Fabulous

Our stay was for four days and everything about it was great for the time we arrived until the time we left. The staff, food, and accommodations a fabulous. The pool area was great and we had a great view of the ocean.

Amazing RESORT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing Rep from TC

The hotel was clean and well kept. Housekeepers were seen daily cleaning ( could smell the cleaning products in the air). Staff on the resort were very friendly. Check in was well organized , no hassle , no confusion. Hotel had positive vibes!!! Beach was amazing and of course all my travel crew made it the best birthday I could ever have. Thank you to my agent Mr. Oniel Graham for recommending this resort and organizing my trip. His energy was "life", he was patient and honest all the way  [... read more]through. Beautiful soul. Thanks again to everyone Stacy, Kyauna, Leigha and My Heavenly Father and the RIU STAFF ( people who sang that remix happy birthday song) for making it Great.

Great girls trip

amazing time. service was amazing. from food to bar to the initial encounter with the staff. 2nd time here and I was impressed. the renovations are beautiful. LG at the pool made it fun. travis for the beach towels. Ronney and the bar. jameel bar service made the best drinks and would send. a sever to the poolside for us. lets not begin to talk about the jerk pit. buffet was amazing. I would definately return.

Best service ever!

This hotel was beautiful, amazing photo landscapes. Food was wonderful and varied by day. Staff was helpful, knowledgeable, and super fun. Definitely returning. Staff were able to answer questions and went above and beyond to clarify any questions. The hotel was clean and public spaces were maintained. Entertainment team were very fun and engaging. I tried activities I have always ignored at other hotels and had a blast!!!!

Great value

Nicely refurbished hotel. Ocean view room had an obstructed view overlooking rooftop and air conditioning (which we paid extra for). Food was very good and premium liquor was served. Lobby smells of sewage. Pools clean and well Maintained and excellent swim up bar service. Beach was amazing. Overall great value but probably not 5 star in my opinion.

RIU Palace Paradise Island - Very small RIU

The resort was very small pool and beach area crowded. Not the same quality of most RIU's. No drink service on the beach. No snacks or wine in the room. No reservations to be made for a la carte - First come first served. No guest suite to shower between mandatory check out and leaving the resort. Could not extend our room for the afternoon we had to check out at 12:00 when bus was only arriving at 6:30 to bring us to the airport. Beach area between public beach and Seadoo rentals. Extre [... read more]mely busy. No Fan in the bathroom. 3 nights is plenty would be bored staying a full week. Extremely comfortable beds.

Great Hotel

My wife and I did a quick 4 night stay in late July. The resort was perfect. The rooms, service, food, and facilities are exactly what we expected. If you go on trip advisor and look at some of the well written, and well thought out reviews they will be bang on. Check in and out was very quick. The location was perfect along with the pools and beach.

Truly an Amazing place

Absolutely amazing place, went for the first weekend of August and had a great time!!! Any negative reviews you read about this resort are from people who are expecting too much, or from those who have had the occasional bad experience. We have travelled to many places throughout the Caribbean, always 4.5* or better and the Riu Palace holds up to all of them. Here's a honest rundown of what to expect on key items; Beach - Nicest beach I've ever seen in the world,truly amazing to walk on [... read more] that sand with the clearest water at your feet. Sure there's guys asking about jet skis, but before you can say "no thanks" they've already moved to the next person. DO NOT make any promises if you don't mean them,"maybe later" or "tomorrow" is a reason for them to come back to see. Just say no thanks and go back to enjoying the sun. Pools - Main pool is great and has a lot of shade and tons of seats. At 11am we could find a seat in the shade any day, so there's no need to run down at 6am to reserve a spot. The infinity pool is beautiful and has a swim-up bar, but its also where the party groups tend to migrate too and there is a lot of them. Everyday it seems to have another bridal party showing up, but it also offers great people watching opportunities. Bartenders are top shelf, and they don't go easy on the alcohol. Bring your own cups if needed, but the small 8onz one allow you to try more drinks and god did you 2 hands for a reason. Food - BEST buffet we've ever seen, food way always hot and plentiful. If you can't find something of your liking at this buffet then you really need to revaluate your expectations in travel. The restaurants are also nice, but don't stress trying to get into them as its really not worth it. The Indian was great and was not too exotic. Trust me, it was actually enjoyable. Jerk chicken was really good, but for anyone whose been to Jamaica, this doesn't compare. Its more of Charcoal chicken but its great and with the rice and a cold drink looking over the beach its probably a better lunch then you've had today.... Staff - They work really hard for your enjoyment and were great to deal with. Sway at the from Desk, LG from the Pool side and all the bar tenders need to thanked for their hard work ever single day, but you will not meet anyone who works harder then the older guys who does the beach chairs and umbrellas... Rooms - Their GREAT!!!! yes the mattresses are firm, but its cause their new. Great views, fabulous rainforest showers and a fully stocked bar fridge with Jim Beam, Smirnoff, Gin & Johnny Walker. And a fridge full of coke, ginger ale and Heineken. If you ever had any thoughts of going here, stop thinking and book it. The place is fabulous, and at the price you'll not find anything better!!

Great resort!

The hotel was extremely well maintained. Lobby and grounds were continually cleaned and the staff was very friendly. The rooms are spacious and well kept. The dining options were very good. The only drawback for the à la carte restaurants was that you could not book seating in advance. Otherwise, a beautiful facility that I highly recommend!

Riu Palace now NEW paradise

WOW!!! Great renos great staff great service. Hardwood floors in the rooms brilliant Idea. Two pools one to relax one to PARTY!!! fantastic. Breakfast Lunch dinner Buffet has everything you need. But, if you want more there are few more restaurants to eat dinner in. Jerk Chicken bar amazing! New calypso Bar great shows great dancers.... Micheal Jackson show was a real treat thank you thank you Thank you!!!!

Perfect 4-day getaway less than 3 hours from Toronto!

If you're looking for a quick all-inclusive getaway at a perfect beach, look no further than the RIU at Paradise Island. This RIU did not disappoint! Hotel: The hotel itself was remodeled in 2017 and is modern looking and clean. The lobby was beautiful and everything is very close. This is not a sprawling grounds, it is a hotel on a beach. The hotel has an infinity pool bar (gross) that was nice to look at. It also has a large pool that is separate from the pool bar. I really thought [... read more] the views from the hotel and grounds were really nice. I noticed that everything was very pristine no matter where you went on the grounds. Rooms are basic but nice/modern looking. You get the signature liquor dispenser and Heineken in the fridge everyday. We took advantage of room service (complimentary) breakfast brought to the room and setup by the balcony which overlooked the ocean. Life is good! Restaurants: I think there are 3 a la carte restaurants that I knew of. We only went to the steakhouse. It was good but not great. I seriously thing all hotels should scrap the a la carte idea as people expect it to be so much better than the buffet....but it never really is. The buffet was great. Sidenote: This hotel makes great PIZZA (and I'm Italian). I was shocked by this. One of the best surprises is the Jerk Chicken BBQ place beside the pool bar. You can smell the Chicken being broiled on the grill just before noon. You can get rice, veggies, and all the FRESH jerk chicken and pork until around 3 or 4 o' clock. This was such a clean eating option that we went back to every single day. Try the hot sauce if you dare. Make sure you try the Conch at the buffet. It's the national specialty and you gotta try it. Staff: The staff was amazing!! We had an issue with our first room that required a change. The next morning I only communicated my room number when they collected our bags and told us we would have a room right away. Considering the staff changed over, the communication amongst them was great. They were kind and accommodating. Beach: The beach is public but the RIU has a designated area for its guests and you will have locals asking you if you would like to Jet Ski or buy something but if you aren't interested, a simple 'no thank you' is enough for them to move on their way. Don't be rude or stuck up, the Bahamian people are very nice. After watching the jet ski (sea doo) operation for a few days, I decided it was safe enough to give it a try. It was alot of fun. The beach itself is GORGEOUS. White sand and CLEAR TURQUOISE water. Absolutely breathtaking and hard to believe you're a shade under 3 hours by flight to Toronto. We booked through Trip Central Hamilton and they ensured we got a full 4 days. On our last day we left the beach at 4:30pm. Note: If you are looking at older reviews you will see people talking about renting chairs and umbrellas. The RIU provides it's guests complimentary umbrellas and chairs (which provide partial shade). The people who wrote these reviews are talking about the PUBLIC BEACH where the cruise ship people come to. Here you can rent a full shade umbrella/chairs. BAR: Premium drinks. So happy to see Canadian Club Whiskey and Gingerale being offered. Made my vacation. Word to the wise, they pour some stiff drinks here, so if you're a lightweight, sip slowly. ENTERTAINMENT: There is only one bar in the hotel open 24 hours and the entertainment was cheese. They were pumping dance beats into the night and nobody was dancing....couldn't talk and have drinks. Nobody there which is good or bad depending on what you like. IF you want something to do ATLANTIS is a MASSIVE resort right next door. You can walk through and shop the boutiques or go to the casino which is las vegas style. We didn't get past the Casino to see the resort itself but as a visitor you have to pay in the daytime. RIU guests are allowed in Atlantis after 5pm. I suppose Nassau would have been good to visit as well but we only had 3 nights. DOWNSIDE: 4 day vacations are now the new trend for bachelor parties/bridal parties. If you are going with your wife, the few groups of guys getting drunk can be annoying at times. But at least the place is big enough to move somewhere else.

Great flight not so great hotel

As you know we recently just came back from our one week vacation to the Riu Paradise island from. The sun wing flight was good. No complaints as it was on time and a smooth flight to The Bahamas. The bus ride to the resort was also smooth. Our issue started when we arrived to the hotel. When we arrived we were greeted and told to leave our bags in the lobby and proceed to one line to receive our wristbands and envelope with our towel cards for the week. After that line, we were [... read more] told to go wait in the check in line to see if our rooms were ready. Some people on our flight had rooms ready some did not. Ours was not ready so we just waited in the lobby as they would not put our bags in a secure room and we didn't like the idea of leaving our things out in the open. We were understanding because check in wasn't for a bit and since we were upgraded to a specific room category I understood there maybe a wait. We met another couple in the lobby and chatted with them. They had booked the night before on a whim for a 5 day with sunquest they got a room about 45 min before us. Because we were celebrating our anniversary I had emailed the hotel to confirm things when I didn't get a response I thought nothing of it as we had paid to upgrade the trip from a $1535 base price (standard room) by passed the ocean view room $1675 and booked the top room available on your site Superior Ocean View Junior suite costing us $1955 each. "What could go wrong?" I thought we paid for the upgrade. When booking, as you might recall I was confused about the room as there were big differences on the riu site and the sunquest one had no room photos so we worked together at making the requests and I paid the extra to make sure my husband was happy. We were looking for a suite,(no carpet as I have bad allergies) a larger room with a sitting area an ocean view and a balcony. Three hours later we received our room keys. When getting the room keys I thought it was strange when the lady at the desk had said proudly to us we have ''upgraded you " but my understanding is we had the top room category available (which we had purposely paid extra for). I think it's because we waited and I had nicely mentioned emailing the resort with no response. When we got to the room, it was nothing like the room on the website or description that we had booked. It was just a standard hotel room (comfort inn style) with a tiny balcony that could fit one person. The view was of the pool and if you walked to the corner you could kind of see the ocean. The room had an extra chair but no couch or living room space as shown in the picture. Room was on the 6th floor I knew it was a mistake so I went down to speak them. Thought maybe it was an oversight. When I got there the front and they said that was the room we ordered and it was an upgrade. (Hardly an upgrade). She said they did me a favor to upgrade me and put me above the 5th floor ?!! So no suite no ocean view ... why did we pay extra ? We were getting no where and were advised and decided to go to the Sun Wing representative and the man was very rude. Not even sure why they are located there. (I guess to make sure you get too and from the airport). They said they have no part in our room process its what we booked and that we should contact who we booked with. We asked to use the phone. The man said no, u may call using your credit card in your room. So I left very annoyed. I went back to the front desk and the lady could tell i was upset and frustrated. I showed her the room I thought I was getting and she said that was another upgrade. I asked her why I paid extra and she said only my travel agent could explain that. I said I refuse to pay more I had already paid an extra $840 more to get a better room and I'm stuck with this motel room. Mean while my first day of my trip is coming to an end. I walked away. She came after me and offered to show me another room. My husband was waiting in the lobby all day so I went to look at this other room it was bigger but no balcony. We saw it and it was much better than our previous room but no balcony. The window faced the parking lot and what I think is the back of the hotel. I asked if there was a room like it with a balcony “ocean view” liked we booked. She said yes but it would be $85USD more a night plus tax. So we had three options. Take shoebox room one, take the bigger room with the fantastic view of the asphalt or three, pay almost $780+ Canadian more to get the room we thought we had already paid for. We settled at option 2. The room was ok and the space was what we wanted. There were a few things not up to par. One was the shower unit(pic attached) popped right out of the wall the first time we used it and we had to wait awhile for them to come and fix it. My husband was lucky not to be HURT. It came out of the wall just from turning it on. When maintenance came up he said this happens alot from the pressure and was nonchalant about it. The bathroom did have a shower and bath tub which was nice. However I am not sure why they had the bathtub. I honestly don’t think a child could get inside the tub and we are not big people at all. Who knows maybe it was just for decoration. Later that night we saw the couple we met in the lobby earlier, they were happy to receive an upgrade to an ocean view room on the 10th floor for no additional cost ? This is the same couple that was placed on thier room before us. The room was very very musty my suit from the first day was not dry to be pack the last day after being hung all week . The sheets were damp and towels were very hard to get. We had robs that we used as a cover to sleep but they kept taking them. We would leave our room at 10am and go back at 4 pm and the room was just being cleaned. This happened a few times. A lot of people at this hotel were upgraded with out a cost and we were causally told this in the pool or in line at dinner. That being said many guests we met were return guest (3-4 times) and they were not happy with the resort. Most told us they will never go back. The food and drinks were good at the resort and it appeared clean in the main area. The lobby though has a sewage problem that they are apparently trying to fix. It smells like rotten fish especially in the morning and late at night. This info is also on trip advisor and fb groups for this hotel as complaints people have with the resort so even though I heard about I wasn't quite prepared for that smell. The number one issue with this resort is dinner at the restaurant. If you look at all review sites this is the most negative review about the resort. They have 4 sit down restaurants and the buffet. All the restaurants open at 6:30pm on the nose. They do not let you make reservations at all. Their marvelous system is go down at 5:30, wait in line in the hallway which the Air condition is terrible. A host hears the bell and comes out at 6:30 to greet a massive line for all 4 restaurants. They go down the line an fill the restaurant. If you did not make the first seating, you get a fancy pager to let you know when you may eat dinner. If you try to come to any of the restaurants at say 7-7:30 they will tell you they are full and you should head to the buffet. There were nights where we saw empty tables and asked to go in. There famous line is sorry we are full. Who on vacation wants to line up at 5:30 to get greeted at 6:30 for dinner when the restaurants are not very good at all. Certainly not for an hour wait. The bottom line, we would not return to this resort and would not recommend it to anyone. We met a lot of people at the resort and most were happy to be going home. My husband and I saw the general manager with his wife and new born (apparently they live there) and almost spoke with him but felt bad because he was off duty.I wish I spoke up.

Awesome Resort

Great resort! I would recommend this to anyone looking to get away for a few nights or a week. The beach was incredible and water was stunning!!! the vendors on the beach are always asking to do water sports but are friendly when you say no to them. The food was fantastic, breakfast was always good, lots of assortment, the jerk chicken lunch was so delicious and dinners were good. You have to wait in line to go to dinner, but if you play your cards right you can get a buzzer and go back to your  [... read more]room to get ready, they will buzz you down when the table is ready. The rooms were very nicely updated and the staff at the resort was always friendly. We only went in the infinity pool with the bar, it was always busy but we could get drinks within minutes and don't mind party goers. The resort was right beside the Atlantis, so if you wanted to go to the casino at night, you could be there in minutes. I saw some reviews that were negative but you get what you pay for, this isn't the Atlantis you aren't paying $2000 a night. With the prices at this resort you definitely get your moneys worth and more with the food and beach. All in all if you are looking to get a few days of sun and hit the beach this is the place to be.

Terrific Long Weekend Getaway!!

We originally visited this resort 6 years ago and have to say that the recent renovations on the hotel/grounds are amazing. I couldn’t believe it was the same resort!! Only negative I have to say about the hotel is that there is a not so nice odour in the hotel lobby..somedays are better than others!! But definitely wouldn’t stop me from returning. Beach is very nice soft white sand...the water is crystal clear. You do get jet ski vendors and some other vendors selling their wares but they [... read more] are not bothersome at all. Pool bar is very well stocked..only sad part is that the bar closes at 6 pm??? A lot of people thought that closing time was way too early. Food was excellent, lots of variety and plenty of it. As for the service in the dining room..the breakfast service has a lot to be desired..no one seated us..and once we found a set table we waited quite a LONG time before a waiter/waitress approached us to see if we would like coffee, tea or juice. Once drink order was placed the drinks may arrive before you are finished your food...most days not!! Dinner service was always spot on..so not sure why there is such a lack of service in the mornings. But really all in all it was a fabulous 4 day break and would highly recommend. Great proximity to Atlantis for nightlife/casino/marina/shops.

Great resort

Hotel was really nice, rooms were remodeled, shower was fantastic. Pool are the smaller side and too warm for me. The beach was amazing clear and clean. There was someone each day to take a chair and umbrella to your spot. Dinner buffet was very good only part was you could not make reservations to restaurants on resort. Entertainment non existent however you could walk over to Atlantis and much to do there. I suggest to all to pay the extra for late checkout no area to wash up if you do  [... read more]not have a room. Staff friendly and I highly recommend this resort.

Needs improvement

I love to travel, however I must mention I was very disappointed in this hotel. Beach was beautiful, however the food needs to improve, there was a sewer smell in the lobby. The room has a beautiful view no matter what the location is. As this hotel is a 5 star in Bahamas, the food was very disappointing!

Beautiful escape

Stayed at the Riu March 18-22. Great time of the year. Perfect weather! Loved this resort - beautifully renovated. Had a room on the 11th floor - beautiful view of Atlantis and Ocean. Rooms are spacious and very comfortable. Balconies are small but have great views. Food was good. Drinks were good. Resort is very small, but you can walk the beach. Steps from the Atlantis Casino. I went with a group of girlfriends -4 in total - 28-32 years old. Resort has no nightlife after the evening [... read more] show. The bar is open 24 hours, but no one was in it. Perhaps better on a weekend? The sand/beach was amazing - would go back for this on a trip where i want to relax. Pool is small but keeps people talking to each other. Service was satisfactory.

Excellent value for money

After a week spent at Riu Palace on Paradise Island Bahamas, we left the hotel with a definitive plan to come back. The room was generous in space, nicely furnished and the stocked fridge with beer and sodas made some difference. Meals were always fresh and enticing, something for even the most discriminate customers. All staff provided good service and tried to connect with people in order to meet their needs all day long. Full mark for the hotel management. Being placed in the proximity of At [... read more]lantis resort, we benefited of a quick visit of Atlantis park and aquarium, which is a must for any traveler visiting Bahamas.

Enjoyed 👌

Our second time there and there are so many positives to it. Transfer was good - about 25 minutes from airport Check in was easy with a welcome drink. Our room was ready so that was a bonus. It was clean with nice bathroom - no fan!. Mattress a little on the soft side. We had a king size bed. Lovely beach, lots of lounge chairs and umbrellas. Just gave the helper a couple of dollars to set the 10 chairs we needed for our group. Buffet was excellent with tons of choices - tons of veggies, fish a [... read more]nd meats, fruit and desserts yummy 😋 3 specialty restaurants- but this is where they need improvement with accessing them. No reservations but you need to line up as early as 5:30 to try and get in at 6:30, with the risk of not being seated until 7:30/8. Having been to many AI I don’t understand why they don’t allow guests to secure 1 restaurant per 3 night stay. The men in our group actually preferred the buffet anyway. Steak house was very good. Pools are lovely - 1 was very party atmosphere- tons of stags, stagette groups or special birthdays (30 or 40). Hotel Renos are fantastic. Night was ok in all night bar with stage. Daytime workouts around pool. Some volleyball beach. We stayed on beach each day as we prefer it. Another area for improvement is to have a better grasp on cruise ship guests using hotel lounge chairs - public beach so can’t stop them from beach but each day the Riu staff asked people to get off lounge chairs in a nice manner. Atlantis is next door so very convenient. We also went to the marina one night and it was lovely. The yachts are stunning. We would return for a third time as it’s a great 3 night getaway fairly priced with many pluses

Great Resort

Our room view sucked and our balcony was so small we couldn’t sit comfortably! We chose not to upgrade or move as we never spend much time in the room anyways. The beach was amazing! Beautiful clear water white sandy beach. Bar service was good staff very friendly the food was awesome. We only ate at the buffet as the other restaurants were done on a first come first serve basis and I didn’t want to wait in huge lineups when the buffet food was awesome. The games by the pool were reall [... read more]y immature for an adults only resort. Bingo and jenga!?? Other than that I don’t have any complaints about the hotel