Riu Gran Canaria

This was our third time staying in this hotel so obviously we like it. You know what you are getting with Riu, usual standards for food, facilities, entertainment, pools and grounds. This place is set in a lovely area with great scenery and a nice selection of restaurants and shops. The hotel is not ideal if peace and quiet are what you are looking for which with 2 teenagers it wasn’t. Although the windows from the balconies are quite good at blocking out noise you could hear a lot of noise coming from the corridor and the room above. It did seem like once the first person in this hotel woke up everyone else would be soon after. I do still like this hotel but I have 2 reasons for giving a rating of only 3. Firstly I must have been lucky the 2 previous stays and was given rooms high, facing out and in the 2 side buildings but on this occasion we were given 2 rooms on the second floor of the main building. Our rooms completely overlooked the main entertainment stage to the point that I thought I might get an appearance fee for the night shows. Hotel was full so there was no point trying to get 2 rooms moved and as it happens I did kinda get used to it until the other reason for my reduced score. The White Party! On Friday nights they hold a full stage rave with loud music and flashing lights which goes on until quite late and the noise then continues whilst they clean up from the aftermath. To be honest it’s not ideal but I have to say what a great job the staff do holding this and then the speed of the clean up was a sight to behold. No way in England this would have been done so efficiently. If this is your sort of thing you’ll love it but it’s no longer mine so it’s horses for courses. What I do think though is that it’s a bit cheeky that the hotel I have paid to stay in gets flooded by guests from the other Riu hotels in the area to the point where it makes everywhere extremely busy and it is then hard to get a drink. Maybe an idea to open the 2 bars at the other end of the grounds and make them just for this hotels guests on this evening. Be warned this happens every Friday night.

This must be one of my favorite places on earth. We were here as a big family in our easter holluday, and honestly we had the time of our life. All the staff was amazing, helpful, professional a d friendly. And one of the waiters even developed a close bond with our son. The entire resort is beautiful, pools amazing and the area around perfect for walks. Yes we paid quite a lot for this but the experience was worth it. A truly recommended hotel.

A Fantastic Family Stay – RIU Gran Canaria We have just returned from a 9-day stay, and I’m genuinely sad to be leaving. Having stayed at RIU Hotels over the years in Mexico, Morocco and now Gran Canaria, I can honestly say that this has been our best RIU experience to date. From the moment we arrived, the staff were friendly, welcoming and professional. The entertainment team deserve a particular mention. They consistently went above and beyond to make sure everyone was included and having a great time. There was a fantastic range of entertainment aimed at children of all ages and abilities. The White Party and Neon Party were both great fun and very family-friendly. Just be mindful that the music can get quite loud, particularly for younger children. The hotel’s location is also excellent, with plenty of family activities nearby, including the water park and Angry Birds Activity Park. The room service and housekeeping teams were fantastic. They work incredibly hard and consistently kept everything to a very high standard. Overall, we absolutely loved our stay. The hotel, staff, entertainment and location made it a fantastic family holiday, and we have already decided that we are already booking for longer next year! I would definitely recommend experiencing the hotel for yourself rather than paying too much attention to some of the more negative reviews. Our experience was excellent, and we cannot wait to return. Thank you to the entire team for making our 9 days so enjoyable!

This was our 3rd time to this hotel as a family of three (8year old son) as well as my in laws. Couldn't fault it and will be back again.

and the answer is YES! I have just returned from a 9 night stay with my wife and my 14 year old son. We have not been away for a few years and we tend to venture to Turkey or Greece, so this was our first time to Gran Canaria. We travelled from London Southend Airport which was nice and quick, it took us no longer than 15/20 minutes from the time we checked in our luggage and through to the terminal. The one concern we had was the Exit & Entry system at Gran Canaria airport as you hear stories of long queues however, it was completed in the space of a couple of minutes and we proceeded through the E-gates. Returning was also fine and due to having a child over 12, we can go through the main E-gates which is quicker. I was slightly apprehensive given it was our first time here but also, our last two times abroad, we stayed at the TUI Blue Tropical which I understand is TUIs flagship hotel in Europe and I thought that would be challenging to trump but the hotel was fantastic. Another plus point was the the transfer from the Airport to the Hotel was circ. 20 minutes. As most of the reviews state, for an All Inclusive hotel, it is fantastic and caters for everything you would expect. The hotel is clean, modern and spacious. we stayed in room 46 was a perfect location as it was located on the ground floor based near the pools and main restaurants. The room was furnished as to be expected and Air con was perfect. A lot of activities taking place throughout the day. The food is very nice albeit it would be good if they would put on different themes eg. Chinese, Indian or Spanish etc but nonetheless, all very nice. We only eat in the two buffet restaurants but did eat at the steakhouse which was lovely and we had a window view which looked out to the sea which was stunning. Like a lot of high end all inclusive hotels, they now put on "White" or "Neon" parties once a week. I felt like the White party was little bit too cheesy for me (but that's my personal view) and it does go on until 12pm at night, so if you are looking for an early night, you might struggle to get to sleep. You cant take anything away from the entertainment team, they work their socks off night and day and are a credit to the hotel as well is all the staff, we found all them very welcoming, polite and helpful. Its the little things for me, there was an occasion where someone was smoking near our sun loungers and as non-smoker, i wasn't thrilled about it but they were quickly directed by one of the security guards to a smoking area. Something that most people worry about is the Sun Bed wars, to be honest, if you want a front row seat to the main pool then yes, you may have to get up a little bit earlier. However, you will always still find sun beds available. After reflecting on the hotel, the one stand out point for me was the location. Not only was it close to the airport, the hotel is set on the beach and there are some fabulous modern beach bars/restaurants if you come out and turn left. We never eat out but always ventured to the Ice Cream shop whilst also having a look around in the super markets and shopping centres. Later on in the holiday, we turned right and again was met by a few restaurants and in the last few days, took a stroll in the day time to have a quick drink whilst looking out to the sea. Don't get me wrong, nowadays, the price to travel abroad especially in the summer holidays, from our local Airport with good flight times is eye-watering but 100% this hotel was well worth every penny and will be returning at some point.