What We Love
- No reservations needed at any of the restaurants.
- The teal ocean and breezy palms on the white sand of Flamingos Beach. Swoon-worthy.
- Sipping on cocktails and watching the crazy beautiful pink sunsets over the water.
- The spa where you can descend into relaxing massages & thalassotherapy, a seawater treatment.
- The in-pool loungers where you can lounge, swim around a bit, then return to work on your tan.
Things to Know
- It's just 8 miles away from the airport. Blink, and you'll be there.
- Don't miss horseback riding in the Sierra Madres or swimming with the dolphins in Banderas Bay.
- There's an 18-hole, championship golf course that a coconut's throw away.
- Check out the bodyboarding, windsurfing, catamarans and more. Dive in.
- On land, there's volleyball, billiards and for the flexible/bendy types, there's gymnastics.
Resort Details
- Elite Club RestaurantA-la-carte restaurant exclusively for Elite Club guests. Dinner Only
- GuacamoleMexican a-la-carte restaurant with starters buffet. Dinner only.
- KrystalA-la-carte restaurant serving fusion cuisine. Dinner only.
- KyotoA-la-carte restaurant serving Asian cuisine. Dinner only.
- La PeninsulaMain Buffet restaurant with live cooking stations, serving international cuisine. Breakfast, lunch and Dinner.
- La ToscanaItalian a-la-carte restaurant with starters and desserts buffet. Dinner Only.
- Pepe´s Food Grill
- Snacks. Lunch only.
- SteakhouseA-la-carte restaurant. Dinner only.
- Tiki TacoTacos. Lunch only.
- Various Lounges/Bars- Sports Bar 24 hours with snacks
- Marlin Swim-up Bar
- Daiquiri Lobby Bar- Bolero Theatre Bar- Capuchino Patisserie & Ice Cream Parlor- Elite Club Lounge exclusively for Elite Club guests- Elite Club Beach Bar exclusively for Elite Club guests
- 24-hour front desk
- 24-hour room service
- Accessible facilities
- Bell staff/porter
- Concierge desk
- Elevators
- Exercise gym
- Free high speed internet connection
- Free parking
- Game room
- 24-hour front desk
- 24-hour room service
- Complies with Local/State/Federal laws for disabled
- Bell staff/porter
- Concierge desk
- Elevators
- Exercise gym
- Free high speed internet connection
- Free parking
- Game room
- Gift/News stand†
- Golf, Offsite†
- Housekeeping - daily
- Lounges/bars
- Meal Plan Type: All Inclusive
- Pool
- Restaurant
- Room service
- Safe deposit box
- Spa†
- Steam bath
- Wakeup service
- Water sports†
† Fees may apply
- Direct access to a beach
- Fitness center on-site
- Non-Motorized Water SportsThis includes catamarans, kayaking, body boards and 1 introductory scuba diving lesson in the pool.
- PoolThere is 3 pool on-site.
- Spa †There is 1 indoor hot tub.
- Golf †
A golf course is located within a mile of the hotel that provides preferential conditions and additional value to our guests.
- Motorized Water Sports †
- On-site EntertainmentAccess to weekly theme parties for everyone
† Fees may apply
Guest Reviews from CheapCaribbean Customers
Customer Ratings & Reviews
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating
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Feb 23, 2026
Fun Times
- Check In was a breeze. Rooms were not ready but enjoyed beverages while waiting for room which did not take long. (Junior Suite Partial Oceanview) - We were travelling with another couple and had requested rooms close together. Request was granted - Large Clean Room on 4th floor – large bathroom, dressing area and a sitting area with couch and table - Our room had good views of the ocean when on the deck. Looked down on the main walkway of Resort - Maid service – room cleaned each day and fridge refilled - Felt it was time to replace the mattress in our room as it had definite sags in the mattress - #4024 - Buffet – good variety each day – lots of fruit available all day - Buffet was decorated lovely for Valentines Day - A la Cartes – Enjoyed all of them – Asian, Steak House and Italian being the favorites – no need for reservations (the best!) - Steak House was a little difficult to get into as it filled fast but enjoyed the lobster offered - Dress code for A la Cartes was comfortable – No need for long pants and shoes for the men - Enjoyed the pools and the beach equally but beach was a little breezy (Our weather was fantastic) - Bar Service at the pool was a little sparse – (made no difference if we tipped or not) Found it was easier to just go the bar and get our own drinks sometimes - Lots of sun and shade at pools - Snack Bar at pool was good - Riu Entertainers were not real inviting to join activities. We had to keep track of the activities on the RIU App or we would miss an activity we wanted to join - Pool Towels were accessible all day long - Valentines Photo Booth was fun – and giving out Roses was very thoughtful - Bar Service at the Lobby Bar was good – enjoyed Lobby Bar before dinner – Kristel took very good care of us - “Drink of the Day” bartenders were also great - Nightly entertainment was good – great dancers and variety – especially enjoyed the “Silent Disco” and the “Michael Jackson” show - Was a little disappointed with the Sports Bar. No grab and go food available. Had to order off a menu and could not take out - Wanted to play pool in the Sports Bar one evening but the bartender did not have tokens for the pool table. Had to search out change (in the lobby) in order to play. - Not a large resort area. If you wanted to walk you had to go outside of the resort - Walked to the other nearby RIU’s many times - Could walk miles along the beach - About a 20 – 30 minute walk to Bucerias – on walkway or beach - Confectionary and Pharmacy stores just outside of resort - Found the overall resort and grounds to be very clean - Attended RIU Party at the nearby RIU resort - Communication was a bit of a problem sometimes as we speak English - Enjoyed our stay and would recommend - Felt the resort needed more bathrooms – Bathrooms were located under the Buffet/Lobby/Beach. Need a bathroom in the Sports Bar/Entertainment Building. Presently a very long walk to a bathroom. - Average age of guests was probably 50-60 years of age - Excursions – did City Tour which included the Boardwalk and Rhythms of the Night Dinner Show NOTE TO RIU PALACE PACIFICO: Enjoyed our stay February 1 – 15, 2026. Just a note for the wellness of the employees. “Drink of the Day” cart. Exceptional bartenders but feel the hotel needs to provide a Fatigue Mat for the bartenders to stand on during their shift. They have to stand in one spot for a great length of time. One evening we were sitting in the lobby and noticed the bartender was having leg pain. He kept bending his legs and could see the pain in his eyes. Please provide these bartenders a Fatigue Mat to stand on. Something very easy to fix for the wellness of these employees
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Feb 22, 2026
Beach
Entertainment is to look at, Their is lots of bat rays in the water, water snakes . Not to inviting to go swim. I prefer the RIU palace Costa Mujers .
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Feb 22, 2026
Many good things to say but BEWARE!
My wife and I stayed Feb. 14-21 and found our room very clean and comfortable, very good service, good but not exceptional food, and a beautiful beach with a wonderful sunset every evening. HOWEVER, the reason I can only give 3 stars is because of the many personal accidents we witnessed, the RIU put tile around the pool area and when it gets wet is very slippery. We witnessed 2 or 3 people falling everyday we were there. We met a lady who had fallen on the slick tile and fractured her wrist and ended up in a local hospital.
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Feb 20, 2026
We prefer the Riu Playacar over Riu Riviera Maya Palace
We booked Playacar after finding out that our go-to Riviera Maya Palace / RMP did not have availability for our week. My husband and I were bringing our son and daughter in law for her 30th birthday. We all loved the layout of Playacar! The adult-only swim up bar infinity pool was in the sun all day and even though the water was cold, it was popular with the guests and we could always find a place to sit. Our room 6201 was perfect! 2nd floor with no one above us and we were on the corner. From the balcony we could see the ocean. We were close to the beach and not far from the lobby. Oscar who cleaned our room daily was friendly, thorough and left us the most delightful towel animals. It had a wonderful walk in shower (RMP had a tub, which we didn't miss). The walkable beach is stunning and the aqua blue water is beautiful! We would spend 2+ hours a day in the water bobbing around watching the fish swim by us. The weather in February was perfect, every.single.day.. Bars, buffets and restaurants were great, Italian ended up being our favorite. RMP has lobster at the steakhouse and we missed that. The only premium vodka was Smirnoff. RMP had a variety of flavored Absolute Vodkas. The Friday night Neon Party fell on our daughter in law's birthday, it was amazing!! Don't miss this, even if you go early and leave after a bit, still go! The free airport shuttle with Destination Services was terrible. After we arrived at Cancun Airport, the DS Rep played games with us regarding taxi rates $120, then $80, after 30 minutes of us refusing he said he could get us a shuttle if we gave him a tip? Then at the hotel we got a call in our room the first morning to come down right away to get our return shuttle voucher, which turned out to be a sales pitch for excursions, then told to come back the day before we leave to pick up the voucher. When we returned the day before we left she barked our pick up time at us which was 5 hours before our plane took off. Considering the travel time to the airport is 1 hour and the check in to gate takes about 20 mins we opted for a private transfer that picked us up at 3pm in lieu of noon. Rather spend our last few hours at the beach than 4 hours at the airport that doesn't have drinking water (only bottled for $5usd). We still made it to the airport 2.5 hours prior to our flight. We preferred the Playacar over RMP and RMP is usually about $600usd per week MORE than Playacar.
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Feb 17, 2026
Great food , fun and staff
What a great time ! Gail at the specialty drink station was extremely friendly and always saying hi even when not at his station . Cesar and Luigi at the lobby bar were made a stay very enjoyable ( always had big smiles ) Maribel at the swim up bar was the fastest server I have ever seen . Amazing person. Janet at the buffet was absolutely amazing always asked how our previous day was and what plans we had for the day were . She has been there for 17 years and everyone we talked to that sat in her section said she was incredible. The food was spectacular especially Krystal and Guacamole. The beach was incredible. We did a swim with wild dolphins. Saw around 40 plus at least 15-20 humpback whales including a few baby whales.
- AdvisoryStudent Groups/Spring Breakers (either groups or individuals, regardless of age) are not allowed at any time during the year. Guests disturbing or generating complaints from other guests or hotel may be removed from the property, at their own expense. Parties in rooms are not permitted.
- Check In: 3:00 PM
- Check Out: 12:00 PM
- Minimum Check-In Age: 18
- Pet Policy : Pets Not Allowed
- Early Departure Policy
- Early Departure Penalty:1 NightApplies: Sunday - Saturday 04Jul24 - 23Dec26
- Early Departure Penalty:2 NightsApplies: Sunday - Saturday 24Dec25 - 30Apr26
- Early Departure Penalty:1 NightApplies: Sunday - Saturday 24Dec26 - 31Dec50
- Early Departure Penalty:2 NightsApplies: Sunday - Saturday 24Dec26 - 30Apr27