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Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas: Traveler Reviews


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2nd year at the RIU...a truthful review

Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas

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4 of 5 stars
yellowstone96 4 contributions
montana
Jul 17, 2006
41/41 found this review helpful

Wife and I just returned from a week at the RIU Palace in Cabo. I will try to give an honest opinion about our trip:

First of all let me start by saying that when reading reviews on this site, please take with a grain of salt. For example...recently someone stated that the vast majority of the reviews of the RIU said the food was bad. The reality is that there are roughly 2 new reviews of this property per day. There are 648 rooms at this property. So by my math only a small percentage of people write reviews on this site. Also keep in mind that for the most part, most of the people that take time to write a review only do so if there experience is poor. That being said here is our report:


Check in: Easy, glass of wine is waiting when we got there. Waited about 5 minutes as they got our key, map, safe lock and key, etc.... Offered to give us some orientation but since we were there last year we did not need it. Someone offered to take our bags, but that was not needed at all.

Room: Great! Not as nice a view as last year, but still could see the ocean and not as loud as our room above the disco as last year. It has been said that the walls are paper thin...not true. We had a room next to some younger kids and never heard them at all. The spot where you get the most noise is from the door. So if people are walking down the corridor loudly, you can hear it through the door.

Service: Great! Could not ask for nicer more friendly people. I am sure that there might be one or two bad eggs that work there, that is true anywhere, however we never saw any. Smiles, smiles and more smiles! Room cleaned up every day, we tipped 2 bucks per day. Fridge re-filled every day, we tipped 2 bucks per. Restaurant staff were friendly and helpful.

Pools and grounds: Amazing! Grounds are beautiful, great views, and everyone is always cleaning. The pools are clear and warm. We read a ton of reviews about how cold the water was....those people must live on the sun, because the water was fine. The swim up bars get a little cloudy in the afternoons, but after a day of sunscreen and booze spilling it is to be expected.

Activities: If there are people that work any harder to try and make sure you have a good time I would like to see them. They offer so much and try there best. We watched a ton of beach volleyball, also saw drinking contest, water volleyball, aerobics, etc....plenty to do to keep busy if that is your thing.

Food: Probably the biggest point of contention on most reviews written here. In my opinion, this area is all about expectations. It is NOT 5 star oh my god, best food ever kind of food. If that is what you expect or demand...do not go to this resort!!!! The food is very adequate. It is fine! Breakfast buffet is great....made to order omelets, cereal, fruit, bread, sausage, bacon, pancakes, tons and tons of stuff.
Lunch: One area has lots of burgers, hot dogs, pizza, frys, etc....we ate lunch mostly at the Mexican restaurant which is the Italian place during lunch. Good pasta, like 4 or 5 different types with 3 types of sauce....alfredo, meat, and marinara. Normally one or two types of grilled fish, and a couple of pasta dishes. Also pizza and salads available.
Dinner: Buffet is fine, different theme every night.....The buffet always has some mexican food available on the left side and always has some italian on the right side....the large buffet in the middle is the one that changes. Salad bars,fruit, bread....lots to choose from.

Reservation dinners: The reservation systemm was better this year. We made two reservations the day we got there around 4pm...no waiting in line. We ate at the Mexican restaurant the first night there. They take your order for the main course then you serv yourself your other items from a buffet type area. It was good, nothing spectacular but good. We also ate at thte steakhouse. It is in the area where lunch is served during the day. Please understand this is Mexico and do not expect Ruth Chris level steaks! Our food was fine, we had a salad, some very good soup and enjoyed our steaks quite a bit. Anyone complaing about the food, is too picky and should not stay at an all inclusive in my opinion. Also, there is a dress code, signs are everywhere and it is in the literature in the room and on there web site. No excuse for not knowing this!

While we thought the food was fine, you need to go into town for food at least a couple of times. Much better food is in town. We ate at the Giggling Marlin, the Office, Ole Ole, La Galleria. All were very good.

Night life: The shows are cheesy but they try so hard. Not our cup of tea, but they do a fine job. The disco opens at 11 and is really a place where the 18 year olds that like to drink hang out. If you like night life, go to town. Cabo Wabo was great, the Giggling Marlin was great and Squid Roe was fun. Town is where the night life is if you are over 18.

Weather and ocean: Sunny and hot everyday. Wear sunscreen! We tanned 2 months prior to going and still burned and we are pretty tan people. DO NOT SWIM IN THE OCEAN IN FRONT OF THE RIU! A person was killed when his neck was broken from the surf the day before we got there and according to a witness he shrugged off the red flag and said "I'm a good swimmer". We also saw a water taxi hit by a wave and break into a dozen pieces and sink! If you want to spend lots of time in the ocean, don't go to this resort!

The negatives: My only negatives are some of the guests! We heard a lady complain because the staff spoke Spanish! Heard a lady say no one told her not to drink the water from the tap! People need to relax...chill out....you are on vacation at a beautiful resort in a beautiful area of the world....CHILL! I wish people would not bring their kids into the swim up bar.....it is a BAR! It gets a tad rowdy at times....we are in there because we want to drink and not be around kids. Please do not bring your youngster with goggles and water guns into this area. There are 2 HUGE pools for them to enjoy! We did get sick while on this trip, but we eat a very strick diet at home and our system just did not take to the change, also we got sick after eating at the office best we could tell and not the resort. You may get sick from eating something, but you run that risk at home.

In summary, we had a VERY good time again this year and would return to this property. People need to relax and enjoy themselves instead of finding things to complain about. Not saying that everything is, was, or will be perfect but do a better job of rolling with the punches. It sures beats being at work! Feel free to e-mail us at yellowstone96@hotmail.com if anyone has any specific questions!

  • My ratings for this hotel
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
  • Date of stay July 2006
  • Member since June 28, 2005
  • I recommend this hotel for Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, Tourists
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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RIU Great Place!

Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas

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5 of 5 stars
gravitykills2097 57 contributions
Toronto, Canada
Jul 16, 2006
31/31 found this review helpful

We just returned from our stay at the Riu Palace in Cabo San Lucas, Los Cabos, Mexico. There are no words to describe how unbelievably amazing this place is. For a new hotel, the service and experience was unforgettable. Other family members are already looking into booking at the Riu Palace for their vacation as a result.
Everyday whether it was morning, day, or night time, the staff was constantly cleaning to ensure the place stayed a Palace. Nearly every day we saw painters doing touch-ups to the hotel to keep it clean and gorgeous. The tiles that cover the entire exterior grounds were washed down every single day with cleaner and water and scrubbing. Even the decorative railings along the perimeter of the hotel were cleaned with clothes, soap and water. Everyday we saw groundskeepers out trimming the bushes, the lawn, and the trees; there really was not a single branch or blade of grass that was visibly not trimmed. In relation to other review that was left, that said the pools were not cleaned, that is a total lie. If you go out and walk the resort at night, you will definitely see the pool guy putting chlorine in the pool and taking out waste from the pool. There was also a young man who would stand on the side of the pool, and even go into the shallow parts with a skimmer to clean up the water. In relation to the ‘film’ that may be seen in a corner at times, if you consider the amount of people that are in the water at the same time, wearing sunscreen or oils, it is reasonable to see a bit of film as a result, it is nothing to be disgusted or appalled by. The one thing that truly annoyed us, were the people who actually stayed at the resort, there was unfortunately a few that were completely inconsiderate. It should not matter whether you have people that are constantly cleaning up after you or not, it is never right to discard you apple waste in the pool at night, or throw your banana peel, nachos, or beer into the ash trays at the resort. People also tossed their dishes out in the hallway with all the food waste they did not want. It was absolutely sad to see that people would act like that, simply because they did not have to clean up after themselves, or wash their own dishes.
Also, as far as having a problem with you room upon arrival, there is no need to flash money in front of the concierges’ face to get a room change. We arrived and were checked in smoothly. We got to our room, 0159, and we did not like it, there was a view of a small courtyard area, and no real view of the ocean. The ocean view was not so much the issue, we really did not want to be in a room where there was a bit of discoloration on the ceiling and some dust on the vent cover (both very minor issues). Either way, we called the front desk and told them we did not like it because of those issues, immediately, we were changed over to another room even though they were overbooked. We were moved to room 3048 where we were on the 3rd floor with our balcony facing the interior of the property so we had a view of the pool area, the fountain area, and most importantly, the ocean. It was AMAZING!!!

In relation to the food that is available at the resort, it is best to start off by letting you know that out of the two of us, one of us has a fairly decent stomach and digestive system that can handle a lot of different foods, while the other has an extremely sensitive digestive system that spans from Lactose Intolerance to a severe case of Irritable Bowel Disease/Syndrome (spasm in the colon from un-soluble fiber foods, spices, fat, dairy, etc) which results in a lot of pain and diarrhea.
THE FOOD:
We arrived around noon on Monday June 26th, we were not really ready for food because there was a meal and snacks on the flight from Toronto, however we did stop at the Snack Bar for a little bit to eat before hitting the pool side. For dinner however, we went to the Buffet and it was the most gorgeous, elaborate place made up simply for a common buffet. Just as the structure itself was amazing, great effort was also put into the foods even though it was a buffet. There is definitely no chance of getting this type of food for you meals three times a day at any regular buffet in your home city or town.
Monday Dinner (buffet):
Ribs, Rice, buns, Potatoes, Ice Cream, Chocolate covered Marshmallows and of course Bottled Corona.
IBS Meal: Grilled Salmon, Grilled Fish Fillet, Rice (corn and spices), Rice (carrot and zucchini), bread buns, carrot shredding, and 7 UP
Tuesday Breakfast (buffet):
Sausage, bacon, sunny side-up eggs, omelet with bacon and cheese, toast, coffee, OJ
IBS Meal: Baked Potatoes cubes, boiled egg whites, peach halves, peach jam, bread (long bread that is fresh French), carrots
Lunch at Snack Bar:
Pasta, burger, fries, fruits, ice cream
IBS Meal: Carrots, pasta with garlic, rice (carrot, zucchini, garlic), bread
Specialty Dinner at San Jose (Mexican):
Burritos
IBS: Chicken Gourmet (didn’t eat much of it, they did not understand that I asked for it to be plain)
Went to the Buffet:
Had some rice, carrots and bread
Wednesday Breakfast:
IBS: boiled egg whites, bread with peach jam, pears, carrots
Lunch at Snack Bar:
IBS: rice, bread, carrot, pasta
Specialty Dinner: Steak House
Tenderloin Steak, side of onion, tomatoes, baked potatoes
IBS Meal: Grilled Chicken Breast plain (same side of)
Thursday Breakfast:
Same as above
Lunch at Snack Bar:
IBS Meal: Potatoes (all the potatoes, though spiced differently never caused a problem, just did not eat the skin), pasta, bread, lettuce with carrots
Dinner at Buffet; Theme: Chef’s Night:
Lamb, Beef cubes, chicken thigh, bread, Corona
IBS Meal: Rice, Lettuce and carrots, Chicken (BBQ), Bread, Banana
Friday Breakfast:
Same as above
Lunch at Snack Bar:
IBS Meal: bread, lettuce and carrots, pasta, banana, apple
Specialty Dinner: Japanese, Musaki
There was a complimentary sushi plate, as well as an appetizer (sushi), a main course: Beef dish order; IBS Meal: Chicken Teriyaki Skewer Dish (no problems with this at all)
Saturday Breakfast:
Same as above, some cereal as well (IBS: Corn Flakes)
Lunch at Snack Bar:
French Fries, potatoes, pizza, pasta
IBS Meal: Pasta, potatoes, bread, lettuce
Dinner at Buffet: Theme Night: Mexican
Pasta, Penne with Sauce, Burritos
IBS Meal: Paprika Potatoes, pasta, bread, lettuce and carrots
Sunday Breakfast:
Same as above
Lunch Buffet at Crown Plaza Hotel:
NOTHING REALLY GOOD HERE.
Went to the snack bar and had some burritos
IBS Meal: Tostitos with salsa juice (not the actual tomatoes, onions and spices)
Dinner at Buffet Restaurant at Crown Plaza Hotel:
NOTHING REALLY GOOD HERE.
Turkey, smoke pork meat, potatoes
IBS Meal: Potatoes, carrots, lettuce, bread

THE ROOM:
As detailed above, with the minor issues we had with the first room, we were changed to another one right away, even though they were over-booked.
In relation to the over-booking, on the Saturday evening we received a call to our room from the front desk. They kindly told us that they had an offer for us because they were over-booked and had a new group of people coming to the hotel. We were set to check out on the 3rd of July so the hotel offered us a free, all-inclusive 5-night voucher to any Caribbean Riu hotel during the next year if we would be willing to transfer to the Crown Plaza to stay Sunday night. This really was not an issue, even though the food was not the greatest at Crown Plaza. The room did not compare to the Riu Palace nor did the Bar Fridge in the room, but it was still a nice hotel.
The Bar Fridge in the room at the Riu Palace was amazing, it was fairly large, and it was filled with about 6 Corona’s and some 7UP, Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Orange Soda, as was as purified bottled water. As far as the other reviews that say the fridge was not stocked and so on, the fridges are stocked every second day, however, if you require more of anything, all you have to do is call the front desk and within the ½ hour the ‘delivery guy’ shows up. The delivery guy is so generous, if the call was for Corona, they stock that fridge so tight to ensure you have a good time.
There was also 4 bottles of liquor for your perusal to make mixed drinks. The bottles were of Smirnoff Triple Distilled Vodka, Bacardi Rum, Presidente Brandy, and Jose Cuervo Tequila. We really liked that they had it right there in the room, but we also wanted to take some home. All we did was call for a Corona delivery and when the guy came we simply asked for a bottle of Smirnoff and Jose Cuervo, there was no problem at all, we obviously tipped him for his services. The next day when we called for more Corona (even though it was the stock up day, it was morning and we wanted to get ready for the pool, so we called and it came), we asked for a bottle of Bacardi and it was given without any problems. (Smirnoff: 900 ML, Bacardi: 946ML, Jose Cuervo: 990ML, Presidente Brandy: 1.1 L)
The bed and towels were exchanged and made up every day, sometimes even twice a day; the second time was to prepare the bed for us to sleep in at night.
And, WE ALWAYS HAD ENOUGH TOILET PAPER, there is a cute little toilet paper rest on the wall that stores extra rolls.
Along with the rest of the resort, the room was well equipped with air conditioning and a ceiling fan. The air conditioning in the room was sensor-operated, meaning that if you opened your balcony door it would shut-off rather than you having to go and fiddle with the dial on the wall to turn it off if you wanted the breeze from outside instead. As far as the ceiling fan, it was great to have, but the air conditioning works so well that you really don’t need to use it. (As for the rest of the resort, there is air conditioning inside the buffet restaurant; the rest of the open areas like the snack bar/steak house at night, the specialty restaurants and the events stage area, are all equipped with multiple fans that keep it nice and cool all the time, no matter the temperature outside.
Most importantly, there was an issue with the tub being slightly slippery, all we had to do was stop by the front desk while we were out and about and within half an hour we had a delivery to the room with a brand new tub mat so that we would not get hurt or have any problems.
There was one slight issue with the room that was that near the end of the stay we noticed a very minute smell of sewage. We quickly resolved it by putting the sink plug in the sink and the odor seemed to disappear. It was nice, however, that that majority of the time when we returned to our room there was a nice melon scent that was very refreshing.

THE BEACH:
Though there were rough waves right at the shore, there were people out in the ocean everyday, even young children with their parents. Once you got about 15-20 feet out, there were no waves really and people were swimming even though they have the red flag up at the resort for the rough waters.
When we went out to the beach, we were walking along and a bigger wave came up, past us to where we had out camera case sitting, startled a slight scream of excitement was let out, and one of the locals who was near by came running over just to grab our shoes and camera case that was a few feet away, before the wave got to it. The local happened to be one of the beach sellers, however, he did not hassle us at all to buy anything, even though he just helped us out.
We also saw a lady who was swimming and she decided to get out of the water, but a big wave happened to come up and pull her back a bit, two young local came running over and both grabbed an arm just to help her out, she was laughing about it, but they were there to help just in case.

THE TOWN:
On Wednesday morning we decided to walk to town along the beach. It was a bit of a walk, but it was nothing too hard to handle. It was quite relaxing, and there are people out and about from the other hotels along the way so there are no real problems with boredom. We left the Palace around 10:30am, and at a slow pace, we arrived in town around 11:15am. We went into the two local malls and we bought some gifts for family. The town’s people are very nice people. And if you happen to get a hold of a map in the town, of the area, there are coupons for free earrings, bracelets and more.
We decided to take a local city bus back to the hotel, what an experience. While we were waiting at the bus stop, there was a local who tried to talk to us, one of us knew a bit of Spanish so we were able to converse a bit in broken English and Spanish. She was extremely nice and even told us about her family and asked where we were from and if we were enjoying our time. Once we got on the bus, the driver did not speak English, there was a bit of confusion with change from the $10US we gave him, however, other locals on the bus helped out with the bit of English they knew, and the bus driver stopped the bus, came all the way to the back where we were sitting, had one of the passengers talk Spanish with him and translate to us, and after he even stopped right in front of the hotel driveway, where there is no bus stop, to drop us off. The locals on the bus were so nice and they all wanted to talk to us!! We spoke with a young man who was very kind and even told us when we were at our stop because we were clueless.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
If you are looking to get anyone’s hair braided, there are vendors right in front of the hotel on the beach. The ladies like to start high at $50USD for a full-head of braids with hair length just past the shoulders, but if you bargain with them, they will go down. We had one lady follow us and go from $50USD down to $30USD if we would get it done right then, that was Tuesday and we wanted to wait till later on in the week. We ended up getting it done for $35USD by another lady on Friday morning.

The workers at the hotel are all really nice people. Though most do not know a word of English, simply saying “hola” to them when you past by, seems to brighten up their day. If you know a bit of Spanish, asking them how they are doing (in Spanish “Como esta?), before talking in English, they really like that you make the effort to speak their language. Also saying thank you “gracias” or even your welcome “de nada” when they say thank you to you, really gets them to go the extra mile with everything.
Tipping the cleaning lady is always a good thing. Most importantly, is that it does not always have to be money, we gave the cleaning lady a manicure set, a hair brush set, some candy, pencils, and shots glasses and beer openers to the bar tenders (all from the dollar store).

The resort is basically separated into two halves. On the left side of the resort (facing the ocean), you have the activities pool area equipped with volleyball nets both in the pool and on the beach front; ping-pong tables; and all the pool activity balls and equipment you need. This area is more the entertaining side with music and a lively crowd; this goes for the left side of the resort as well, nothing that is any bit of a problem though. The right side of the resort has the relaxing area, equipped with a nice waterfall area and fountain in the large pool as well as a Spa just steps away, attached to the fitness center. There is no music played on this side of the resort, aside from the calm, smooth rock that is played in the pool bar that is about 20 feet away from the larger pool. The large pool also has built in laying chairs to tan while staying refreshed and cool in the pool.

When we went out for a walk on the beach, early evening on Saturday night, we came across some locals who were offering horse back-riding. We were aware that we were set to depart for the other resort in the morning however; they offered a free ride just a ways down the beach to see if we liked it. They also made a very generous offer if we could make a deal to go riding the following evening. Unfortunately, we were not able to make the deal however; they locals were still extremely friendly with us and wished us both a safe and happy vacation.

OVERALL VALUE FOR THE MONEY:
This was definitely a worth-while trip. After traveling to Mayan Riviera, Mexico and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, we can definitely say that we got the best deal for the lease amount of money.
We paid a very good price, just over $1000 CAD per person that included the taxes as well as $5,000,000 CAD health coverage.
The 5 night voucher for transferring to another resort for one night, a resort that was much closer to the airport, thus allowing us to get extra sleep before pick-up, is not offered at many other places.
The service and staff were unbelievably friendly and were always ready to help if it was needed.
The food was EXCELLENT, though that does not need to be said because it is clearly detailed above, especially with the extreme IBS diet restrictions.

  • My ratings for this hotel
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
  • Date of stay July 2006
  • Member since January 08, 2006
  • I recommend this hotel for An amazing honeymoon, Families with young children, Families with teenagers
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
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Average price*: $389 (year-round)
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Overall Very Good!

Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas

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4 of 5 stars
Naod21 5 contributions
Wyckoff, NJ
Jul 15, 2006
22/23 found this review helpful

We stayed at teh Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas July 3-July 10th, for our yearly vacation. We are a young married couple from Bergen County, NJ. Ages 28 & 33. We have traveled quite a bit.
The Rui met our expectations. Again we all MUST remember you pay for what you get. If you expect Four Season's ammenties/service, then you must be willing to pay triple than what you paid for the Rui.
Upon Arrival, everything went as planned and VERY smoothly. The lobby is gorgeous. Check in- was like 5 minutes and we did get two glasses of a very refreshing wine drink. Got our room cards, wristbands, towel cards, a map of the hotel, also a description of the restaurants, etc. Conceirge was helpful at check in. We were then met by the bellman who took our luggage to the room.
Room-was VERY nice. Dark mahogany wood, marble/granite everywhere. Nice sunken living area (sofa, cocktail table, Tv, sliders to balcony which has two comfy reclining chairs). Bathroom was great.. Nice size deep tub, double sinks. Room was cleaned everyday, and towels replenished everyday. Never had a problem w/Maid service. Mini bar was always fully stocked with bottled water, seven up, orange soda, Coronas, and also there is a hard liquor dispenser (vodka, rum, gin, tequila). Beds are hards, so DEFINITELY get a mattress topper. We requested one the very first night as i had heard about the hard beds prior, and request was taken care of pretty fast.

Pools-4 nice size pools. Two have swim up bars. Infinity pool, jacuzzi's.. Lounge chairs. Very vast area. the only complaint i have about this hotel is that the pool area (lounge chair and floor) were not cleaned very well, glasses from night before still around, and this caused bees to come around...thats the ONLY complaint about the resort.

Restaurants-The buffet restaurant upstairs (el medano) and the one downstairs were both very good. There reallly is something for EVERYONE, i dont care how much you complain..we are pretty well versed in FINE dining in the NYC area...and we found the food at the Riu to be Good and OK, not HORRIBLE or Unedible. The steakhouse restaurant which you have to make reservations is worth it. The meal was very good. The italian restaurant which is open for buffet at lunch is also very good. The japanese we did try and did not care for at all..Again coming from the NYC area, we are used to NOBU for sushi...but then again we are in mexico, why have Japanese...lol..Breakfast upstairs at the Medano buffet restaurant was very nice, omelettes freshely made, waffels/pancakes, eggs any style, meats, extensive cold bar w/cheese/meats, roasted potatoes, fresh fruit, yogurts, mimosa's, etc etc...LOVED breakfast. The medano also serves Dinner. We always had a good dinner there..Had a chocolate fountain w/fresh fruit! YUM...They pretty much had everything, chix, pork, steak, shrimp, seafood, rice, salad bar, dessert bar, etc.
All restaurants were beautifully decorated as is the entire resort.

Service-For the most part the staff is very hard working and ready to accomodate the guests. You may come across a lax one here and there, but then again, they dont live the Stressed out American Lifestyle...no other country does...
If you are polite, they are extremely helpful and fun.. a tip here and there will make a huge difference.

At night they have some entertainment shows which werent that good, but they were entertaining for what they were...when you are constantly drinking its nice to sit in a nice bar area, watching something..The piano bar is very nice...

Drinks are made weak/watered down, but just ask for more alcoholl, they will HOOK it up...you ask, you get.

When we return to Cabo we will totally stay here, as its in a prime location...close to downtown, but yet on its own. Cabo is expensive...so eating/drinking can run you a a VERY large tab...which is why we chose all inclusive...we did venture out to dinner a few times, but even still you are ahead of the game with all the drinks you are having at the Rui and breakfast/lunch...Cabs are $10 each way to downtown. We rented a car for $150 for the week, total, tax/insurance included. Thats not bad for a 4 door, a/c automatic car. We got alot of use out of it.

We had alot of fun on vacation..remember you are on vacation..just relax....ask and you will receive...be polite and you will be treated nicely....thats all it takes...

  • My ratings for this hotel
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 3 of 5 stars Service
  • Date of stay July 2006
  • Member since July 08, 2005
  • I recommend this hotel for An amazing honeymoon, Families with young children
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Check Rates ABS:HotelCheckRates-d503041?ext=true&src=ShowUserReviewsHotels&fromServlet=ShowUserReviews&Action=QC_Button_Reviews
Average price*: $389 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-45-HOTEL from hotels.com
We loved the Riu!

Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas

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4 of 5 stars
sexymexi 14 contributions
Chicago Area
Jul 15, 2006
28/30 found this review helpful

We are a family of 4, with two kids 11 and 13 and just returned from a week at the Riu. I really don't know what all the negativity is about, or what these people are expecting. We have nothing but wonderful things to say about the property and Cabo!!

Arrival. The airport is small and easy. We booked with Funjet. I did stop at one of the desks waiving a Cabo guide. I took the guide and politely said "no gracias" when he started his pitch. When we arrrived at the hotel I was surprised a bellman didn't immediately grab our bags. We didn't mind though because we are cabable of pulling our own suitcases. We received an envelope with keys, pool cards, resort map etc. from the front desk. We had difficulty finding our room as the halls and elevators are not well marked. I had booked "jr suite ocean view" which this room did not provide. I quickly called the front desk and they said just leave our luggage, come back to the desk and they will give us keys to another room to check out to see if it was to our liking. This room was beautiful with a view of the activity pool, ocean, El Arco! No extra tipping required!!

Food: We choose all inclusives because of the kids; there is nothing worse than spending $100 for lunch and have your kids leave their food because they didn't like it. Here they could sample a wide variety, and they even enjoyed the sushi in the Japanese restaurant. Breakfast was a big hit, as was the chocolate fountain at dinner.
There was plenty of variety and the food was well prepared any presented. People just need to be smart. If it is 100 degrees outside and you are eating lunch at 2:00, its probably a good idea not to scrape the bottom of the bowl for your salad dressing at the salad bar. Make another choice.

We ate at the Japanese restuarant and the steak house. Our first morning we couldn't book anything in either because they were full for that evening. We did book for the next night in the steakhouse and were able to book the Japanese restaurant the next morning.
I did see people standing in line to book at 11:00 am but we just waited until afternoon and walked right up. The Japanese was good, the food nicely presented and the service good. The steakhouse is actually the lunchtime buffet area, but it gets dressed up with table cloths. etc. The food was just ok, but our waiter Angel was so terrific. He took a cloth napkin and made it into a bunny. He had each of us blow on it and he made the rabbit "jump". It was hysterical! He patiently worked with both kids until they were each able to make their own rabbits.

Service: Our room was always promptly cleaned and the refrigerator restocked. We left a 20 peso on the dresser the first day as a tip and it was still there! We then wrote a note with "gracias" the next day and it was gone. Towels folded as elephants were left in its place.

We would always grab a table for each meal before getting our food. Within moments silverware would be brought if it was missing and drink orders would be taken. Used plates were usually promptly removed. We found everyone to be friendly, and the service to be good. If you meet an employee in the hall and say "Ola!", they will smile and return the greeting. I believe they follow the "do not speak unless spoken to" rule that is common when encountering a guest.

Pool: We love the pool. We used the activity pool each day. The music was good and the atmosphere fun. We participated in many of the activites: water aerobics, ping pong etc.

Even though my son is only 11, they even allowed him to participate in the rifle shooting competition.

We were glad the swim up bar was separate. At other all inclusives we've been to, the patrons at the swim up area would end up fouling up the entire pool with their spilled drinks, cigarette butts, foul language and who knows what else. If the swim up pool at the Riu was "gross" blame your fellow guests and not the staff.

Entertainment: We love the nightly shows!! Please people, this is not broadway, or Las Vegas for that matter. The Riu Band was excellent! The front man is an excellent guitar player and the variety of the music was something for everyone. Sure every night included alot of dance numbers which my daughter and I thoroughly enjoyed. We sent to boys up to the lobby bar to play pool. We preferred the shows to having some competition each night where the staff drags patrons on the stage for games. That being said, we could have done without Karaoke night, although the Miss Riu competition was fun.


Cabo: We took a cab for the quick ride into town. We did hear about the bus, but didn't want to walk up to the main road where you would have to catch it. We went late in the afternoon and did a walk through the harbor and the mall. We stopped at Cabo Wabo for the Waborita. The town was pretty empty and we were not hassled by vendors. A polite no thank you was all that was required. I found the town to be clean and nice. The bad smell we had heard about has been recently rectified.


Tour: We took one tour. We had heard about the glass bottom boats but to us they looked like old rowboats, so we took a pass. We booked the sunset cruise through Pez Gato. We had a blast. The crew was fun, they played great music, everyone was dancing on the way back in, after all the pictures were taken. It was a good deal too: any kids under 12 are free, and there were quite a few families on the boat.

Weather: In July it is HOT! We had highs of 98-100 each day, but do you know what? I'll take that over my 90 degrees humid Chicago weather any day! Just wear your shoes on the pool deck, and take some water with you if you venture into town or down the beach.

We will be back!! We have been to the Riviera Maya, several times but decided to try Cabo to avoid hurricanes (we have had a run in with one on vacation before, and do not want to repeat the experience) We usually stay at an Iberostar, but since there are none here, decided to try to Riu, and we are glad that we did!

  • My ratings for this hotel
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
  • Date of stay July 2006
  • Member since March 08, 2005
  • I recommend this hotel for Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, Families with young children, Families with teenagers, Tourists
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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Overall - we had a great time - but watch out for the sewage smell!

Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas

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2 of 5 stars
mugbug 1 contribution
Newberg, Oregon
Jul 14, 2006
6/9 found this review helpful

We recently stayed at the Riu in Cabo San Lucas (June 20-26, 2006). This was our first time to Mexico and were not very impressed in beginning, but by the end of our trip we plan on going back.

It started with getting out of the airport. Watch out for the time share people - I thought it was another part of customs and ended up at one of their tables.

We did enjoy our stay at the resort, but they were not good at communicating how things work and it took us about 4 trips to the front desk to figure out how and where to make dinner reservations, where the buffet restaurant was located and their hours of operation, activities schedule, how to operate the safe (we've never had one before!) and even how to contact the front desk from your room.

After we checked into our room, we noticed that there was a strong sewage smell - both in our room (2050) and in the breezeway. The next day I ran into our neighbors and asked them if they had a smell in their room - they had been dealing with it for the entire week they were there and said it had progressively gotten worse. I had a headache most of the day and spent the day in our room - the neighbor knocked on our door that evening and said that his wife had been sick most of the day (vomiting and then passed out). He went to the front desk and complained - they immediately moved them to the other side of the hotel. He suggested that we do the same since it was only our first day - so we also got moved to another room on the other side of the resort. They never acknowledged that there was a problem, but did not hesitate moving us immediately when we complained.

Restaurant Reservations: I tried to call and make a reservation prior to check in because we were celebrating a birthday and I wanted to have reservations for the special occasion, but was disappointed that this could not be done until after checkin. When I made the reservation, I did tell them about the special occasion, but they did not acknowledge it at our dinner. I didn't have to wait in line for more than about 5 minutes to make a reservation for the restaurants. I was disappointed that we were unable to eat at the Gourmet restaurant, but we did enjoy all the restaurants, the food was good - I liked the idea of being able to try something new (especially with children) without really having to pay for it if we didn't like it.

Buffet: The buffets were good and we didn't have to sand in line for anything. We did find it difficult to get table service and coffee at breakfast. We enjoyed the Italian Buffet at lunch - the wait staff on the patio overlooking the beach was always very good.

Pool: We used both pools during our stay - the "Party Pool" where all the activities were - was much busier and had a younger crowd. The "Quiet Pool" is nice if you want to enjoy a little peace and read a book.

Room: Our second room was very good. We have a family of 4 - my husband and I are used to a king size bed, so I was concerned about the two double beds. They were pushed together so it didn't seem so bad. The maid service was good and our room steward kept our mini bar well stocked (be sure to tip him when you get there).

Entertainment: The entertainment was ....entertaining. We looked forward to the "OOh, OOh" every night. My only complaint about the entertainment area was that there wasn't a non-smoking section and there always seemed to be a smoker that sat next to us.

Overall - we had a great time - and I would recomend this resort. Now that we know what to expect and how everything works, we do plan on returning next year.

  • My ratings for this hotel
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 2 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 2 of 5 stars Service
  • Date of stay June 2006
  • Member since July 14, 2006
  • I recommend this hotel for An amazing honeymoon, Families with teenagers
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Check Rates ABS:HotelCheckRates-d503041?ext=true&src=ShowUserReviewsHotels&fromServlet=ShowUserReviews&Action=QC_Button_Reviews
Average price*: $389 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-45-HOTEL from hotels.com
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