Stayed at riu palace Feb. 3-8. I must say i agree with a lot of the previous reviews. The property is absolutely beautiful, but the service is far from a five star resort. I would caution anyone who dislikes sleeping in a firm bed to think twice about this hotel. The mattresses were downright hard as a rock. Not kidding - I did not sleep more than a couple hours a night due to how uncomfortable the beds were. Had problems with the toilet and the in room safe and got no help from the front desk after several complaints. Did not get maid service for 2 days in a row, even after leaving a tip for the maid the first day there!! Thought that the food at the buffet was ok - not great and certainly not 5 star. Never was able to get in to the reservation only restuarants. not willing to stand in line all morning - went in to town to eat most dinners. I think the underlying problems with this resort is that it just plain understaffed. As beautiful as this resort is, I would not go back nor recommend it.

It has been a week since I left the beautiful Palace. Upon arrival in a torrential rain storm their crew was out in full force trying to keep the tile dry. The checking in process took a little time but it got worked out. The room was beautiful, clean and had a wonderful view. We stayed in room 2069, it is on the west side(quiet side) of the resort away from the bars, disco and the large dining room. I wish we were one floor up because the palm trees were blocking the beautiful view. The dinner reservation system(very inefficient) is from 9-11 every morning for that evenings dinner. In order to reserve a spot for the gourmet restaurant you have to get in line by 8am or else you have no chance. The food was fantastic but the service levels have to get better, in peak times it was hard to find a clean table for breakfast or lunch. I would suggest to try every restaurant at least once and I rank them in this order Mexican, Japanese, Gourmet and Steak House. I suggest to tip the maid and the mini bar person, the room was clean and the bar was full! We enjoyed our stay and would go back.

Got back from the Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas on Feb, 7th/05. What an
awesome place!!! We were there for two weeks and didn't want to leave.
This is definitelya 5 Star Hotel!! Beautiful Grounds, restaurants, pools, and the view is worth a ton!! We saw Whales and sea lions almost on a daily basis. The food is great, especially in the Gourmet Restaurant, and we loved the Mexican restaurant also. The room we had was great, cleaned daily, quiet and the view and the sound of the ocean was incredible.
The only disapointing thing to me was the unswimable beach. However,
you could walk down the beach towards Cabo and swim. We took a tour to La Paz, our tour guide "Demisius" was funny, attentive and a great guy!! We had a great day!! The Whale Watching Tour on the Zodiacs is worth the $40.00 USD. We saw at least 20 Hump Back Whales!!
Cabo's economy is good, and most people are friendly. There are tons of Canadians living in Cabo. It was a fantastic vacation.

Let me start by saying, I have stayed at several Riu properties, and by far Cabo was very disappointing. The Riu experience starts at the front desk. I arrived with my family, 4 adults and 2 grandchildren. Their is no bell service to help with your luggage. The front desk did not even know where our room was located, he sent us in the opposite direction. The elevators are misleading because the floors are not numbered properly, if you pushed first floor you would get 2nd etc. The Riu properties have always been known for excellent service and cleanliness. Tables were never cleared after dining unless you decided to do it yourself, and table cloths were never changed so you had to sit at a table that someone previously had eaten and the the table cloths were soiled. The waiters at the restaurants either ignored your request or appeared not to care if you were waited on or not. On the positive side the children's program was great, and the ambiance of the hotel is beautiful. Unfortunately the negative out weighed the positive. We had to change rooms, which by talking to other guests is not unusal. They gave my son with two small children a beautiful room with a great view, but it was above the disco, and the noise and loud music until after 0300 in the morning was intolerable. The service at the front desk was horrible. So many guests were complaining about so many problems that it was unbelievable, and the attitude at the front desk was inexcusable. If you want a wonderful Riu experience please stay at the Riu Palace in Playa Del Carmen, it is the best of everything. Would I go back to the Riu Cabo? NO !! Its hard to recommend a hotel that is so beautiful but lacks in service and cleanliness.