Hotel Riu Plaza Miami Beach

A Good Location but does not justify all the negatives. Would not return. For context we stayed for 4 days. Paying 300 bucks a night. The hotel benefits from an excellent location, right on the beach in the Mid-beach area. The free I-trolley (mid beach loop) stops on the doorstep. The property is generally clean, which are certainly positives. Unfortunately, these strengths were not enough to compensate for a number of shortcomings that significantly affected the overall experience. The level of service was really disappointing, with staff frequently coming across as unfriendly - no hint of warmth. Everything was strictly transactional. On check-in the bell services were no where to be seen, found chatting to themselves in the lobby. The whole team seemed at odds with the customer. Hospitality should be one of the defining features of a good hotel, and unfortunately this was noticeably lacking throughout our stay. The property itself is really also beginning to show its age. It's presents as a 1960's building (i think) and while cleanliness was not an issue, the infrastructure and facilities feel dated and in need of investment. During our stay the toilet flush broke, the door handle came off from the patio and different ceilings throughout the room had been painted 50 shades of white. The bar pricing was especially difficult to justify, with drinks priced at a level that seemed disproportionate to both the quality and the setting. $13 bucks for a small draft domestic beer, in a plastic glass. Even by Miami standards the pricing was silly - both bars were completely empty for the duration of our 4 day stay. They really have got this wrong so we walked straight across the street - another decent hotel, 7 bucks for the same drink. The breakfast experience was perhaps the worst aspect - anytime after 9am, it was a free for all wrestling match. Entirely unmanaged by the food and beverage team who just let guests have at it. Seating requirement vastly exceeded available capacity. Worse still Birds were able to access the outside breakfast area and were constantly eating directly from and defecating on guests’ plates. Aside from being unpleasant, this was not something I would expect to see at a hotel of any standard and it certainly detracted from the overall impression of cleanliness and attention to detail. If anyone at Riu reads this it is the single most pressing issue we had and the hotel management need to please address urgently. It's disgusting. In summary, the hotel's location and cleanliness are genuinely good, but the uninspiring service, lack of warmth from staff, aging infrastructure, excessive bar prices and poorly managed breakfast environment considerably diminish the experience. For us, the hotel did not represent good value for money and we would not return.

I’ve just returned from a 4-night stay and unfortunately, found the overall experience very disappointing. The staff I encountered were consistently rude, blunt and unaccommodating, with very little sense of customer care. Breakfast was particularly frustrating. We were laughed at when we arrived at 9:30am and assumed we could get a table, despite there being no clear communication about the limited restaurant capacity compared with the number of rooms. My 11-year-old daughter was also unnecessarily told to cover up her sports top, which would have been fine had the dress code been applied consistently. We were then surprised to see other guests wearing much more revealing clothing. The breakfast experience itself was unpleasant, with a significant pigeon problem. Pigeons were constantly diving onto tables and helping themselves to food, sitting on clearing trolleys and even eating from dirty plates while guests were dining. They were also defecating around the dining area, which was disgusting & staff made very little effort to manage the problem. Food and drinks were also extremely expensive. I don’t mind paying a premium, but the prices felt completely unjustified given the standard of service and overall experience. We also asked about a late checkout but were simply told no, with no attempt to offer any flexibility. The pool was cloudy and uninviting, adding to the sense that the hotel doesn’t quite live up to the image it portrays. Overall, I felt the hotel considers itself far superior to what it actually delivers. A very disappointing stay. Sadly, I wouldn’t return or recommend it.