Riu Palace Tropical Bay - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

8586 reviews

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  Reopened a week prior to our arrival

  Fortunately for us, Riu Palace Tropical Bay reopened just a week prior to our arrival. The resort property sustained minor damage from hurricane Melissa. Reopening was delayed due to damage to Jamaica's power and water infrastructure. We were greeted with a cold fruit punch that you could add rum to if you wanted it. Even though we had checked in online, the computer system was down (due to public electrical / internet provider outages) and we had to check in via a manual paper based system. We were upgraded from an ocean view room to an ocean front room probably because occupancy was low. All of the resort's facilities were operating properly and the Riu staff was outstanding! The beach and the water in Bloody Bay were perfect as usual. Most of the vendors in the blue tarp shops between Riu Tropical Bay and Riu Negril were back and open. All of the friends that I made there during our previous stay in February were found to be safe; but all of them had their homes affected by the hurricane. Some areas won't get electrical service back until June or July 2026. One of my friends has a massage parlor located right on the beach (not behind the fence where who knows what might happen). It is located closer to the Riu Negril facility, but the massage is worth the walk from RIU Tropical Bay! Her name is Angela Hart - ask any of the nice people in the blue tarp shops where to find her. She is very professional and is a genuinely good person. I think that she puts her soul and love into her massages. The only inconvenience that we had was intermittent wifi / internet service. This WAS NOT the resort's fault - it was caused by the public electrical/ internet service outages. The resort's generator kicked in immediately when the public power system was down. We will definitely return to this beautiful country and to this outstanding resort in the future. Airport transfers were provided by Junior Fun Tours. Communication with them prior to arrival and while we were there was FAST and precise. Both drivers that we had were exceptional; they were on time, drove relatively safely and were willing to engage in conversations with us and provided us with a lot of island information.

  Dec 29, 2025
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  URGENT WARNING IF YOU ARE HEADING HERE - THEY ARE OVERBOOKED BUT WILL NOT TELL YOU UNTIL YOU GET THERE & TRY TO CHECK IN

  The worst hotel experience I have ever had. I would give it zero stars if I could. After a long day of international travel, we took an hour 1/2 transfer to the hotel. Upon arrival, we were told that they were overbooked and that we needed to get back in a taxi, and make the 1 1/2 hour return trip to MoBay to stay at that RIU for the whole week. No chance of retuning to the hotel we booked. Zero notice was given to us in advance of this change. Other people were being sent 3 hours away to Ochos Rios. We saw friends who had flown from different geographical locations to vacation together at Tropical Bay, where one of them got to stay with her family but they told the other friend (a solo traveler) that she had to go back to MoBay and spend her week alone. So many unhappy people, tears, and utter frustration. I realize that the RIU Negril had a fire, but this is not an appropriate way to deal with it. If there had been an act of God at the hotel that I had booked at, I would expect the hotel to let me know that they couldn’t honor my reservation, refund my money, or give me other options. However, there was no act of God at the hotel that I had paid for and booked, and I was given zero notice that there was any sort of issue until after I had already made a very long trip. There was no offer to reimburse for the transfer ticket to Negril, and they would not pay for a taxi to another hotel in Negril. There was no offer of some sort of upgrade in Montego Bay. We had carefully researched the beaches and we specifically picked Tropical Bay because of the beach. I was not interested in the Montego Bay Beach. I would not have booked that hotel. When we asked to just be refunded our money and we would find accommodations elsewhere, we got a very sketchy answer about that as well, involving the person at the desk allegedly having to email someone. Keep in mind that while we waited at the curb outside the hotel for a couple of hours while we got a new plan put together, we saw them randomly checking other people in. A lot of other people. So I don’t know who decided who got their reservation and who did not, but it was a mess of an operation, totally unprofessional, and I will never ever have anything to do with a RIU property ever again.

  Dec 28, 2025
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  Fantastic Stay and Stress-Free Planning!

  I had an amazing stay at Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay! The rooms were beautiful, the staff were friendly, and the food was excellent. Everything ran smoothly, making it a truly relaxing vacation. Planning my trip was a breeze thanks to some helpful tips from Agile Styling—if you’re looking for guidance on organizing your travel or accommodations, they really know how to make things easy. Highly recommend both the hotel and the support I received!

  Nov 19, 2025
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  Excellent resort

  Visited October 21st for what was supposed to be 7 days. Our stay at the Riu Palace Tropical Bay was excellent. The staff, the grounds, facilities, food and entertainment. Every aspect of our resort experience was beyond our expectations. For perspective I've been to 5 Sandals resorts. Hurricane Melissa hit on the 28th. I want to commend the staff at the hotel for their professionalism and conduct. Despite facing their own personal challenges with the Hurricane, they made sure that every guest was safe and sound. Communication to guests verbally and via letters left at our rooms was practical and helpful. Despite the early stages of the storm, groups of employees went door to door. They delivered food and drinks to all rooms for guests for the planned room lockdown, from Monday Night to Wednesday morning. After the hurricane, the property was equipped with generators and all staff did their utmost to keep a smile on their faces. Many working day and night, some staff staying on site, they began the clean up immediately. We did not expect it after what they had experienced. With no WiFi or cellular service most staff did not know how there families were doing in the aftermath. Despite that, all levels of employees were incredible. Despite the uncertainty, they continued to provide an abundance of excellent food and drink each day after the storm. For a couple days we were shuttled back and forth promptly to the nearby Riu Negril. Again despite the employees personal challenges we were served 3 buffets a day at that beautiful property. The staff there made us feel welcome and the Palace staff came there working double duties. We had positive experiences with all of the Riu employees, but I would like to mention specifically: Shoya - Riu Negril reception desk, Gary Beckles , Ruth - waiter / waitress Palace, Beverley- Riu Palace reception All bartenders at Riu Palace - worked day and night - non stop. Paulo and Alejandro ( assistant GM - Palace) We departed on November 2nd. We are grateful to all at the Riu Palace Negril. They should be commended. Thank you

  Nov 13, 2025
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  Excellent !!!

  Visit Oct 22-Oct 29, 2025 (scheduled departure). Arrival smooth and easy. Escorted to our room 3116, as we requested. Everything perfect, staff amazing. Room great and very clean. Ocean was clear to the bottom, secure swim area. Plenty of chairs on the beach and pool for everyone. Food was plentiful and something for everyone. Ground impeccable clean, staff polite, professional and helpful at all times With the incoming hurricane Melissa, we were kept informed of all the changes, at all times. Clear instructions, with excellent emergency preparedness to perfection. We followed all instructions and came out of it safe. Staff continued to be positive and professional. Yes, we lost AC, occasional power and occasional water, but never lacked for anything. Clean up was proceeding quickly. Staff was able to keep up somewhat abbreviated normalcy for us. The biggest barrier was communication. WiFi was down, but arrangements were made for us to use the neighboring resorts' Wifi for calling home, rescheduling flights home. We were able to go home safely on Nov. 2, 2025, safe and sound. Thank You's go out to our housekeeper, Keniesha (Rm. 3116) for looking out for us and checking on us numerous time of the day if we needed anything. See is amazing. Our buffet waiter Kevin always greeted us with a smile and made us feel good. His co-worker Andre waiter was also upbeat and made us feel good despite the situation. Remember this staff, many of them went home to nothing left of their home and families. Everyone kept a positive note and did not bring it to work. Awaiting our return visit soon.

  Nov 09, 2025