Hey guys, yes Riu Palace was great. We enjoyed the resort a lot.
Here is what we liked:
- Food. Best we've ever had at any resort, buffet was fantastic.
- Size of the resort. It was compact and easy to get everywhere compared to some other huge resorts we went to.
- Service. It was much better then we usually see in Mexico.
- Beach is nice. Lots of shade and places to lay down. No rocks, clean water. However, we did get seaweed one day.
Some of the negatives:
- Not a fault of the resort but it was very windy which created high waves. It was hard to enjoy the ocean. Maybe January is not the best month for the beach.
- The kids club was lacking. It seems that resort is more adult oriented with not a big focus on kids. We did use the kids club couple of times and attended the kid shows but it all seemed like an afterthought compared to the Iberostar resorts.
Overall, we were impressed with the resort and would go back for the right price.
Thanks
Michael
Hello Dave-
Viva Aerobus- No issues with their service in any fashion. We had a little bit of challenges finding them at KCI as they don't really have a "home", but eventually were guided in the right direction. Everything for flights, service, time, etc. went as smooth as you could ask. I would have no issues in booking on their flights again (looking forward to it) and feel they were a great option to go non-stop to CUN.
RIU Palace- We were on a family trip as you know, 4 adults and 6 kids. The overall campus was great for a family trip, after a couple of days we were comfortable enough to allow the kids to tour the property on their own accord, going to the waterpark, pools, snack shops, etc. on their own. For a family resort, we thought it lived up to all expectations and given the price of the offering we had we were very satisfied with our stay.
-Buffet at this facility was the best restaurant option. We did dine at the steakhouse (a nice change up, but more of an extension of the buffet) as well as the italian which is a bit of a buffet in itself. Again, being a family resort we were looking for acceptable food, not a culinary experience- and it was fine.
-One nice plus, the options for bottled Tecate / Dos Equis / Bohemia was a GREAT surprise at the resort, and available from most of the bard. A nice little perk!
-Waterpark was a great activity to keep the kids active with something to do. We had no intention of doing an excursion, so this offered a nice change of pace for the kids.
All good reviews from our end, a really nice family trip for both groups.
Thank you sir!
Nick
Good morning Kim, Dave and the Love to Travel Team.
I will start by saying – it was an absolute wonderful trip.
The facilities were brand new and totally awesome. Views from every room were great ocean views, the facilities were unbelievably clean, grounds were beautiful even though the hotel was only a few months, the beach was very clean with very little disturbance by vendors and the service on the beach was very frequent and very very friendly. We also used the water park at the next door hotel and the sports bar.
Two side by side brand new hotels and we were able to completely use facilities at either property with our inclusive arrangement. Our hotel alone had 6 pools (two with swim up bars & friendly bar tenders). The hotel had two food locations open 24 hours one of which is a huge buffet. But even more impressive this hotel also had 6 different restaurants open each evening with really great meals – French, Mexican, Italian, Japanese, steak and the buffet. The adjacent hotel had other options as well. There were bands & dancing every night as well as a different theater show every night. We especially enjoyed the coffee café we dozens of deserts each night after dinner, theater and band/dancing.
You picked the perfect spot for us all.
Thank You
Hi Dave!
We had a great time! We had excellent weather and loved walking the beach. Going between both Riu’s was a nice way to mix it up.The kids liked the waterpark! The resort is nice, the food was decent. The best restaurant was Krystal- the Asian fusion restaurant. We enjoyed the spa, the massages, facials and pedicures were very good. Transportation to and from the resort was perfect.
All in all it was a success. We had great family time and the boys got in four rounds of golf- not a bad way to spend a week, enjoying 83 degree weather and hanging out!
Thanks for helping us plan our trip!! We would definitely love to try Secrets Cap Cana someday! We walked by it when we went to Punta Cana for Michaels 50th bday.
Angie