Hotel Riu Touareg 5*

I honestly don’t even know where to begin with this hotel because the level of disappointment has been beyond anything I’ve experienced on a holiday. When we first arrived, we were given a room with ONE BED FOR THREE PEOPLE. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, our toilet wouldn’t flush and our bathroom ceiling was literally POURING with water. Yes, POURING! We immediately went down to reception to complain because, quite frankly, how can you expect three people to stay in a room with one bed, a broken toilet and a leaking ceiling? To make matters even worse, reception initially REFUSED to move us until the following day. Despite explaining the condition of the room, we were basically expected to put up with it. After going back and forth with reception for THREE HOURS, they finally agreed to move us. Three hours of our holiday wasted just trying to get a room that was actually fit for purpose. Absolutely ridiculous. Unfortunately, the horror story doesn’t end there. We booked this hotel with very high expectations, particularly because it has supposedly been newly refurbished. However, let me tell you, a refurbishment clearly doesn’t guarantee a quality holiday. FOOD: Absolutely awful. I understand this is an all-inclusive resort, and I’m certainly not expecting Michelin-star dining, but I do expect decent, enjoyable food. Unfortunately, that seems to be too much to ask here. And don’t even get me started on the food labelling. THEY DON’T EVEN LABEL THE FOOD! How are guests supposed to know what they’re eating? If you have dietary requirements or are vegetarian, good luck, because the risk of cross-contamination seems to be completely overlooked. It is genuinely unacceptable for an all-inclusive hotel of this supposed standard not to clearly identify its food. STAFF: To be fair, most of the staff have been lovely, welcoming and friendly. However, I cannot say the same about some of the staff working in the American Diner. We asked one of the girls if she could clean our table, only to be met with eye-rolling and teeth-kissing. Not only was her attitude completely unnecessary, but she didn’t even clean the table properly! We ended up having to clean it ourselves. Hospitality and customer service clearly aren’t everyone’s strong points here. DRINKS: The alcohol is honestly terrible. Don’t come here expecting anything remotely luxurious when it comes to the drinks. My advice? Stock up at duty-free because you’ll need it! ATMOSPHERE: Where are the holiday vibes?! The atmosphere is practically non-existent. They don’t even play music during the day to create a lively holiday environment. We have stayed at numerous RIU hotels and have never experienced such a dull atmosphere. You are on holiday, at an all-inclusive resort, and yet there is barely anything to make you feel like you’re actually on one. ENTERTAINMENT: Another massive disappointment. The entertainment is awful, and overall, there is very little to keep you entertained or create an enjoyable holiday experience. I could honestly sit here all day listing everything that has gone wrong during our stay, but I think I’ve made my point. What makes this experience even more disappointing is that we specifically booked RIU Touareg because of its reputation, the recent refurbishment and its claims of being a five-star resort. Unfortunately, in our experience, it has delivered nothing close to that. It is giving three-star at best. The aesthetics of the hotel are beautiful, and I cannot fault the appearance of the resort itself. However, a beautiful-looking hotel means absolutely nothing when the food, service, atmosphere, entertainment and basic room standards are so disappointing. We are currently staying in ROOM 6009, and I genuinely cannot believe I’m saying this, but I am counting down the minutes until we can go home. RIU Touareg, you certainly won’t be seeing us again. What was supposed to be an enjoyable, relaxing holiday has turned into an experience we simply want to forget. Beautiful aesthetics, disappointing everything else. Definitely NOT the five-star experience advertised.

This resort exceeded my expectations. The hotel room, food, amenities and entertainment were all top class, well organized and inviting.