ONE IS ADULTS ONLY BUT CHILDREN WERE IN ALL - HOWEVER, NOT ALOT OF CHILDREN HAD TO GET UP EARLY TO GET A CHAIR IN SHADE, EVERYONE PUTS TOWELS DOWN OTHER THAN THAT, FOOD IS EXCELLENT EVEN AT BUFFET, STAFF VERY FRIENDLY AND ALWAYS HELPFUL SERVICE VERY GOOD BEACH NOT GREAT - COULD BE UTILIZED BETTER BY RESORT

The Riu Palace is truly a Palace

There was nothing not to like. The service at the bars was quick, all 5 Dining Experiences were excellent and the hotel was immaculate which reflects the non stop cleaning - floors, windows etc. The grounds were looked after all the time and showed it. The pools were clean and proper temperature.

Stunning Resort

A beautiful resort with plenty to offer. Upon entering for the first time the lobby is stunning. Big, clean and lots of room with plenty lounges, tables, seats, bar and with a 24 cafe. Great places to enjoy your favourite tropical cocktails while playing cards and favourite board games. Easy smooth check in at the main desk. The check in staff were so helpful and gracious and greeted us with those friendly smiles. Mellisa is wonderful. Mellisa assisted us with everything from pre check in to b [... read more]irthday decorations. The bar staff servers in the lobby are plentiful, friendly and quick to serve you. The resort is constantly being cleaned by friendly cleaning staff. Our room was spacious, king size bed, sofa, table and balcony over seeing the pools and grounds. The room was cleaned everyday. 5 beautiful pools and swim up bar to soak up that tropical sun. Beautiful mature palm trees through out the resort grounds. Clean smooth pathways around the resort. Friendly Pool Bar staff serving everyone in the pools and everyone lounging around the pools. Our server German was amazing. We were always met with a smile, a conversation and of course our favourite refreshments. The cleaning and maintenance around the pools were always cleaning. The grounds were spotless and impeccable. Finally the restaurants and food. Amazing, delicious, plentiful. Something for everyone all day long. Great Resort!

First Class Resort

Grounds were beautiful and well maintained. Leaving the beachfront steak restaurant to return to the main hotel building the footpaths were not well lit; difficult to see steps/obstructions. More lighting needed. More hand rails on stairs/steps. Usually only one central rail except on the main staircase where it was only on one side. I’m a senior, having had two knee replacement surgeries. The hotel is very modern in decor and furniture with plenty of bars, restaurants and snack bars. I [... read more]t is kept immaculate. Constant cleaning in public areas. Staff were amazingly helpful from front desk to cleaning staff. We tried all the a la carte restaurants with the exception of Italian - heard several negative comments on that one. Food was great - selection and quality. Took two excursions which were exceptionally good. Beach is black sand (volcanic country) and had a strong undertow. Would definitely recommend this resort and would go again.

Amazing resort and country! Horrible trip central experience!

Nicole did not respond to any of our post booking requests. She was called and emailed at least 8 times by our party of 4 women. This added much stress!! We had to research way too much to find some of the answers ourselves and still showed up at the airport not knowing if we would have problems. The hotel was lovely but needs more stair railings and outside lighting. The people were super.

We loved this resort!

We enjoyed our stay at Riu Palace Costa Rica. The rooms were clean, modern and roomy. The grounds were well maintained and there were plenty of options for swimming - several pools, a water park and the beach. The beach, however, was rough with a strong undertow and the sand was grey in colour. There were plenty of loungers around the pool - we never had to get up early to put our towels on them to reserve. The staff were cheerful and ready to help and serve us. The Steakhouse was amazing! [... read more] The Buffet had plenty of variety and the foods were fresh and delicious. The other a la carte restaurants were okay - the service was excellent but the food itself not outstanding. There was a show each evening and the performances were excellent, especially the Michael Jackson Show and the Broadway Show. The Karaoke was fun to watch too. There was live music after each show. Overall we had a wonderful time!