Riu Palace Antillas

Lots to say about this experience...... The Rooms at the Riu Antilles are great! The bed was comfy and the pillows were great. Bathroom and shower were excellent! Hot water, great shower! Restaurants: Italian was fantastic! Great buffet, we had the chicken parmigiana and lasagna. We were full when we left and the arancini was excellent! Krystal was very good. The portions were extremely small, we both had the short rib, flavour was excellent. But we were still hungry when we left. We did ask for a second serving and were told no. Steakhouse was very good. The portions again were small, but the flavours in the lobster and steak were great. Buffet was ok, the food that was supposed to be hot was Luke warm. And the food that should have been cold was warm. But they did have a different theme night each night. You definitely didn't leave hungry. Overall the restaurants were ok. The beach......was beautiful as usual. Palapa are available at 6 am which we did not get up for. Housekeeping was waking us up way too early! We are on vacation and not interested in waking up so early. Let's talk etiquette at an adult only all inclusive resort. Dear Adults, just because this is an all inclusive doesn't mean you have to drink until you're acting like a 6 year old. Also, we do not need to hear you screaming all over the resort that it's your birthday.....you are not 4 years old......it's supposed to be "adults only". The yelling and the tourists acting like children was simply over the top. Not the hotels fault. But due to this reason we will not return to the Riu. The way some tourists were treating staff was disrespectful and simply rude. As an adult I would hope you know your limit when you're drinking..... For those of us that wanted a quiet week of vacation......you ruined it for us with your carrying on. I think children would have been better behaved and tolerable. For our USA friends that travel from Canada, please be respectful towards your northern neighbours. We did ask for a quiet room as we were celebrating our anniversary and our room was directly by the disco. But ear plugs worked great. This hotel has a terrible reputation with the locals simply due to the excessive behaviour of guests. That's sad for a Riu Palace. DO BETTER and please take into consideration you are not the only guest there. Treat staff respectfully, you are a guest on their beautiful island.

We were very glad we decided to go off season (May - November) to Aruba during the first week of June since there were fewer travelers. The water was also warm enough to go swimming, and the constant breezes always kept you cool. Pros- This hotel resort was very clean, and we were happy with our stay. Based on prior reviews, we had no issues with the elevators and did not see long lines at specialty restaurants. Menus at specialty restaurants were limited and we liked the huge food options at the buffet - if you couldn't find something you enjoyed eating there then you might want to consider it's you! The pool had plenty of seating available also because it was off season. The majority of employees were friendly and welcoming and very hard working! Cons - Housekeeping manager needs to find a better system. Housekeeping never got to our room until late in the day and 1 day it was after 3pm so we had to forgo since we needed to shower and get ready for an evening activity. It appears rooms that get cleaned first are those that have been vacated. Each day we were out of our room between 8:30 - 3 so there should have been plenty of time to clean our room. The entertainment was fair. The shows with dancers were entertaining, however except for the rock band, the music could use improvement. It would also be great if the entertainment went later than 10pm.

Everything from check in to check out, the service was excellent.

This is not a 5 star resort.....be prepared to reset your expectations if that's what you're going in with. I recently stayed at Riu Antillas in Aruba, and while there were definitely some highlights, the overall experience was a bit mixed, landing around a solid 3 stars. The location is absolutely stunning. The beach is exactly what you picture for Aruba with clear turquoise water, soft white sand, and plenty of space to relax. It’s easily the best part of the resort and hard to beat. Make sure you take a walk at night - it is a serene experience. The rooms were clean and comfortable, but a standard room literally gives you the view of a rooftop - no matter how long your arms are you're not getting a pic of the beach. The hallway carpets, lighting and paint could use a refresh. Housekeeping did a good job, given that I only had my room cleaned 3 times in the 7 days - by choice. When it comes to food and drinks, options were meh and very repetitive with the quality varying each day....it is an island where everything needs to be flown in - so that's to be expected. The specialty restaurants were better than the buffet, but reservations can be competitive and really the food off resort is far better. When it came to the room service - don't even bother - the food was horrible, VERY LIMITED and took forever to get to you. Service was hit-or-miss. Some staff were incredibly friendly and attentive, while others seemed rushed or less engaged, depending on the time and area. The adults-only atmosphere is a plus if you’re looking for a no kid vibe (this is the main reason I booked here), that said it is 100% a party pool. There is entertainment and activities if you want them, but nothing overly stands out. Maybe if I had gone with others my experience would have been different. That said - I just don't think I'm an all inclusive kind of person - I no longer drink like I did in my 20s and the food is not good enough to make up for it. Overall: Riu Antillas is a good choice if you prioritize beach and location, but don’t expect a true luxury or flawless all-inclusive experience. It’s enjoyable, just with areas for significant improvement.

Visited the hotel for my best friend 40th Anniversay we were so excited planed this trip for over a year 14 of us!! The customer service is horrible long wait on hold no respond to email and agents have attitude , No top shelf liquor for all the money you spending the food was ok all I ate was fruits noting was wow!! I called several time ahead of my trip requesting ocean view no one explain that ocean view sea view was the same I actually wanted a ocean front one of the managers Julie moved me to a higher floor nice room but not what I expected I will go to Aruba again but not the Rui ! On the hold we had a good time because we know how to have a good time no thanks to the hotel we couldn’t even have a welcome party sad!!