Hotel Riu Latino 5*

If you’re on the fence about booking Riu Latino, BOOK THE TRIP. You will not regret it! 🌴☀️🍹 Our daughter graduated high school in 2025, and instead of having a traditional graduation party, she opted for a family vacation. So, we decided to celebrate with a week in Mexico! My husband (56), myself (49), our son (21), daughter (18), and my BFF (57) stayed April 25–May 2, and we had an absolutely AMAZING time! We stayed in a Family Suite, and it was perfect for our family. Everyone had their own space and privacy, and having two bathrooms was a huge bonus! The room was modern, comfortable, spacious, and had a great view. We came back every day to adorable towel art and a fully stocked bar. My BFF stayed in a frontal sea view room, which was equally beautiful and just as impressive. We’ve stayed at Dreams, Grand Palladium, Moon Palace, and several other all-inclusive resorts throughout Mexico and the Caribbean. Honestly, based on the price point of Riu Latino, I wasn’t expecting much. I was completely and pleasantly BLOWN AWAY! Latino is, hands down, the CLEANEST resort I have ever stayed at. Someone is ALWAYS cleaning something. The grounds, pools, restaurants, common areas everything was spotless. And it wasn’t just the cleanliness. The staff was incredible. Friendly, caring, attentive, and genuinely interested in whether you were having a good time. Everyone was always smiling — even the gardener! You could tell the staff took pride in the resort and truly cared about the guests. 🍽️ FOOD: There is something for everyone, and you definitely will NOT go hungry! We thought the food was very good, with plenty of variety. I have Celiac disease and was especially impressed with how well they handled food allergies. Everything was clearly marked, which made navigating meals so much easier and gave me peace of mind. I had absolutely no issues during our entire stay. 🎉 ATMOSPHERE: We loved the mix of ages at Latino. There were people from around 18 all the way into their 80s, and everyone seemed to be having a great time. There are several pools, each with a different vibe. Want the lively party pool? They have it! Want somewhere quieter to relax? They have that too! We bounced back and forth between the two depending on our mood. The evening entertainment was decent, and the kids enjoyed the club. They also ventured over to the White Party at Dunamar one night. They weren’t gone long before returning and announcing that it was “lame” and full of little kids. (Dunamar is a family resort) 🍹 A HUGE SHOUTOUT TO THE STAFF! Marlene, Brian, and Nelly took such great care of us during our meals. And Wilber and his poolside drink cart deserve a special mention! He kept the drinks coming and made pool days even better. I’m already missing my morning mimosas! 🥂 One of the best parts of the trip was the people we met. We made so many great memories and met some truly wonderful people. We had such an amazing experience that all of us have already rebooked Riu Latino for September to celebrate my 50th birthday! 🎂🍾 We even met another couple on this trip who will be returning to Latino with us in September! How fun is that? It’s pretty awesome when a vacation not only gives you amazing memories, but also new friendships to look forward to continuing! After experiencing several other all-inclusive resorts, I can honestly say Riu Latino exceeded every expectation I had. The cleanliness, staff, rooms, food, pools, atmosphere, and overall experience were all fantastic — especially for the price point. So if you’re considering Latino and wondering if you should pull the trigger… BOOK. THE. TRIP. 🌴☀️🍹

This hotel wasn't too far away from the airport and we got here pretty quickly considering the mid day Cancun traffic. The atmosphere at first was very calm and chill but quickly became fun and energizing. The rooms are clean and you can adjust to your own temperature which was nice! Buffet food was good! A lot of repetition of foods but you could tell it was homemade and it was delicious. We did not get to go to all the restaurants near the buffet but our favorite one was the Asian (Geisha). Every night they have activities on stage following by a show. After the show they open the nightclub, which is also very fun. The music was good and it's a fun vibe, especially for 20-30 year olds but there was everyone. Bartenders are very nice and attentive throughout the whole resort. Favorite spot to hang out with friends was at the sports bar which is open 24/7. They have light snacks like hot dogs, grilled cheese, nachos, muffins, fruit but they do run out early in the night and they stop restocking fairly early. Any corner of this resort is beautiful so you could take a picture anywhere on the property and it would eat. Dana from RiuFit was a good instructor for Zumba and Step. She also does aquafit in the pool sometimes and she's very fun! Now one thing I originally wasn't planning on doing is going to the RIU parties because they are outside of the resort, however, I am very glad that I did. There are a few shuttles that will bring you to the specific hotel (either Caribe or Dunamar). They are so fun but there are a lotttt of people, so if you make friends - go together it will be SO FUN. If you get to the main lobby earlier than when the shuttle comes, they will do face paint before. RIU Caribe is for pool parties: they will tell you to bring your towel and bathing suit. We brought more stuff - they have little shelves to where you can store it but be cautious because one of our towels got stolen and the hotel may charge you for an extra towel card. And the bus back was very cold especially if your bathing suit is wet and most of the AC on the bus is broken so I wasn't able to turn it off the whole ride back, which is about 45 ish minutes. RIU Dunamar is much closer (10-15 mins) and that's where the later night parties are. They do have children there so beware. Dunamar looks almost identical to Latino. The bus back from the Neon party at Dunamar was very fun. The bus driver turned on good music, party lights and we all sang together. 10/10 experience. The ocean water is absolutely amazing. The pool water is very warm so the beach was nicer to be in in that aspect. The staff is very good at cleaning the beach from sargassum. They also have cold water with fruit before you enter the beach! There are so many activities to do like yoga, gym, stretching, Zumba, water park, beach games, water games and challenges etc. so you are never bored. Things I did not "like": Pepe's food only has hot dogs and burgers and fries every day. Only one side of the beach has a longer "sidewalk" where you can walk with your flip flops, the rest is sand which can get extremely hot. Pacha not being open everyday. Coffee and tea is hard to come by throughout the day. Not a lot of shade at the pools - it gets extremely hot. No cocktail drinks at the buffet. Food runs out too fast at the Sports Bar. There's no WiFi on the beach. The water sports (jet ski and parasailing) is very very expensive. Things that I would pack next time I go: 3-4 bathing suits, sunscreen lipstick, flip flops and sandals, a few dinner/club outfits, 1 pair of cute shorts and a pair of comfy shorts with a bunch of tops (for the Sports Bar and after Pacha), 2 pairs of sunglasses and a hat, razor, clarifying shampoo to wash out chlorine and salt water, lotion and aloe, waterbottle gym outfit if you're planning on going, small pouch/purse to keep your room key, phone, lipstick, etc, MEDICINE - honorable mentions: Tylenol, cough drops, clarityn/benadryl, zofran or Dramamine, bandaids. And if you are on the birth control patch it will fall off in the first 2 hours so beware. Things I would not bring next time: Water shoes unless you're going an excursion that will need them, too many going out outfits and not enough casual outfits for chilling. Overall the experience was amazing and I will love to go back.