Hotel Riu Palace Riviera Maya

Wow what a place! This hotel is amazing, from everything from the decor to the grounds. Staff are very friendly & professional. I've never seen so much cleaning done throughout an 11 night stay! From painting the building to trimming the palm trees. The food & drinks are very good too, great variety, tasty, well cooked woth absolutely no issues at all. The rooms are spacious, grwat amenities & the AC is amazing haha. The entertainment team are fun & engaging. The pools are great too with lovely views to the beach. Plenty of sun loungers & towels are changed regular, just ask for fresh ones. The shop is good under reception, off the front car park, lots of variety. I had a junior suite overlooking the courtyard which was fantastic but the only thing I would criticise & the only reason I didn't give it 5, is at night from 8.30-11pm the nighttime entertainment is on & it is SO LOUD! I was poorly one night & wanted to settle early & get a good sleep but unfortunately there is no sleeping until 11pm because even with the balcony door closed, you can hear everything! The bass & sound travels throughout the courtyard! As this is family hotel I find it a little odd that the stages are right in the centre of the better rooms. Usually the entertainment stage is elsewhere within the complex. However for my first Riu hotel & first visit to Mexico it was truly amazing! I would certainly say you have to visit Isla Mujeres island...wow...pure magic! I would very highly recommend this hotel.

Another fabulous stay with Riu in Playacar (our fourth)! We started with Lupita , then Tequila, then the Riu Palace Mexico and this last trip was to the Riu Palace Riviera Maya. Loved them all but the Palace stays really make you feel spoiled :) Check-in was quick and easy. We asked for a top floor room which we did receive - it was close to the main buildings and quite quiet unless there were folks outside our door. The room was great - it was clean, the housekeeping staff were there every day and were fabulous, the bed was comfy enough (stiff but sleepable), and the pillows were nice. Lots of space to spread out, a big closet with a safe, a coffee pot, a mini fridge with lots of waters and of course the complimentary alcohol dispensers :) We always had clean fluffy towels. Stay in rooms with folks you know well because you will see their backside through the shower door haha. Pools - for the normies, we had access to three pools (party, beside the party infinity pool, and the swim up bar). The swim up was full of folks all the time - who rarely left the water yet were drinking all day - so you do the math. We were at the minimally quieter party infinity pool which was fine - I appreciated the shade coverage and it was fun to watch the party pool action. It was warm while we were there so the water was cooler in the mornings but got quite warm in the afternoons. One note - when we checked in, we asked if we could pay a fee to upgrade to quiet pool access (we’re not party people) yet stay in our booked room. We just wanted quiet. It wasn’t possible unless we paid to upgrade our whole room and the only new location available was first floor right beside the lunch buffet. So an extra $800+ for the week for a noisy room. Pass. It’s a missed opportunity for Riu - the quiet pool was always almost empty. We would have paid $500 just for quiet pool access. Beach - nice for walks and lots of folks were swimming. There was a ton of seaweed every morning but they worked really hard to keep it cleaned up as much as possible. Food - we only ate at the buffets because of dietary issues. It was fine to great depending on the day. Service was excellent though! Never had an issue with getting a clean table and drinks. The staff in the buffets are wonderful! The hotel was responsive to any concerns that we had. Our power went out one night and they sent someone right up to fix it (it was a tripped breaker). One tip - bring a fire stick! It’s a great way to watch tv if you want a quiet room night :) We would absolutely stay again and are looking forward to trying a Riu in Los Cabos next!