Great Time

Check in was a breeze. We were in our rooms with luggage, interrupted by a trip to the lounge bar, all in 15 minutes while never having to go to the front desk. The jr suite was spacious and well appointed.,Ocean view 8th floor with great sight lines. Had a true king size bed (not mattresses pushed together). Resturants and buffets were excellent. Grounds well groomed, Huge beach area. Get up early and reserve loungers.Entertainment was typical resort style while live music in the courtyard ma [... read more]de it very interesting people watching.. Staff and pool areas very nice... Make sure you check your safe is working as a couple in our group had their safe comprimised and someone from the hotel staff stole all their money the second day we were there. Hotel management tried their best to make our holiday as good as could be under the circumstances while having no help from Sun Wing staff at the hotel the tour operator. Hotel Management actions will certainly gave us a reason that we may consider on returning for future holidays with the Riu hotel chain..

Beautiful resort

This was a beautiful resort and definitely lived up to the Riu reputation. We were a group of 8 regulars to the Riu Jalisco and decided to change it up and stay at the Vallarta this time. We booked suites for the first time as this was to be a milestone anniversary celebration for each couple and overall we were very satisfied with the rooms and the amazing views. The restaurants and service were excellent. Most of the staff is hardworking and dedicated to making your stay all it can be. However [... read more], we did have an unfortunate incident which did put a damper on our holiday but we worked through it and tried not to let it ruin the entire holiday. Our safe was compromised on our second day and all our money was stolen. Every penny. Thank goodness they left the passports. So our one big complaint is that the safes are not actually safe. The hotel tells you they are not responsible even though they admit it being a staff member. And Sunwing was absolutely no help what so ever. And our so called travel insurance basically covers us for an amount comparable to what the insurance initially cost us! A pittance compared to what was stolen. Even so, we are trying not to let it taint our view of this amazing place as this incident was a first for us after 5 visits to Puerto Vallarta. The internet is full of similar complaints at other resorts so I guess the lesson here is just because it's called a safe does not mean it can't be accessed by someone other then yourself. We will return but will now insist on keeping our cash and valuables in the hotel safe instead of the room safe. We would like to however thank Martina and Graciella - two assistant managers at the resort, who took this incident to heart and tried to help us out as much as they were allowed to. It was because of them that we will return.

Best Riu experience yet

Almost every year, we stay at a Riu hotel as we love this chain. This Riu was outstanding in terms of service specifically at the restaurants. We were super impressed. The other outstanding service item was the drink service on the beach. Servers would be walking around all day with trays of drinks so we didn't even have to go to the bar, it was delivered right to our beach chairs. The Riu food is always delicious and this was no exception. This hotel is probably very noisy if you are on a lower [... read more] floor but we were at the top so everything was fine. I recommend a higher floor for noise issues as well as better views. It was lively in the evening with bands playing and people actually hung out and partied later into the evening which you sometimes don't see at other resorts. It was a great ambiance and I would definitely recommend this hotel.

Very good resort

The food was extremely good and it was a very clean resort. The staff was friendly and we especially enjoyed the entertainment in the lobby area at night. The a la carte restaurant Sir George was very good. The restaurant The Flamingo was lovely for lunch and the fish was delicious.

Cant ask for more

Good Hotel, everyone was very friendly and accommodating. Nicely set up with everything close by. Walk down the beach to see the turtles nesting... and maybe get to see baby turtles making there way to the sea!

The grounds

the grounds were really nice the only thing was the elevator close to our room was not working and it made for a bit of a walk every time you needed to go to your room I think at night they should have dancing for our age group and the bar open till 100 p.m. for our age the disco is for the young crowd they should think of having a singing bar for people at night something more than the sports bar

Good solid family resort

The Hotel is a great choice for families, there are lots of activities for kids, a nightly show 8-9pm, which caters to the young ones, our grandson enjoyed it every night we were there. The food was really good, the buffet extensive. Not enough beach chairs, though we were there during high season so hard to judgel

Great value for the price.

Beautiful setting and exceptional staff. The RIU Vallarta is a wonderful location for an all inclusive holiday. We signed up for two Nexustours.com (adventure tour and Mexican night) and enjoyed both a great deal! Our family would return to RIU Vallarta.

R&R @ RIU Vallarta

It is hard to explain in 200 words or less! Arrival, for some reason the staff anticipated our arrival and surprised us. The surprise was we usually take a cab and no one to my knowledge new we were coming-SURPRISE!! so FANTASTIC!! ROOM, I think the rooms do need some updating although clean and fresh everyday 2 twin beds together to make a King bed was really not great, also the bed itself very hard, just want you to know, not a big deal but we do like comfort. Fridge stocked well although we u [... read more]sed the water and club soda up everyday and found out they only came to the room every other day so we needed to remind front desk and they took care of it. FOOD It was fabulous no complaints! An update on decor maybe could be looked at. BEACH This is where we like to be. Clean and well maintained. If you had more service on the beach it would be great. The one person that worked the beach did a fantastic Job, made sure we had water and drinks for part of the day-thanks All in All a great week or so at your HOTEL, WE WILL BE BACK! Don & Darlene Fletcher

Great vacation and good value for the money

Excellent resort, great value and good access to everything. Clean well ran resort and most accommodating. Staff very friendly (especially Isreal) always pleasant smiling. The staff really value tourists and make they trip worthwhile I would highly recommend this resort in a heartbeat. Great 11 day stay at Riu Vallarta

Opulent

Everything was absolutely beautiful. It could not have been better. I'm going to the same spot next year!..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Great Trip, Awesome Staff!

Just got home from a week at the Riu Vallarta and had a wonderful time! The Grounds and public area are very clean and well kept, the rooms were very comfortable. We really enjoyed the buffet, they had a wide variety of foods to choose from, the cooks and service staff were incredible they remembered my daughter by name after the first day and always took time to say hello to her and give her a nice complement. We enjoyed the buffet so much we didn't bother booking reservations at any of the ot [... read more]her restaurants. The Entertainment and activities team was also fantastic. I was starting to wonder if they ever had a break, you would see them by the pools getting games together in the morning and afternoon, then up on stage dancing with the kids until 10pm. They always had a smile on their faces and made my 3 year old feel comfortable enough to go and dance on stage even though she is super shy normally! We went only went on one excursion which was the city tour, I really enjoyed it although bug repellant is advised as the mosquitos were our in full force. We also had access to the other two Riu hotels nearby, the Riu Jalisco was less than a 5 min walk down the beach and was very nice as well, pool area was totally different that the Vallarta so it was a nice change of scenery. Overall wonderful vacation, cannot wait until my next visit!

Not so 5 star!

FD staff is not very friendly and does not want to provide service at all! Servers and bartender were friendly! Food was good! A la carte not that great! Bed was really hard! Overall resort was just ok..

Extremely helpful , friendly, Outgoing

Now understand I think it was very close to 100% First time I went there was people smoking in Disco & no problems were caused & this time people were asked to leave & the rule should be just no smoking or drinks on Dane Floor, My other suggestion is more quallity snack available for late evenings like fries or personal pizza. Now its only my opinion , I'm going back no matter what. And move Isreal from pool bar back to bar by theater , he had the ability to get people involved in fun and social [... read more]izing with others you did not know just laughs and fun. I will say I tip above the average tip but these people give 100% to try make you happy & comfortable.. I will there was a couple minor problems but I am the type that will bring it to their attention & they were rectifying immediatly.. Enjoy Just about pool, people using tables in the pool who smoke and fill up plastic cups with butts & leave them to be knocked into pool, try think of others & have some respect for people & staff.

Clean, friendly and hardworking staff

Close to the airport, friendly staff. The a la cart restuarants are nothing to die for. I tried all of them and I still prefered the buffet. Breakfast is amazing there. I was disappointed about the wifi. Every other Riu i have been to provided wifi in the room. At Riu Vallarta you could only use it in the lobby and it was for one consecutive hour even if you used it for five minutes it would expire.

Good place

A very good all inclusive spot. The best part about it was the staff, but everything else was great. The shows, restaurants, scenery.... it's the total package. I highly recommend this place to anyone going to Vallarta.

Great resort!

Hotel is situated on a beautiful beach. Great for walking. Close to town for tours. While the hotel looks really huge, it is quite easy to get around. There are 2 pools, one for adults and one for children. At night the band plays in the centre and there is lots of dancing for all ages.

I loved this resort!

The grounds were always immaculate, the staff inside and outside were friendly and efficient, the buffet room was always well maintained, food always delicious and fresh. The room was very comfortable and always very clean.

Amazing Resort

This was my second time staying at a Riu was a little nervous since my first experience wasn't the best..This resort definitely made up for the first time..Great staff, Food was good always something to eat..Beach was clean..Best times at the pool!!! Definitely makes me want to return to Mexico