Riu Palace Riviera Maya

After staying here March 2024 we decided to return which is something we rarely do as we prefer to experience different hotels. We were not disappointed despite the beach erosion which is obviously out of the hotels control. A brief summary of our experience follows. Airport arrival: Absolutely manic, join...

After staying here March 2024 we decided to return which is something we rarely do as we prefer to experience different hotels. We were not disappointed despite the beach erosion which is obviously out of the hotels control. A brief summary of our experience follows. Airport arrival: Absolutely manic, join the queues and hope for the best. It was a long wait for our cases and then we set off for our vacation. We used the RIU complimentary transfer and it was very good. The transfer was about an hour. Hotel check in: We did the online check in and all went ok. We had booked directly with RIU and chose the option to pay at the hotel, however, we were disappointed that we paid more than the price that we booked. We were advised by reception to pay in Mexican Pesos instead of UK£ or US$ as they stated it was the better rate but this did not appear to be the case when we checked our credit card statement. Our cases were taken to our room, the porter was very good and we were off to dinner after a freshen up. Room: Spotlessly clean on arrival and it was kept this way throughout by Gabriel. We never met Gabriel but the towel art each day was amazing and we were so happy with our clean room. Food: Breakfast: We ate in the main restaurant every day and it was always very good with plenty of choice. Getting a favourable table was occasionally challenging but it's not a problem if you are prepared to wait. The staff are great and work hard turning the tables around. Lunch: We always chose the main lunch restaurant near the beach and enjoyed the experience. Choices are a bit limited but there's always something good, i.e. fresh pizza, pasta, etc. Dinner: We decided to avoid the buffet, it is not a criticism because it was lovely on our arrival night. We rotated between the steak house, Italian and Japanese restaurants and really enjoyed the food and dining experience. Standout restaurant staff for us were Lorenzo and Carlos who were great. Pools / pool areas: Spotlessly clean. Getting a prime spot was challenging due to towel reserving and sadly some beds are reserved and rarely occupied. We chose not to join in with the activities but enjoyed watching people having fun. I did join in with a couple of the pool games which was good and the pool parties were fun to watch. Drinks service around the pool area is great and for us one person deserves a special mention. Sergio was absolutely amazing, his service is brilliant and he treats you as a valued guest. Hotel grounds and internal areas: Well maintained, lovely and spotlessly clean. Beach: Sadly erosion has impacted the area outside the hotel, we chose walks to enjoy the beauty of the Riviera and watch the pelicans. We did still enjoy some swimming in the sea despite the red flags. Bars: They are all good, however, the standout for me again is the amazing Claudia in the Daiquiri who makes the BEST G&T and cocktails. In closing I must say this is one of my favourite hotels. My wife and I are fairly well travelled and we LOVE this hotel. We are from the UK and were in the minority of the guests but the staff in the main appear to treat all as valued guests. I hope that I can return here again one day but if I do not I will treasure my two fantastic stays here. Thanks to all at the Hotel Riu Palace Riviera Maya for another great vacation.

Having been to this hotel before I found the staff were as excellent as before and they are what makes the holiday. However the quality of the food especially in the evening buffet restaurant was nowhere near as good as previous years, no themed evenings and very little variation. We...

Having been to this hotel before I found the staff were as excellent as before and they are what makes the holiday. However the quality of the food especially in the evening buffet restaurant was nowhere near as good as previous years, no themed evenings and very little variation. We choose starter, main and desert, to avoid a plateful of bits and pieces. But we still struggled with the quality of what was on offer. Come on this is a RIU PALACE

A Trip to Remember We stayed at the Riu Palace Riviera Maya for a month in February 2025. The hotel lobby looked gorgeous and the overall hotel was impeccably well maintained. Our room was clean and inviting. When we went for breakfast the next day, Mendez greeted us like we...

A Trip to Remember We stayed at the Riu Palace Riviera Maya for a month in February 2025. The hotel lobby looked gorgeous and the overall hotel was impeccably well maintained. Our room was clean and inviting. When we went for breakfast the next day, Mendez greeted us like we were his long lost family ! he exuded warmth and took care of our needs from that moment onwards, including our sweet Frank, Lorenzo, Carlos, Niko (who called me his angel), Freddie (Steakhouse), Juan and the many other waiters & waitresses. Kudos to their super wonderful leader Esteban for training his staff to be so attentive and caring. There was a good variety of food and the specialty restaurants dished out delicious meals. The evening waiters serving us drinks at the Plaza were well organized, friendly and ensured everyone was attended to. The Entertainment was very good and the Entertainment staff truly made our stay enjoyable. We especially remember sweet Eliud who sparked our interest in learning Spanish; passionate Joe who taught us how to dance to Latin rhythms & made it so enjoyable, Eric whose top notch dance moves & warmth will forever be etched in my memory, our ever so friendly & adorable Kimberley, Jocelyn, Luna, Alberto, Angel, Emmanuel & Axcel who were always there to chat, entertain and encourage us to have fun. Ricky Bobby & Eric were both great MCs. Miguel in charge of the Reception was excellent to deal with. I always believe that a “smile” can be very impactful and management who wear a serious face could learn from this virtue. The beach unfortunately is eroding quite a bit but every attempt is being made to preserve it. Our only suggestion is to provide umbrellas or build palapas on the beach as the shade from the palm trees is not very effective. I would highly recommend this hotel.

Pros • Cleanliness: The resort is well-maintained, and housekeeping does a great job. Our rooms were spotless, and we never had issues with cleanliness in common areas. • Service & Staff: Requests were handled promptly. For example, when we needed extra blankets, they arrived almost immediately. The staff was generally...

Pros • Cleanliness: The resort is well-maintained, and housekeeping does a great job. Our rooms were spotless, and we never had issues with cleanliness in common areas. • Service & Staff: Requests were handled promptly. For example, when we needed extra blankets, they arrived almost immediately. The staff was generally polite and accommodating. • Room Quality: The rooms were functional, and we had everything we needed. Nothing was missing or broken, and they were adequately stocked with towels, toiletries, and other essentials. Cons Food & Drinks – Absolutely Terrible • Food Preparation Issues: The majority of the food is prepared at 4 a.m., hours before it’s actually served. By the time it reaches guests at lunch or dinner, a thick, gelatinous film, or a heat lamp crust has formed on top of many dishes, a clear sign of prolonged exposure to heat lamps. • Texture & Quality: At one of the resort’s sit-down restaurants, a dish had been under a heat lamp for so long that the sauce had congealed into a bread-like consistency at the bottom of the plate. The cheese on the charcuterie board had melted into one giant blob, making it impossible to pick up individual slices. • Buffet Options: The buffets rely heavily on low-quality, pre-frozen items—expect hot dogs, hamburgers, and what looks like frozen pizza at every meal. • Taste & Presentation: While the food may look decent, it’s either completely bland or everything tastes the same. Many items have a rubbery or even crust texture due to sitting under warming trays for hours. • Drinks: Even basic cocktails taste terrible. A gin and tonic, for example, is ruined by the use of the cheapest possible gin. The resort clearly cuts corners everywhere- but especially on food and drink quality. Facilities – Gym is a Joke • The resort has 460 rooms, meaning there are likely between 900 and 1,400 guests at any time. Yet, the gym is the size of a single hotel room with barely any equipment. • There is only one small set of dumbbells, and guests are constantly waiting to use them, making for an awkward and frustrating experience. Final Verdict While the resort is clean and well-staffed, the food and drink quality is among the worst we’ve ever experienced at an all-inclusive. If they wanted to have the cheapest, wine, food and booze - so be it. But at least provide the option for something available for purchase that doesn’t look good but tastes like garbage. If you care about good meals and drinks, you’ll likely end up leaving the resort to eat elsewhere, as we did just two days into our seven-day stay. Would not return.

My husband and I go to Mexico every year and usually stay in the Playa del Carmen area. We've stayed at many different hotels, but like the Riu hotels best. We have stayed at the Riu Tequila, Riu Playacar, and Riu Yucatan, but have always admired the Riu Palace Riviera...

My husband and I go to Mexico every year and usually stay in the Playa del Carmen area. We've stayed at many different hotels, but like the Riu hotels best. We have stayed at the Riu Tequila, Riu Playacar, and Riu Yucatan, but have always admired the Riu Palace Riviera Maya from afar, so this year we decided to spend more and stay there. You can access those other Riu hotels, but you have to eat breakfast and dinner at your home hotel. From start to finish it was an amazing vacation. Worth every penny. HOTEL CHECK-IN/ROOM: Check-in was quick and easy, and reception staff speak excellent English. If you have questions during your stay, they are always happy to help. Make sure you download the Riu app as it is where you can view restaurant menus and check out the entertainment and activities for each day. You will need to get the wifi code from reception. I had to login every time I was back on the hotel property, but my husband only had to login once the whole time we were there, so maybe it depends on your phone. There is an exchange counter in the lobby, but we went to the nearby plaza if we needed to exchange money. They don't charge commission or need to see your passport. Very convenient. It is located in the newer area of the plaza FYI. The really nice thing about the hotel, and it's the same at the Palace Mexico, is that the hotel lobby is enclosed so it is air conditioned. Really nice when it's super hot outside. Our room was really nice and very clean. The shower had a large rain head and towels were conveniently located on a shelf in the shower. Body wash, shampoo, and condition dispensers are on the shower wall. Near the sinks there is a hair dryer, and hand soap and body lotion dispensers are located there as well. The toilet is in a separate little room and if you like a bath, it is a standalone type between the sink area and the bed. The mini bar was stocked with beer, water, and soft drinks and replenished as needed. If you need extra water or towels you can request via the Riu app. There was a coffee maker, and in the closet was the safe, iron, ironing board, and robes if you wish to use them. Very comfortable beds and there is a card to put on the bed if you wish the sheets to be changed. Lots of housekeeping staff who do a great job. We were usually ready to go to the pool or beach by 9:00 a.m. and within a couple of hours the room would be done. RESTAURANTS/FOOD: I am gluten-free but my husband isn't, so I will review the food as it pertained to us. The breakfast/dinner buffet restaurant had inside and outside seating. Servers were great, and the buffet had tons of different options, including amazing bread and desserts. Gluten-free bread, muffins, mini banana breads, and cookies were available at the buffets, as well as at the lounge and coffee bar. I would toast bread at breakfast, so that was fine, but the muffins and banana bread were very dry. However, the cookies were awesome, so I ate those at every lunch and dinner. The dinner buffet offered gluten-free desserts as well as low sugar ones, and if you are a vegetarian, there was a vegetarian section at the buffet. The nice thing is that the majority of the food is labelled based on allergies/intolerances. If an item wasn't labelled it meant it was good for everyone - ie..fruit. I am able to eat eggs, meat, vegetables, and fruit, so I always found something to eat. And, I am able to eat dairy, so I always had the option of ice cream as well. It's hard being gluten-free, and disappointing to walk by some amazing food, but I never went hungry and what I could eat was delicious. We didn't go to the Japanese or Italian restaurants, but we did go to the Mexican and Steakhouse restaurants. At the Mexican, I just declined the appetizer and soup, and I had the tacos, as the tortillas are made out of corn, which were very good, and fruit for dessert. My husband raved about his appetizer, soup, and meal. The Steakhouse offered bbq chicken so I had that, and just declined the caesar salad, and had fruit for dessert. My husband said his steak was cooked perfectly. The lunch buffet is near the pools, and turns into the Mexican/Steakhouse at night. You don't need reservations anywhere. There is also a snack bar by the pools that offers burgers, fries, hotdogs, etc, and every afternoon around 4, chefs come to the pool area and hand out snacks. Every day is different, and could be nachos, fruit kabobs, popsicles, etc. Nice touch. ENTERTAINMENT/POOLS/BEACH: There are 3 pools. In the two main pools they have the water aerobics, games, etc., and also events like a foam party. The quieter pool has the net for water volleyball. The towel hut is close to the pools, as is the cart for books/magazines, and the pool bar is beside the pool area as well, and has a seating area. Bartenders work quickly, and there is regular pool service. We never had a problem finding loungers by the quieter pool, or on the beach. As has been the case in past years, there is seaweed on the beach, but they do a great job of cleaning it up every morning. Unfortunately, this year some of the beach near to the hotel has been lost, but staff are diligently working to save any falling palm trees where possible, and also replenish the sand. It's only a small area, so doesn't impact any beach walks. At night the courtyard area by the main theatre has a small stage that hosts singers or bands every night before the main show. We saw some really good bands. Lots of seating with servers regularly checking if you need another drink. There is also a pianist that plays in the main lobby area near the coffee bar. You can also go to the other Riu hotels and watch their entertainment, and on Fridays the Riu Tequila hosts a White or Neon party, which is loads of fun and guests from all 5 hotels attend. The hotel entertainment staff were friendly and fun to be around. We had a great time and would love to go back. The hotel and grounds are maintained beautifully, staff are happy, and there is lots to do. The travel reps are in the theatre area during the day if you need to confirm your airport transfer or purchase any excursions.

Repeated satisfaction We were always very satisfied with our stay at the Riu Palace Riviera Maya from 2019 to 2024, so we repeated our vacation for the sixth time in February 2025. Everything was OK as always, the only change was that the beach was ruined. Overall, we evaluate it...

Repeated satisfaction We were always very satisfied with our stay at the Riu Palace Riviera Maya from 2019 to 2024, so we repeated our vacation for the sixth time in February 2025. Everything was OK as always, the only change was that the beach was ruined. Overall, we evaluate it positively, the problem increases with the density of traffic from the airport to the hotel.