Riu Palace Pacifico Adults Only - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

7419 reviews

• 

  Customers are #2

  It’s best to avoid this place. They put themselves ahead of customers. Nice building, some friendly staff and decent rooms but that’s it for the positives. The food is extremely mediocre verging on poor. The pools are far too small for the number of people at the resort. There is constantly noise with loud music and construction. The bathrooms are not convenient to the pool area, so it seems that not many use them (uh-oh). To top it all off, they had an internal RIU employee party for two days during our visit. This event took over part of the pool area and included a band playing at mega volume until close to 1am, keeping everyone awake. The management apparently thought it was ok to put a small group of employees above the hundreds of paying guests at their hotel. Without warning to anyone, of course. Here’s a little business tip RIU…rewarding your employees should not come at the expense of your customers.

  Nov 14, 2025
• 

  Doesn’t care about paying customers

  Horrible experience at Riu Palace Pacifico in Nuevo Vallarta. This resort is having an event for RIU STAFF and the PAYING CUSTOMERS have been blocked out of restaurants and pools for this event. And now we are being subjected to very loud live music blasting until midnight. This is unacceptable.

  Nov 14, 2025
• 

  Fabulous trip to the RIU Palace Pacifico as always

  My husband and I stayed for a week to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary this November. We have stayed at this property many times over the last 10 years both before and since the major renovation. It has never disappointed us. The staff is always amazing and ready to respond to any needs whether it’s by the pool for towel service, mini bar service, or service in any restaurant or bar. The reception desk is always hospitable as well. Since it has been offered we always book the elite club for the many worthwhile benefits it offers. This benefit includes priority check in in the exclusive elite club bar, a very good exclusive elite club restaurant , comfortable beach cabanas in an exclusive area on the beach with its own bar service , advance reservations at any specialty restaurant , nice mini bar amenities (and the usual liquor dispensers in the room) and special room service options as well as a special breakfast dining area in the morning (with menu service if desired ). It is totally worth the price. Julian and Tomas are two of the best waiters ever and work at the breakfast and lunch buffet in the outside dining area. Be sure to meet them while you are there! They have been working there since before we started staying there ! The waitstaff and bartenders are all amazing. While not expected tips are greatly appreciated by staff and are well deserved ! It is best to bring cash with you and have the denominations you want as they cannot make change at the desk for you. The beach cabanas are well shaded and make for a very relaxing day. The beach is lovely sand and the ocean is warm with no seaweed (like is currently an issue in Cancun and other areas ). The water is not clear blue as the Caribbean was before the seaweed issue but is a better choice than dealing with all the seaweed. People enjoyed the ocean daily and many like riding the waves on the boards you can loan out. There are many great vendors on the beach if you want to shop for great souvenirs and jewelry. Our favorite jewelry vendor is Ramiro who always offers fair prices and a great selection of gorgeous silver jewelry. Be sure to ask for him if you’re in the market! There are many options for sunset horseback riding and pictures. Rodrigo is always in front of the RIU and is our favorite with his pretty horses. The massage tents on the beach are $35 US for an hour and they do a great job. We went to the pink tent twice during our stay for relaxing massages on the beach. There are many other unique souvenirs for sale on the beach. The vendors are willing to negotiate and they are also very friendly and non intrusive even if you do not want to look or buy anything. If you join RIU class when reserving your stay your transportation to and from the airport is included and I highly recommend this. You will also accrue points for future stays. We love RIU palace hotels in general but this one remains our favorite by far !

  Nov 13, 2025
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  Beautiful hotel, great staffs and services

  We stayed oct 31-nov7, hotel is beautiful and clean, staffs are always helpful and provide great services, room is spacious and cleaned daily, drinks in fridge also stocked daily. Big shout out to excellent staffs: Paola in buffet restaurant, Adan and Alonsio in steak restaurant, Jose at beach bar…they are always attentive and always make us feel like home, provide exceptional services. Steak house is the best restaurant, then Krystal, one good thing is no reservation required, only first come first serve. Plenty of chairs around pools and beach, very clean. Thanks for providing us great experience!

  Nov 09, 2025
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  Joining other honest Negative reviews

  I’m joining the other negative reviews because they’re absolutely honest. People really need to filter through the many overly positive reviews of this hotel. The only positive thing I can say about the Riu Palace Pacifico is that the grounds are clean. Everything else was a huge disappointment. Lobby Bar: The bartenders looked bored and uninterested in serving guests. We tipped every single time — even increased our tips to $5 for two drinks — and nothing changed. They seemed like they didn’t want to be there. Swim-Up Bar: Forget about getting a drink here. It’s constantly full of drunk guests who never leave the water, making it impossible to swim up and order a drink. Pools: The pool water is hotter than the ocean — it feels like stepping into a bath. There’s no way to cool off. And when they announced there was a crocodile in the ocean and closed the beach, there was literally nowhere refreshing to go. Food: By far the worst food we’ve ever had at any all-inclusive resort. Maybe the positive reviewers haven’t stayed anywhere else, but this was unacceptable. The buffet never changes — despite claims of themed nights — and the “variety” is limited to the same pizzas, burgers made of mystery meat bricks, and bland dishes day after day. Restaurants: • Asian Restaurant: Completely inedible. • Mexican Restaurant: Boring and basic — tacos and enchiladas you can get anywhere, with no regional touch. • Krystal (Gourmet) Restaurant: The only decent food we had, but the portions were tiny. When we asked to try an extra appetizer, we were told no — one plate per person. Really? In an all-inclusive? • Steakhouse: Atrocious. You have to line up at 5:30 p.m. just to get a table, which is ridiculous since most people are still at the beach then. The steaks were tough and overcooked — we ordered medium-rare and got well-done rubber. Everyone around us agreed it was inedible. Entertainment: The entertainment was terrible. We’re not sure who they’re aiming it toward — maybe older couples who go to bed at 10 p.m., which is fine, but please offer something for guests who want to have a fun evening. The only live music was a Mexican band that played for about 30 minutes, and there was a DJ booth but a DJ never showed up. The nightly shows were the same tired performances seen at many other resorts — how many Michael Jackson shows can you see? They’re all identical. Room Request: When we booked directly through the hotel, we specifically asked for a ground-floor room for my mother’s comfort, and they confirmed it. Upon arrival, we were told there are no ground-floor rooms at this property — every room requires taking an elevator. Very disappointing, especially after being reassured in advance. ⸻ Overall: This was one of the most disappointing all-inclusive experiences we’ve ever had. The clean grounds can’t make up for the poor service, bland food, lackluster entertainment, and overall sense of indifference. We spent very little time in the room, so we were hoping for great food, beach time, and entertainment — but all of that was virtually nonexistent. I truly wish I had trusted the honest negative reviews before booking.

  Nov 03, 2025