Riu Palace Costa Rica - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

10697 reviews

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  Horrible check in service and room

  Extremely bad check in staff. Very rude and straight up lies. They told us to choose a particular building offering beach view. Gave us extreme back facing room. Also told us we don’t care, go complain to whoever you like we don’t care. One of them is was a manager. Also mind you we are RUi class members.

  Dec 25, 2025
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  Rude and aggressive

  We went to the Riu Guanacaste to try to BUY guest passes for the day. We were told to come in the morning to see if they were available. When we arrived we were waived in by a security guard then walked to the front desk to buy the passes. As we were discussing the pass options and cost, another security guard interrupted and demanded that we leave immediately. When we asked why, we were told we had snuck in and had to leave and someone would call us from the front of the property, but we could not wait in the lobby to book. I explained this was impossible since we drove in and the gate doesn’t allow for cars to just come in. They kept just insisting we leave- so we did. We were then followed out and were treated like criminals because we tried to spend over 1k for guest passes. Imagine that…. Eventually the security guard at the front gate was so rude and purposely unhelpful as we waited for a call that we left because the whole experience was so terrible. In the end, security screwed up and accidentally let us in and then made up a lie that is obviously untrue to cover themselves. I won’t ever go back.

  Dec 24, 2025
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  Mixed feelings

  We went as a family. My husband and I came here several years ago and brought our kids and grandkids for a special vacation. This is not the same friendly resort we came to years ago. Housekeeping was incredible. We tend to spend more time at the ocean than the pool. Location of the resort is awesome since you can see monkeys, birds, butterflies and iguanas without leaving the resort. You can snorkel and fish off shore. The food was average this time. Having food allergies I definitely had an issue since the signs with the symbols did not match the dishes. However once we were introduced to the chef on the third day she took such good care of my daughter and me at dinner. So grateful! But the one night my son did find mussel shells in the mash potatoes which could be an issue for someone with a seafood allergy. We noticed preferential service especially at the outside bars. I usually tip on a regular basis but gave up when we were constantly ignored. Even many of the entertainment people were off standish. The grandkids loved the waterpark. I was surprised to see people vaping in the halls and by the stage and no one said anything. We paid for 3 different types of rooms yet all of our rooms looked the same. As much as it has so much to offer I will not return.

  Dec 24, 2025
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  I feel like I was rip off

  I was very disappointed with check in, It was madness with so many people, upon checking in I used my credit card to pay for my stay. This hotel fraud my credit cards with 1500 charge from Amazon. Please be aware about handing your credit card over to any hotel reservation. I was so upset that they took advantage of my visit, I will never return there again. They are reasonable but it not worth the trouble. The food was trash

  Dec 22, 2025
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  Average

  We are a couple in our early 40s we traveled with no children. I will start out with the positives RIU did a great job on the remodel. Staff was always cleaning. The rooms were just as pictured. The shower was spacious, and it was nice to have 2 double sinks. The resort was also nicely decorated for the Christmas holiday. Negatives The operations team really needs to step up their game. There was only one option for sit-down service. This was for the Steak house. People had to line up at 5pm to see if we would get seated! We have traveled quite a bit, and all the AI that we have been to stayed at this was just crazy to us that there were no reservation systems. No menus QR codes, so I see how they are trying to advance in technology, but it seems so archaic system that there is no system to make reservation system in place. Also important to note that not all restaurants are open during the week. We finally did make it to the Steak house and I had the salmon by husband had the mixed grill but was fatty. We bot agreed the French fries were tasty. People are on vacation they want to relax and this put a damper on things, having to constantly wait in lines to eat. Also, the waste of food that this resort must experience with all the buffets. I wish they had an omlet station. Food was average the buffets were not rotated. You will not go hungry but food is average. The pools were nice land big thw "adult pools" were basically large sit down pool bar I . RIU THInK ABOUT MAKING AN ADULTS ONLY SECTION!. No one came by the pool to ask for drinks, not a big deal, but again, most AI offer this service. I will say when we did go to the bar it took forever to get a drink ... like literally not even a look of acknowledgment, or I'll be right with you... we were not the only ones who noticed this speaking to serval other guests while waiting in lines. They also had the same experience. Pool I noticed that there was only 2 entrances for the large pools, not a big deal, just poor design. Filters need to be not just skimming the pools. Entertainment Only one party, the white party, which eas good the other nightly entertainment is as expected with any AI. I WISH THEY DID THE NEON AND WHITE DURING THE SAME WEEK. Tours We booked with Frank the Tank shout out to Gray and Maurice as well as our drivers! Costa Rica is beautiful, I would return, but not to the Riu- major operation changes need to happen.

  Dec 21, 2025