On the fence but still enjoyed Jamaica

Just arrived home from a week at the RIU Ocho Rios. Pros - The beach is amazing. Entertainment staff is top notch. Hired a driver from the front desk to show us Jamaica....amazing! Cons - 2 hour bus ride from the airport to the resort. The hotel is huge, needs massive Reno’s (starting in April). Service was terrible. Was not served a single drink at the pool or the beach. Staff were not that friendly. Food was hit and miss. 2 “a la cart” restaurants were buffet. Felt like we were e [... read more]ating buffet meals all the time. Oceanfront room compared to ocean view room was no different except a jump in price (we had both rooms in our group).

Disappointing resort

The grounds of this resort were very nice, beautiful palm trees, and beautiful pools, although they were too cold (not pleasant). The rooms were average and housekeeping staff very good. We stayed in the deluxe wing but don't think it was worth the extra money. No entertainment during the day and the evening shows were not good. Did not enjoy the 90 min drive from the airport to the resort! Food was just okay. Overall I would give our experience a 5 out of 10.

We love this place!

This was our 4th vacation at this particular resort and we have enjoyed it every time. We usually visit with family members (this time there were 7 of us) and that makes the holiday that much more fun. I think all of the others (4 of them had not been to the RIU chain of resorts before) would agree that the experience was well worth it. Our only regret was booking for 7 days. We would have preferred 10 days but the travel firm we used could not/would not arrange that.

Beautiful beach

Beach was beautiful and kept clean. Plenty of lounge chairs, never an issue finding one. Resort and rooms were pretty dated and in need of a remodel. However, the room was clean and no concerns with the housekeeping service. Food was average.

Great resort, great people!

This is our second time to this resort and it was even better than the last time. The jerk chicken at the jerk hut is amazing. This resort is big enough but not too big. Has enough tourists to make it interesting but not too many to make it over crowded. The staff are fantastic, the food has a lot of variety and tastes great!! A la cart steak house Mammee Bay delicious!! Rooms are all basically facing the ocean so no bad rooms. Close to most major attractions even though 2 hour drive from Mo [... read more]ntego Bay airport. Entertainment so much fun!!! All in all fun, fantastic and fabulous!!

My trip with the mostest

Hi! I was travelling alone single woman and made it a point to notice details and take notes so I could write a mindful honest review because others reviews really helped me in booking my trip! Starting with booking with Trip Central Marlena was lovely to Sunwing check from home to front desk at the Riu Resort...Everyone along the way made things easy quick and done with a great attitude! The resort its self had beautiful grounds, location and beaches were divine. It's a 90 min drive with 2 st [... read more]ops at other resorts on the way so be prepared for the drive. Once arrived it's well worth it. The place is huge, lots of families, couples and older guests. Private quiet beaches and beautiful white sands. Food was very good lots of variety. Not big on buffets but they did a good job with cleanliness and there was an la carte steak house option. Asian restaurant (deluxe guests only). Always a place available to eat until late at night. Fun entertainment nightly. I felt very safe the rooms were basic but clean and comfortable. The only thing was I had to change rooms after my first night due to noisy construction outside the hotel but they changed and upgraded me to an ocean view for my troubles no extra charge. I only have praise for the entire staff from the front desk, Amoy, Richard, Anna Maria, Neto etc...all so helpful and courteous. Chef Mozel and his jerk hut on the beach was a major highlight! Daily jerk on the beach and fresh coconut juice thats Jamacia! Staff service from the beach to the restaurants, Desroy, Harkel, Martin...Keshawna, Sharron in housekeeping to onsite Sunwing rep Sandra aka Mama Sunshine👍🏽All amazing!!! No peddlers the beach, clean beaches and lots of beach chairs for guests. They offered every excursion onsite very convenient. I worked out daily gym could use an upgrade but was functional. Spa was lovely. Expect loud music during the day around the pool with interactive games with staff and guests but it didn't disrupt your quiet in the beach. All in all I loved my time and will be back for an annual trip to Rui Resorts Ocho Rios. Thank you I hope this helps the next guest plan their dream vaca to Jamaica ya mon🇯🇲 ✌🏾

Riu Ocho Rios

We enjoyed our vacation at the Riu Ocho Rios...we had a room situation upon check in; the room was very clearly not cleaned properly (no glasses, open beers and sodas in fridge, sand in the bed, no freah towels) BUT the hotel staff provided excellent customer service which we appreciated. We had a new clean room the next afternoon. Personally i found the resort quite outdated but its not a big deal but something they could consider renovationg. Food was decent, drinks were yummy, excusrion was n [... read more]ice! Sunwing is awesome! But i probably wouldnt go to that resort again. Would prefer something newer.

Good Resort

The resort was slightly dated, rooms had a mouldy smell, bed covers and pillows also had an unpleasant door. The food was good but nothing exceptional. The services was laid-back, view of the tropical forest hills was amazing! The resort is small so everything was relatively close. Best part wifi coverage almost everywhere on the property.

Beach was awesome

The only amazing thing on this resort was the beach. It has a ton of aquatic life to see right there where you swim. You have to leave your towel to claim a chair on the beach by at least 8:30 to get a good spot. The food is mediocre at best, the steakhouse and gourmet were pretty good though. Tip if you want good service, even then if your a younger girl be prepared to be treated terribly from the female staff, even if your a very nice person who talks with respect. Other than that the service  [... read more]is pretty good, the drinks at the bar are delish. The rooms were nice, housekeeping sometimes forgets to fill up fridge with water. Views are awesome from the sea view rooms, good privacy. Resort is a good size, rooms are maybe 3 minutes from the beach tops. It’s gpod for a first time in Jamaica but would not go again.

Very good resort

Overall great experience. Food and entertainment very good. I stuck to the buffet as the a la cartes were nothing special. Buffets had good variety and a late night option open til 2am. Rooms need updating badly. Mattresses were not the most comfortable. Drink selections were good and staff was great. Very friendly and attentive. More of a family resort than couples which made for a more lively experience. Pool was nice and close to the rooms. Ocean was great with lots of options f [... read more]or shade or sun. I would definitley go back. It’s not a 5 star as advertised but I would give it a 4 star rating.

Fabulous Resort

My family and I went to this resort for the first time. At the front desk we were greeted by Leighton he was super helpful and had an amazing personality. The beach was amazing, and our room was perfect for my disabled sister and so was my parent's room. Everyone at the resort was pleasant. The food was amazing and tasty. As for the jerk chicken on the beach it was delicious. As for entertainment it was top notch. Crazy Jerry was fabulous as well as all the other entertainers at the Riu.  [... read more] We had a really good vacation and it is a really clean resort.

What an Experience

I went to The Riu in October ‘2018 fabulous weather the grounds were emaculate and well kept. Friendly staff always accommodating,who went above and beyond. If you wanted your room cleaned it would be done after your day off fun. I liked the fact that there were always lots to do and the excursions were amazing!

Good

the grounds was wonderful but the room need lots of improvements.tv poor bàthtub don't run water out property toilet sometimes don't flush properly and the bed and room smell mold and there are roach the towels are very stiff

Everything We were looking for! Fun, Beach, Food

I'll get straight to the point. If u describe this resort in 2 sentences I would say it was the perfect for for us becuase of the location, energy, and people. This is a fun RUI that has a gorgeous beach, great food (too much food!) and the travellers to this resort are looking for a positive vibe. Pros: Beach is gorgeous and one of the nicest compared to others in the same area. (no seaweed when I was there) Largeish resort but laid out so everything you want or need is close. Drinks ke [... read more]ep flowing, with decent liquor brands. Many bars within reach Staff is pleasant (a bit laid back becuase it's Jamaica! But happy to help.) Great location for excursions! (20 round trip to Dunn's River with a cab outside the resort.) Fun extras like paddle boarding and wind surfing, and a ton of games all day like corn hole and darts and fun relay races (entertainment staff work their butt off!) Great music all day Cons: Very dated rooms but clean. Pool could have cleaner water and be cleaner (was merky) A la carts weren't overly impressive (becuase the buffet had so much variety!) Luxury side with better rooms were nicer, but farther away from the fun so a con for us. But might be nice for people who want more quiet. Entrainment at night quiet amateur compared to Mexico or Cuba. (great mj show but he's not our "thing") Takes a full 2 hours for us to actually get their from the airport.

Riu Ocho Rios Great!!!!

We stayed at the Riu Ocho Rios from Apr. 20-27/18. We were a group of 9 attending a friends wedding. The food was great and plenty. The only bad was that the steak house and the Asian restaurants are supposed to be a la carte but are really buffet style. We didn't get a chance to try the other a la carte. The rooms in building 3 need to be updated, not sure about buildings 1 and 2. The beds are a bit to firm for everyone's liking. We had a problem with our fan, but the maintenance person arr [... read more]ived quickly and fixed the problem as well replaced a burnt out light bulb in our bathroom and fixed the other light that he noticed wasn't working correctly. The cleaning staff were pleasant, but counter in washroom washroom was not always cleaned. (we had a dead fly on the counter for the whole week.) We also had a fridge in our room that was stocked daily with beer, soda, and bottles of water, as well as an alcohol cabinet with rum, gin, vodka and whiskey so you could make your own drinks. The entertainment was great, but they had 1 show called Africa that seemed to go on forever and people were leaving cause it was too long, but the dancers and actors were phenomonal. The entertainment staff was great too. There is a disco that was good only because of the people we were with. The sportsbar was good, had a few slot machines and pool table. The beach was excellent and hand plenty of chairs. The pool was great too but sometimes you couldn't find a chair. If you require the safe, you need to rent the lock and key for $50.00 for the week, unsure if the $50.00 is refunded once you turn in the lock and key. The hotel is nice but is in need of some repair. It's close to "downtown" Ocho Rios. I would definately stay at the Riu again.

Enjoyable stay

Beautiful Resort. As always the RIU has great food. The buffet had an amazing selection for breakfast and dinner. The steakhouse was fantastic. I enjoyed a very tender steak that was equal to a fine dining steakhouse here in Canada. I went twice. The salad bar was also amazing. A well managed resort. The service was great in all food areas and pool bars. The service and cleaning staff kept the place spotless. Everyone was friendly. The nightly entertainment was varied with musicia [... read more]ns and dancers. Of special note was open mike night. A great way to end one's day. It goes without saying the pool area and beach were clean and beautiful. I had such a great vacation that I booked a stay at a RIU in Panama.

What a great place to vacation.

First of all the service from the staff was amazing, there was not a time where I did not have them asking me if i was ok or needed something. The food was excellent. The facilities were clean. There were alot of activities for my family including my 11 year old. The shows were good. Definitely going back.

Amazimg resort

I cant say anything bad about this resort. This was the first resort that I saw workers on the resort really work , clean, paint, do up keep on the grounds. the staff was friendly and felt safe of the resort. Everything was great.

Favorite travel destination!

My husband and I have traveled for the last 8 years and this is by far the best experience we have had. The resort is amazing. The whole experience was perfect. The room was amazing. The beach and pool area perfect. The food was awesome and the choices were many. The jerk hut on the beach was delicious. The people there were so pleasant and fun to be around. We were asked many times how our vacation was going and if there was anything they could do to improve it. Honestly, I do not have one com [... read more]plaint about this resort. Look forward to returning.

Great Resort

Well worth the 90 minute drive to Ocho Rios. Resort was on a beautiful swimming beach, had great food, drinks, bartenders, servers, housekeeping staff, etc. Comfortable beds, room was big enough. No complaints!