Riu Palace Bavaro - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

10759 reviews

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  Great stay, first time in Punta Cana

  Everything was amazing. We have traveled multiple times to a Riu property and this one didn’t disappoint. The food was very good. All of the restaurants were better than any other restaurants we have eaten in at a Riu property. The grounds were amazing and well kept. Large nicely appointed rooms and showers were also a nice touch. There was nothing that could be done about the seaweed. Everyone is trying to deal with it the best they could.

  Jul 04, 2025
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  Don’t Come! Customer service is terrible

  We just arrived here and after 40 minutes of walking around and two trips to the front desk we finally received a room. The original room no key cards would work, ours, the bell boy nor head of house keeping. I was told the wrong room apparently by the front desk at check in and it was printed on our check in paper work. I had put in a request back in November to get a two bed room family suite , because it would not allow me to book it at the time of booking. I called earlier this week to check on my request and I was told they will take care of that when we arrive and it was based upon when you made the request. Apparently that was all smoke and mirrors because the customer service desk on my second trip to the lobby said I should have booked that room at the time of booking which I told her was never an option ever. I asked to move me to that room which she gave the run around about it costing more and when I asked how much and I will pay it she tells me they don’t have any. Why even give me the run around knowing there are none! We finally get to a room (they were actively cleaning it still so we sit there while they finished) and head to the pool outside our room 6702. Well apparently they have towel cards which nobody said anything to us about nor the other family with us. We had to walk back to the lobby AGAIN to ask for towel cards only to be told they only have THREE when between the families we have 10 people. Alexis at the front desk told me it may be my first time here but many more to come….. Clearly he is wrong after the first hour. If they would like to contact me I am here all week and ready to listen. At the moment I would say DONT COME HERE! Hard Rock Hotel is 1000% better and we should have never switched

  Jul 02, 2025
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  Bring ear plugs

  Stunning looking hotel, with great food and service, the reason for giving this hotel 2 stars is down to the fact that around the 7 pools you can not find 1 quite spot to relax, you have loud Drum and bass music around every pool, this is made worse by the fact that nearly all the locals bring their own boom boxes so it’s a absolute hell hole of noice every where. Also certain people think it’s ok to eat their lunch in the pool !!! See attached photo, such a shame as the hotel is lovely and if the management took the time to clear up these point the hotel would be a 5 star,

  Jul 02, 2025
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  Great family trip!

  My family (husband, two teenagers, and I) just returned from a great trip to RIU Palace Bávaro (6/12/25 - 6/19/25). We booked directly through RIU and had free transportation to and from the airport. The resort was always beautiful and very clean! It was newly renovated and there are always staff cleaning throughout the resort. The pictures online really are as it appears in person. It is stunning! Room - We had the Friends & Family room with 3 double/queen beds and a pull-out sofa. This is the room we originally booked, but they weren’t sure if that was available at check in, but after a tip of $20 we were given that room. The room was stocked with drinks, towels, and cleaned daily. We did put the green hanger on the door asking for service though. We requested water and soda a couple of times, and used the app. They came within an hour of requesting. We stayed near the family pool area and it was a good location, a 5-minute or so walk to anywhere on the resort. The beds were comfortable and the air conditioning worked well. There was a bad smell near the family section as you briefly walked past (probably the water). Pools/beach - The pools were our favorite part of our stay. They always had available seating with plenty of towels. There were waiters taking drink orders throughout the day. The water park was a good treat for our teens as well, although I’m not sure if there were lifeguards. The resort tried daily to keep up with the sargassum on the beach, but we weren’t able to swim at all. However, it’s not their fault. There was plenty of seating at the beach and we loved the shade of the palm trees. The vendors on the beach can be annoying, but generally leave quickly when you tell them “no”. Food - The bars were good and had plenty of options for alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks. The food was average to good - especially at the buffet (Stephanie was fantastic!). It always had plenty of food options. The restaurants are good, but have a limited selection. However, we always found something for all of our tastes. We did tip during our stay as well (restaurants, bars, and housekeeping/mini bar) anywhere from $1-5 (USD) for each action. We ate at the buffet daily for breakfast and some dinners. We usually ate at the food courts by the pools for lunch. We never had to wait for a table at a restaurant - usually eating dinner at 6:30-7:00pm. We didn’t see any of the evening entertainment, but were pretty exhausted by the end of the day from swimming and being in the sun. So, relaxing and watching tv, or playing games in our room was a good way to end most days. There’s a language barrier at times, but that’s to be expected. We used Google translate a few times with no issues. Overall it was a good trip for our family and would go back!

  Jul 01, 2025
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  😁😁

  The staff was amazing specially EL RUSO he was the best of the best we had a great time there😀Also the food was better in the buffet than the restaurant and the service was great.

  Jun 30, 2025