Hotel RIU Buenavista

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

7336 reviews

• 

  2nd Visit

  Returned again after enjoying previous stay. This time we upgraded to sea view and were rewarded with a lovely room with stunning views. Staff were all very friendly and helpful and hotel was very clean. Food was OK, hotel catered well to a multi national clientele. Would have preferred being served in à la carte restaurants as a change from all inclusive and there were some different choices but lots were same as main restaurant. Drinks were fine, cocktails not really to my taste, but you very rarely had a long wait to be served. This time we stayed mainly at the adult pool which we never managed to access on our previous visit (hotel is very large so you can be some distance from some pools). All pools we used were heated and pleasant though some sunbeds and parasols had seen better days. Entertainment not always to my taste but mostly I enjoyed. I personally did not like Kahoot but lots of people loved it but think most agreed with me that Karaoke was dire. The White and Neon parties were great fun, all ages had a great time. The entertainment team worked hard and did a great job presenting them. Enjoyed our holiday here again and look forward to returning.

  Mar 01, 2026
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  Needs a lot of improvement.

  We booked this for a break & I emailed the hotel asking for a sea view. This was ignored. We were given a family suite. Consisted of two bedrooms and large balcony that had a large tree in front of it blocking out any sunshine. The rooms were nice but cold as the air-conditioning would not allow us to alter the settings. We ended up turning it off. The set out of the rooms are strange, open ended building that carries noise so we were awoken numerous times, late at night by people coming back to their rooms and very early in the morning by cleaning staff. Hotel offered us a swap to sea view room after 4 days, by then we could not be bothered to pack & unpack. The hotel is set in a remote area, a little bit run down with very few bars & restaurants. Not very lively. The pools are set out on different levels, all are cold including the supposedly heated one. The sun loungers are cheap rickety and very uncomfortable. My main gripe was with the dreadful food. Bland, tasteless and cold. A microwave in each restaurant gives you a clue. One night they served pork SEVEN different ways! I did complain directly to the hotel and heard nothing back, I raised another complaint with the Tui rep and got a email back to say my complaint had been registered, again nothing done. We ate out on numerous occasions so all-inclusive is a total waste of money! The drinks are okay, cocktails are awful, sweet sickly made up mixtures, not made individually. The themed restaurants are a joke,poor service and no table service, just an extended version of the main crap buffet food on a smaller scale. The entertainment is laughable. Catering to a more European customer. White nights ect, not really popular with hotel guests to the point they had to bus in other Riu hotel guests from neighbouring hotel so you have nights where you can't get served at the bar because the staff could not cope serving these outside visitors. This has to be the worst Riu hotel I have been to, it really has put us off the Riu brand. In short won't be back and certainly will not be recommending this hotel.

  Feb 28, 2026
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  Best hotel I have ever been to

  This was a brilliant hotel there was plenty of food to choose from and if you love hot dogs you should definitely come !! The pools were massive although I will say you should bring goggles because the pools have salt water in them so getting it up your nose or in your mouth is not the best thing to do .staff were lovely and really helpful their is a mall nearby meaning you don’t need to bring to much. They have fab late night entertainment and staff are always ready to tell you things about the area I would definitely recommend this hotel as it is really good and near many places I would definitely come here again and go for a bit longer.

  Feb 26, 2026
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  Fantastic first visit

  My husband and I have just returned from 10 days at this hotel and had a wonderful holiday. Having been to the nearby Bahia Principe for more than 20 years we were a little apprehensive but it exceeded our expectations. Staff, service, food and cleanliness were all first class. Slight blip when we arrived as there was only 1 chair on the balcony and we do like to sit out. When we reported it to reception we were advised 'we are awaiting a delivery of chairs!" completely unacceptable for a fairly expensive hotel. In short, the lovely helpful Lorena resolved our issue. We were fortunate enough to book all 3 "a la cartes" which as previous reviewers have mentioned are really just alternative buffet meals but we enjoyed all the same. We also greatly enjoyed the neon party, the hard work and effort of all staff involved is apparent, including the clean up afterward - the following morning the area was spotless. In summary we had a fab holiday. I have rated it 4 rather than 5 for a combination of very small picky points - the bath towels were extremely flimsy, other hotels we go to always cook omelettes on request rather than pre-cooked which were often dried up, a bottle of water in the fridge is usually standard but there was none and finally (and being really picky here) but on checking out it would have been nice for the receptionist to ask if we had enjoyed our holiday, are we returning etc - it was quite a brusque check out bearing in mind it was our first visit. However, none of these issues would stop us returning or recommending to others and in fact we hope to return later this year. Finally an important part of the holiday is the people you meet and in our case it was the lovely Kim & Ashley, Patricia and Karen from Holland and Angie and Steve from Norwich. We very much look forward to our next visit.

  Feb 24, 2026
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  Top notch hotel and 5 star staff!

  Just finishing up an 11 day stay in Riu Buenavista and I highly recommend it. The hotel is huge, but never feels impersonal. There is a high level of attention to detail which I imagine is difficult given the scale. First and foremost I need to highlight the friendliness and sheer professionalism of all of the hotel team. From the front desk, to the maids, to the energetic animation team, everybody is extremely hard working and does it with a smile. Our 5 year old loved Riuland (kids club). Particular mention to Carlos and Carlitos from Plaza Bar - legends! Also Tere, Diana and Jose luis from Yaiza who made such a fuss over our 8 month old baby. The rooms are great, adjoining rooms for us and the kids which suited perfectly. The front desk accommodated a room change with no issues, as we wanted a balcony overlooking the pool in the sun. The food is excellent in the main restaurant Yaiza. A huge selection and even at busy times, the staff are very helpful finding a seat and serving water/coffee. Mandalay and La Dolce Vita's food is average to be honest and we did not dine in Grill restaurant. I think making these restaurants A la carte would be a better idea, rather than all buffets. Entertainment is excellent, particular mention goes to the Queen tribute and The White Party which was absolutely epic in scale, a huge production and so impressive. A real tribute to the staff pulling this event off every week. Facilities: ***** Staff: ***** Food: ****

  Feb 22, 2026