Riu Guanacaste: Amazing vacation

Great hotel and staff was extremely friendly and helpful. The hotel rooms are a little dated but clean and all amenities you need, beside your not in the room often but if you are you’ll find a well stocked bar. The grounds ,pools and beach are amazing our family never had an issue getting chairs pool side or on the beach. There a lot of options for food from pool side bbq for lunch to a/c buffet or open air dinning . Flight was pretty good over all minor delays on both ends which were fe [... read more]ared from last years with Sunwing. The only issue this year was our bags took almost an hour from landing in Toronto. Customs was smooth. Would highly recommended this resort as well as trip central for your travel needs .

Riu Palace Tropical Bay: Our happy place

This was our second time at the Riu Tropical Palace in Negril. The beds are comfy, and the rooms are set up with everything you need including a well stocked mini bar. The beach is beautiful, and there are lots of loungers in the shade. There is no need to wake up at 6:00am, to hunt for them. The food at the buffet, is the best we have ever had anywhere! I love the Jamaican choices, and the international variety. The servers and chefs are so lovely, and helpful. They work so incredibly hard bu [... read more]t are also so cheerful, and proud of their efforts! One bartender named Gray, went and got me Ting, ( a Jamaican grapefruit drink), when I mentioned it was available last Christmas and was disappointed that I could not have it this holiday. I believe he went to the store himself, and purchased it. This is 5 star service! Love the laughter at the bar, with all the bartenders, they are obviously good friends:) I had one complaint, which I voiced to the manager. The lights in the ladies washroom were on an energy saving timer. The problem was they would go out after about 15 seconds, and the whole bathroom was pitch black. The next day after dinner, when I used the ladies room, the problem was corrected. We met lots of wonderful guests from all over the world, who we enjoyed getting to know very much. This is a very lovely beach resort, suitable for couples, friends, or families. It has a gentle, calm and welcoming atmosphere for all.

Riu Lupita: Great Resort

Friendly and helpful staff, Good food, Quite atmosphere, Clean pool, Comfy beds, Quite room, Good price, Shuttle bus to the beach Had a great time there Money exchange services near the receptionist,

Riu Latino: Christmas getaway

The RIU Latino was an excellent choice for a Christmas getaway and relaxation. The grounds were very well maintained, the staff were excellent and attentive. We received a complimentary upgrade and the view courtyard and of the ocean was great. The down side was Sunwing for our departure which was delayed and caused us to miss our first evening at the resort, we waited at the airport for our transport to the hotel. Despite having many transfer vans at the airport, six of us going to our reso [... read more]rt were split up and guests were going to other hotels. Two separate vans arrived at the same time, logistics would be to group the guest going to same resort together as we were all there waiting for transport. With the late arrival, minimal staff working at the hotel, we were left to find our room on our own. By the time we walked into our room, it was 2 in the morning! We had a Late departure home but were not able to get late check out. Then found out that our flights home would be delayed even more (same pattern as our arrival date!) we were left without access to the resort facilities as of 5 pm, waiting in the lobby! Our shuttle was delayed and actually a very dangerous drive to the airport due to speed and weaving in and out of traffic. The loss of the first evening and delays home left a damper on the vacation. I would recommend RIU Latino, but avoid Sunwing if at all possible

Riu Playa Blanca: Nice clean resort

Grounds were well groomed, clean. Definite notable priority given to Spanish speaking patrons Not too comfortable with male staff in women’s bathrooms at all times. Buffet was great and satisfied all. The a la cartes were hit and miss. Sometimes it was good, sometimes it wasn’t. Christmas Eve dinner was very disappointing. We had a group of twenty, stood in line at 630am with everyone else to get a reservation. By the time we were seated the staff seemed to be done with the evening and us. Mo [... read more]st of us ordered the special ‘Surf and Turf’ all of our lobsters were burnt. There was little to no meat inside it was sooo dry and all of our filets were served well done regardless of what temperature had been ordered. And no one came to clear our table. We sat at a dirty table for at least half hour to an hour before getting dessert which was served before our dinner plates were cleared. Most staff had left, except for one server who remained taking care of another table. Rooms were always cleaned and a left with a lovely flower display. Would have liked to have water bottle replacement daily in room without having to request. Sports bar food needs to be upgraded.

Riu Vallarta: A great place to stay

This resort has everything you need. The food is amazing, service could not be better, housekeeping, you need it phone to main desk and you will have it. There are many things to do as the entertainment always is doing something to entertain. The bars, I feel could be a little better as there are only two open during the day. I think the other two could open to serve their guest at better times. They will try very, very hard to make sure to accommodate you. Now on the downside, if you ar [... read more]e elderly and like quiet then this is not for you. We are OLD and the noise gets very intense during the entire day. An all inclusive adult only, would suit one better. We would never go back there only because of that reason. A huge shout out to Edgar Meja (public relations) he goes above and beyond. Another shout out is to Richard Velar captain at the steak house. They are the worlds best.

Riu Palace Antillas: Amazing resort

Hotel is very nice and well kept. Employees are constantly cleaning. I was there with my daughter that just turned 18. Some employees I found them to be a bit unatentive because I wasn’t there with my husband. During meal time they would ask if we have a drink but they would never bring it. Beach guys weren’t nice at all. They were nice to males but not females that were alone. At least that was my experience.

Riu Republica: Not a 5 Star

Grounds and resort is big and beautiful. It's so big and busy that the staff can't handle to keep up with the little stuff like taking 2 days and 7 calls to get my fridge replenished. Workers seemed to care about the customers but not the cleanliness of certain areas. Food was just okay. The best was the jerk chicken, I had that everyday. Buffet was repetitive and just okay. Nothing to brag about.

Riu Reggae: Great Resort

Loved the Resort Set Up. Everything close by. Couldn’t get lost looking for Restaurants, Pools, Bars, or Ocean. All right there. Rooms were a little more complicated, but figured it out. My biggest complaint was the whole App business. Wanted us to check in with App Book Restaurants with App Book return bus with App Had horrible time getting VIP Lounge at Airport Talked to Sunwing Rep 6 times ! Finally did it by email Even Bingo is by App. NOT GOOD IF YOU DONT HAVE PHONE Everyone was on [... read more] cell at meals, pool, bar, walking Beach ! Much younger Crowd ! But I did love all the Activities. Thankyou Spade, Afro, Lily, and Twinkle ! Miss you all !

Riu Palace Costa Rica: 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.

Riu Negril: Five Star all the Way!

Where to start? The people; the resort staff are absolutely wonderful, super professional and helpful. The activities staff are super fun, and great at drawing shy people in to include them in activities. There are lots of activities to suit everyone's interests. My favourite shows were the Jamaican cultural evening and the Silver Wings Steel Pan band. The food was excellent, we ate mainly at the buffet because we like to eat outside and there was a great variety of food, I rarely had the same t [... read more]hing more than twice and the fish was fresh and cooked to perfection. The facilities were well maintained and cleaned. Our only disappointment was the beach was closed due to high surf for most of the week but not the hotel's fault, there are three lovely, clean pools with lots of activities to compensate.

Riu Emerald Bay: Amazing resort

Stayed at RIU for the first time, haven't been to a better place ever. Great service both room and hotel in general, clean pools, nice bars with entertaining bartenders, huge variety of delicious food, everything was on point. 5 stars, hands down!

Riu Ocho Rios: Terrific resort

I am not a fussy person and I appreciate and am grateful when people have to work hard for a living so keeping that in mind... Let me start with the grounds....beautiful. This includes the pool (cleaned every morning along with the deck), beach and common areas outside. The buffet was huge it had a large variety of different food every day for breakfast ,lunch and dinner and it was very tasty. The steak a-la-carte was delicious and the portion was huge. We did not try any of the other a-la [... read more]-carte's. Room had a funny smell (bug spray I think) but it was very clean, well stocked. The lobby and seating areas were clean ,we did see 2 cockroaches sitting across from the sports bar overlooking the beach, but this was an outdoor area and they could of came from the outside. (only 1 time did I see bugs this was it). Wait staff was perfect and most staff were attentive and engaging. Bars were clean and getting a drink was a breeze. The sport's bar also had nacho chips and patties to snack on later at night. The only reason I have to take a 1/2 star away is because, a couple of the staff got a little rude in there response to some questions and seemed to have an bad attitude. I would have to give this resort a 4 1/2 star.

Riu Dunamar: Good hotel

You won’t regret staying at this hotel. No problems What made me crazy was how many people didn’t tip the very hard workers at this resort, you would not walk out of a restaurant at home with our tipping. If you can afford to go to this resort you should be tipping.

Riu Flamingos: great resort

This is my third stay at Riu Jalisco and it remains consistently good. I do think the rooms are starting to show their age a bit and would benefit from some updating. A la carte restaurants are not truly a la carte but rather a hybrid between buffet and a la carte. Pool areas are great. Beach is great.

Riu Ocho Rios: Excellent Resort

Hotel was very clean and easy to get around. Food was amazing with a wide variety for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Pools were clean with plenty of seating. Sports bar came in handy to watch football and relax

Riu Guanacaste: Great Resort

Rui hotel is very well laid out. With restaurants on one side and bars and entertainment on other. Beach is nice sand is hot on feet. No shade shelters on beach but some trees. Pool is good has plenty of shade spots. Food was very good, lots of variety. A la carte we’re very good, had to line up early to get in. Rooms were good, a little out dated old sink taps and leaky shower nozzle. Nice room darking blinds.

Riu Palace Jamaica: accessing to other resorts were big plus

During my initial visit to Jamaica, I must commend the excellent service provided by the staff. I never sensed that their efforts were solely motivated by tips; they genuinely appeared happy and accommodating. The overall atmosphere was delightful, and the food was exceptional. While I'm not a fan of pastries, I suggest the management consider sending their pastry chefs for training. This improvement could make a significant difference, especially for those seeking to enjoy a delightful Jamaican [... read more] coffee accompanied by a pastry.

Riu Palace Jamaica: RiU Palace Montego Bay did not disappoint

We booked our vacation (high school buddies) with Beth Mckinley from Trip Central, she was attentive and very effective. We appreciated her customer service and her professionalism. The transfer to hotel was smooth once we got going. The hotel is one of 3 RIU properties that are side by side with the Palace at the centre. They are all adults only which was great. What made our vacation exceptional was the staff. They are Riu’s best resources! Management should treat them better however [... read more], for example, allow them to access wifi during their breaks, allow them to eat at the buffet and mingle with the patrons while enjoying a good meal would go a long way. BEACH:: 6/10, not the best, lots of coral on beach which makes it hard on feet if you walk barefoot. You are limited to walk in front of the 3 RiU properties only but this offers a decent walk if you do it a couple of times. The beach was ok to swim in, the water was warm and there were hardly any weeds. I like that the resort is smoke free and offers smokers smoking areas throughout the property. ROOMS: 7/10. The rooms were very clean, the bedding and pillows were comfortable, the water pressure in shower was great and the room was spacious enough. The design however was not practical with a bath tub next to bed with no privacy wall or curtain. The shower is also in the corner but no privacy wall, there was a door where the toilet is and that’s it. Room service was amazing, always on time and most of the time always accurate with our orders. BARS: 10/10 exceptional service everywhere and every time! Hats off to all the bartenders who work hard to prepare quality cocktails. FOOD: 10/10 excellent, both at the à la carte restaurants and the buffet. The buffet had lots to offer and everything was very tasty. It was easy to make reservations for the restaurants using the RIU application. This application that you download on your phone is your best tool, with it you can contact maintenance, housekeeping, front desk for all your requests. They are very prompt and efficient. Love the application. You can also use the app to scan QR codes at the restaurant and from your beach chair to view menus. Love the app! ENTERTAINMENT 8/10, the animation team works very hard to entertain guests and are very dynamic. Special kudos to Spider-Man, fuzzy dj, and Starfire. We particularly enjoyed the live entertainment but got very tired of the Christmas music playing at the 24 hour bar. I know it is the season, but a mixed playlist would have been appreciated. We also would have liked to hear more reggae music. VENDORS: There are no vendors on the beach, they are in kayaks and will approach the beach to chat with tourists and to sell stuff but they are not pushy at all. The resort should consider a vendor market once a week to allow those who do not want to venture away from hotel to purchase local trinkets and souvenirs. There was a place across the street but it was not worth it. The sign said Santa’s Village but did not see any Santa or festive decorations. The gift shops in the hotel were overpriced. BEACH TOWELS: 10/10, they had plenty and oh they smelled so good. The towels were in good condition and we did not notice any stains. STAFF: RIU’s most valuable resources - 10/10. All our encounters with staff at front desk, restaurant, bars were extremely personable and made our vacation a pleasant and memorable one. Special recognition goes to David (Lifeguard) who went above and beyond with his compassion and kind heart, Tamar, bartender at the Elite pool bar was also a real gem, Monique bartender was also a delight, she impressed us with her ability to balance a tray full of drinks on her head. Another special person is Dr, Phil who worked at the buffet and also made sure we had a table and mimosas ready for breakfast. The only complaint we have are the tourists that came in big groups, the ladies had long hair extensions, extra long fingernails, lots of bling and very little clothes to cover their very large curves. They were loud with no considerations for others, screaming at the top of their lungs in hallways in the middle of the night, filling their plates, leaving most of it (very wasteful) and never tipping for services. Their sense of entitlement was a huge turn off and we felt bad for the staff who had to endure them. We talked to other tourists at the sister hotels and many had the same comments and made the same observations. The staff deserve a bonus to serve these type of clients.

Riu Flamingos: Good resort

Garden and beach location is nice.Had a good time on beach. Foam party in pool was amazing so much fun.Nightly entertainment was really good. Variety of entertainment program.Al carte needs improvement. It is not Al carte it is buffet style. Same menu each day .Really disappointed.