Riu Palace Aruba

The staff is okay, I expected them to be more friendly and happy given it's the happy island. The food was mediocre at best, I would rate it 1.5/5. The room was very nice and clean, the staff did amazing cleaning everyday. The pools were nice but the entertainment got annoying all day everyday with the same stuff. You can't relax with the games going on. The drinks were good but way too small. I think it was a 4 oz glass so you're getting two at a time just for yourself. I understand it's hot and things melt fast but these the smallest glasses I've ever had in an all inclusive and it was annoying to make so many trips back and forth and wait for the bartender. I could not find the gym and no one was helpful in locating it for me. I don't understand why girls can wear strapless mini dresses but boys can't wear a tank top for dinner? It's hot! Reservations mean going there at 6PM everyday, not actually reserving ahead of time. Our room was right by the stage so it was loud every night until 10PM and there was no relaxing on the balcony. Overall it was okay but I wouldn't stay again.

We just had a lovely holiday at Riu Palace. The beach is amazing and the staff was great.

During our stay at RIU Palace Aruba, Carmen at the main buffet made our experience truly memorable. She greeted our family with a warm smile every day and often brought our drinks before we even had to ask. She was incredibly attentive, efficient, and kept her area spotless even when it was busy. Carmen’s service really stood out and made our stay special. She deserves recognition from management for the amazing job she does.

Two stars but still a great place. It would’ve been a dream vacation, but their communication about transportation was terrible. They were supposed to provide all inclusive with transportation. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way and I wound end up spending $178 for transportation to and from the airport to the hotel. Quite excessive. Their reasoning was I was supposed to sign up seven days prior. They couldn’t get me in on the list. Very poor excuse and they never told me this to begin with. What I will tell you is that the property has beautiful beaches. The property is extremely clean. They have great food. The drinks were lacking as they did not have a good quality tequila. It was actually awful. All the other drinks were great. The bedroom was excellent, and the view views were stunning. I’ve been going to the RIU for 15 years. I’ve been to a lot of of them. This one was the best of the best except for the transportation. Unfortunately, for that, I give it two stars it kind of ruined everything else.

My wife and I returned from Aruba last week. We stayed at the RIU Palace on Palm Beach. Excellent location right on the beach with a large pool. This is an all inclusive resort and food was very good with a large selection. We ate at two speciality restaurants (Krystal a gourmet restaurant and Milano an Italian restaurant). Both were very good. We stayed in the main building on the 9th floor with a beautiful Ocean View. Room was recently renovated as most of the rooms have been. The pool is huge with a swim up bar and drinks are plentiful. You need to save a place at the pool around 7 am to be sure to get a good location at the pool. Staff was very friendly, especially the restaurant staff. We found the resort to be very clean with staff constantly cleaning. Beach is very nice with plenty of lounge chairs. I would recommend this resort for couples, singles and families. I would like to express my thanks and assistance to Santana at the front desk for his hospitality. We would definitely stay at this resort again. However, I was informed the resort is going to be closed for about six months this year to complete their renovations.