Riu Palace Costa Rica - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

10710 reviews

• 

  No frills

  Traveled as a family with a 7 year old December 29th- January 5th We made the best of it but wont be returning. I was told by my travel agent that this resort was newly renovated and that was my main reason for choosing this resort. The positives: The hotel was newly renovated and looked great. But they should invest in newer towels. They smelled musty and looked really worn. The waterpark was nice, lots of slides and lots of fun for kids. There was also is a little refreshment area and washroom near by which was great. There is also an area where you can go see monkeys near the resort. Just walk along the beach towards the Palace, there is an area with some local vendors and in the trees there’s monkeys. My daughter was able to feed the monkeys! The negatives: The customer service is poor, do not expect any service! There is an app where you can request housekeeping and mini bar services. Housekeeping will come but if you require mini bar services they wont show up until the next day. Considering you cant drink their water, they should be filling the mini bar with water everyday but they don’t. Every other day maybe, if you request it. And you cant even get water bottles at any of the bars or restaurants. We were going to an excursion and called to the front desk twice and asked for water and they said ok we will send someone. They never showed up , so after 2 hours my husband went to the front desk and they said its coming. It never came! The food was lackluster and is very repetative. Same food at different stations and the food is repurposed throughout the day. The pizza tasted like cardboard as per a 7 year old. Don’t even try to get into one of the a la carte restaurants because it will be at least an hour wait. There is no pool service, they only pick up used cups. The bars are slow and make medicore drinks. They don’t seat you in the restaurant it’s a free for all. So you have to go find a table on your own. I was sitting at a table and had a lady come up to me with a plate of food to say she wanted that table, she said she was just grabbing food to come back to the table. There was nothing at the table to say that someone was sitting there, not even turned over cups. They should have a hostess bring you to a table to eliminate confusion. This no frills resort is for someone that just wants to go somewhere warm and requires no service. They just want a nice hotel room and some sun. If you expect to be serviced, you will be disappointed.

  Jan 09, 2026
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  A lot of complications while I was at the Riu Hotel.

  My stay at this hotel was very disappointing. I was moved three times, and each room was bad in a different way. One of the rooms had a strong septic smell coming from the toilet, which made it very uncomfortable to stay in. When I tried to book RIU Palace, I was told it wasn’t available because they were giving priority to Costa Rican nationals. I explained that I am Costa Rican, but after I changed my reservation and called back, the room was suddenly no longer available. Because I used my U.S. passport, I honestly felt I was treated differently. I filed a complaint but never heard back. The most upsetting part of this trip involved my 17-year-old daughter, who is on the autism spectrum. She was asked to leave a restaurant for being “not dressed appropriately.” When I spoke to the manager, Carlos Sandi, he made an insensitive comment asking why I wasn’t with her “if she has problems” and then denied that anything had happened. Nothing was done after I reported it. I’m also a RIU Class member and was told I was getting the best price, but later I found the same stay almost $300 cheaper when I searched without my account. To make things worse, while being moved to another room, I became sick and started vomiting. I asked the staff member helping with my luggage to please get the room key for me, but he refused because his shift was ending. Overall, this hotel lacked empathy and proper management. It was a very disappointing experience, and I would not stay here again. This is my entire history of what happened this a real review from a real person. This is not artificial in any way. I wait people to this happen to me won’t happen to someone else. My is Grettell Delcid sbd everything was written here is tru.

  Jan 08, 2026
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  Highly recommend this resort

  Staying at the riu guanacaste right now and it is fantastic. I honestly don't understand how any one can complain about this place. I can't think of a single problem. Food is incredible and variety every day at the buffet. I don't stand in lines so we decided we were only going to do buffet when we read reviews about lining up for a la cartes. This system I don't understand about the lining up for dinner but it's fine for us just means less people in the buffet! If you're vegan or vegetarian , this place is great, so many options in Costa Rica for this diet. They also offer almond milk and soy milk for your lattes and Cappaccinos in the sports bar. The resort is so clean and new and beautiful and every service provider is so friendly. Check in was so quick and smooth. Tip: fill in your information for check in from home on the app before you go makes arrival very quick. We got a forest view room and the monkeys were in the trees right outside our room every morning. Amazing. We did an excursion through Nexus tours called explorer pass. Incredible fun day , reasonable price, very safe highly recommended Also, we accidentally left our safe open in our room and everything was still there when we got back after maid service and mini bar service. Trustworthy staff. I don't want to leave! Anyone who can complain about this place just likes to complain about anything in life. I would definitely recommend this place and return.

  Jan 07, 2026
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  Glad we went. Had a good time. Won't be returning.

  Family of 10 ages 6 to 72 for the week of 12/27-1/2. First, the positives: The place is beautiful. Property is beautifully landscaped and well maintained. The pools and activities are also top notch. Never had trouble finding lounges at any of the pool areas, even though we were a large group. Rooms and baths were well appointed and beds were great. Housekeeping was attentive. The hits and misses : Staff was pleasant, especially bartenders, but sometimes indifferent. At American Country one evening, I saw a dad and approximately 10 year old son. The son accidentally knocked over his drink onto the floor. Father and son got down on their hands and knees with napkins to clean the spill, while two staff members literally walked around them without offering to help. On New Year's Eve, I asked a front desk worker if there were any special events planned for the evening ( The resort app is woefully inadequate and apparently rarely updated ) she said 'I don't know - check the app.' Turns out there were events planned, but not listed anywhere. The failure: Dinner. Aside from cruise lines, this is my first experience with an all-inclusive, so maybe this is typical, but I doubt it. There is plenty of food available, so you won't go away hungry, but neither will you say "boy I wish we could have.....when we get home". There are two massive buffets, 'Liberia' and 'Papagallo', a smaller Mexican buffet, 'Agave', an Asian buffet, 'Furama', a sports bar 'American Country' and a 'Steakhouse', as well as pool area snack bars serving tacos, hot dogs and burgers. Reservations are not accepted anywhere. In order to dine at Furama or the Steakhouse, you must get in line by 4:30-4:45 and wait until they open at 6:00. We got in line at Furama at 5:00 one day, got to the hostess shortly after 6:00 when she took my name and said to come back in 40 minutes to get a pager after which the wait would be approximately an hour. We declined and had a disappointing burger at the sports bar. Next night got there at 4:30, got in at 6:00 and had a buffet style Panda Express experience. Never again. Another night my wife and I took turns waiting in line from 4:30 to 6:00 for the Steakhouse, the only wait service restaurant, and while the ribeye was flavorful, it was no more than about 3/8 inch thick . The adult portion of baby back ribs was 3 ribs. Every afternoon, people have to drag furniture across the walkway to be able to sit in line for an hour and 1/2 to make dinner arrangements. This is madness. I spoke to two of the hostesses who said they hate it too. In speaking with one of my 'linemates' who frequents other RIU properties, he said none of them operate this way. The crazy thing is that on New Years Eve, reservations were required everywhere, so they are capable of doing it. Don't get me wrong, its not all bad, its just that the hassle for dinner isn't worth it. Our grandkids were happy with the food they chose - pizza and chicken nuggets daily. The buffets work well for the kids and there is a large selection of beautiful fruits offered daily. Breakfast buffets were by and large good, but made to order omelettes would be a huge improvement over steamtable eggs . One last comment about the buffets. There is very minimal signage identifying foods. Is it chicken, or fish? If you have food allergies, it would be difficult to navigate the many selections. Pro Tips: While lounges at the pools are plentiful and shade is always available, shade at the beach is very limited. If you need a shady spot at the beach, get there early. The hawkers at the beach will leave you alone if you give them a pleasant 'no, gracias'. Bartenders are all great, pleasant and quick, but if you feel the need for a handcrafted cocktail with name brand booze, head to 'Tamirindo' bar or the 'Stage' bar for great cocktails at no extra charge. Don't miss Diamante Eco Adventure Park next door. Ziplining is awesome, as is the zoo with sloths, monkeys, jaguars etc. Frequent shuttles are available.

  Jan 07, 2026
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  Money Stolen from My Room and very Poor Management Response

  I want to share a very unpleasant experience I had on Friday, January 2nd, at Hotel Riu Palace Costa Rica, not only because of what happened, but mainly due to the treatment I received from management. On Friday, January 2nd, the same day I had housekeeping service requested for my room, I later realized that $50 were taken from my wallet, which was inside my hotel room. I immediately went to the front desk to file a report, and they called David, the manager, to whom I explained in detail what had happened. He told me he would start the corresponding process, review the room access logs, and send a report to the Complaints team, which seemed appropriate to me. When I asked how long the resolution might take, he said he didn’t know because he first had to submit the report. Up to that point, everything was fine. The problem started when he told me that “there wasn’t much they could do because I hadn’t put my wallet in the room’s safe.” That comment really bothered me, because as a guest, one expects security inside their own room, regardless of whether the safe is used or not. The room should be a safe place, period. After that, David’s attitude changed completely. He became arrogant, sarcastic, and showed zero empathy. He answered rudely, talked over me, and didn’t allow me to finish explaining or have a normal conversation. At no point did I feel he was genuinely interested in listening or helping. In the end, all he did was hand me a post-it with the Complaints team stamp so I could send the report, with no further explanation or guidance. When I asked for his last name, he replied, “David, only.” More than the money itself, what really left me with a very bad impression was the unprofessional treatment, especially coming from a manager. The lack of respect, tact, and emotional intelligence is unacceptable in a hotel that is supposed to operate under high service standards. Because of this experience, I would not recommend this hotel to anyone. Security and customer service are basic expectations, and unfortunately, this hotel failed at both.

  Jan 07, 2026