Riu Buenavista

To give context; this is our 10th stay at a Riu Hotel - all different! We have stayed at some of the best (Sri Lanka & Aquarelle Jamaica) through to the lowest ranked (Olivia Beach). As a brand we feel Riu gives value for money for facilities, but the experience can vary greatly. How would we rank Riu Buenavista? Definitely one of the best we have visited! An all round very good stay, in a good location and the staff were amazing! Please find below an honest review of the great & not so great things we encountered: Very good standard of accommodation - room was spacious, light and modern. Water pressure and temperature in the shower was excellent and the cleanliness first rate. One small niggle was the lack of a dressing table/chest of drawers. Not a biggy but frustrating not to be able to fully unpack for 10 days due to the lack of drawer space. Had to leave some items in the case on the rack as didn't want my folded clothes to have to live on the floor of the wardrobe. Maybe it was just our room? It's a small thing but the room would have been perfect if it had had that one extra item. Pools are great - there is something for everyone; the infinity pool, activity pool, children's pool, quiet adults only pool and a family pool. As the resort is terraced down to the sea, the noise from the lively pools did not carry and so those who want a quiet experience could easily pick their spot. Yes there were those determined people who went down to the pool in the dark to bag their favourite spot, however there was plenty of room for those who prefer a more leisurely holiday and bagging a great spot was easy on our way to breakfast after 8am. There were those who bagged beds early and then never used them the whole day, but that happens the world over and says more more about the guests that the Hotel. The activity team was excellent, probably the best we have encountered in a long time - I won't name them as I would be bound to forget someone, but each and everyone of them were great. Activities happened as advertised and they pitched in with enthusiasm and humour for all activities. They kept my husband thoroughly entertained with water volley, polo, football, 'axe' throwing, darts and beach volleyball. There was no pressure to get involved (I was happy relaxing and reading) but for those who prefer an active holiday they really won't disappoint. Drinks are fine - don't expect top shelf liquor, but what they serve is fine and the measures are generous. The wine was not great, but to be honest if it comes out of a dispenser you kind of know that will be the case. However the Cava sparkling wine was very nice and the local versions of Baileys and their darks Rums were decent enough to make them out 'go to' drinks. Cocktails are generally out of a machine, so best avoided unless you love extremely sugary slightly fake tasting concoctions. But the bar staff were great, we never waited more than a couple of minutes to be served even on on the busiest nights and they were happy to make whatever you wanted if they had the ingredients. Food was of a good standard; we ate at every venue. Buffet had a good range of dishes and the roast meats carved on the spot were a firm favourite with hubby. Also Atlantico for breakfast and lunch became a favourite. It had the same food options as the buffet, but the advantage of outside sea view tables and the quieter atmosphere. For the specialty restaurants it was a bit more hit & miss - the food in the Oriental was very good but the service was not great - only 2 wait staff for the whole restaurant was insufficient. We are not speedy eaters and like to take our time but it's not great to eat desert while multiple main plates are still on the table. Also as we were drinking Cava we had to ask for it and on both occasions we ate there, we were never offered a refill (probably due to the lack of staff) The Italian conversely had great service, but the pasta was unfortunately very overcooked so we only went the once. The Grill was again fine and the food nice, but you just get better variety of very similar food at the main buffet. On the whole the food was fine and we enjoyed it, its just not going to blow your socks off in the flavour stakes! We ate out locally a couple of nights to mix things up as there were several restaurants in the streets around the hotel. The evening entertainment was of a good standard - not always to everyone's liking, but you don't have to stay and watch it do you? The Motown Quartet were probably our favourite. Michael Jackson night is always popular, but we have seen so many of these around the world that this one just didn't rank that high for us. The Activity team lip-sync and dance to backing tracks some nights and they do try very hard. I totally admire the effort they put in all day with activities for guests and then get up on stage and perform for everyone in the evening: 10/10 for effort. Another good thing about this hotel is that they provide separate, distinct areas for smoking. An excellent provision that worked well and meant that our time by the pool or watching the shows in the evening was not spoilt by inconsiderate smokers and vapers. The Riu Neon & White Parties on Friday night were brilliant, some of the best we have experienced! Very family friendly fun, great music, great dancers and a real party vibe, but finishes dead on 11pm (what more could a couple of 50 somethings ask for!) So with all that in mind our final verdict on the hotel is..... we would definitely come again!! The overall cleanliness, value, location and completely amazing Bar/Activity & Waiting staff make this a location that we do intend on coming back to and we are already looking at booking again for June. It's a very multi cultural hotel with guests from all over Europe and we made many new friends. The fact that so many of them are repeat guests shows the calibre of the hotel. Tenerife is a beautiful Island with a short length flight from the UK and Riu Buenavista makes a great base for exploring. Book now, explore the island and know that this hotel will look after you well. |It will keep you entertained, well fed and topped up with plentiful drinks and all provided with a laugh and a smile. Bien Hecho Riu Buenavista Hasta Luego

This hotel is so nice friendly and nothing is to much the food was lovely had something different every night the rooms were clean and our lady came in everyday to clean and make our bed she was very pleasant and helpful the only problem was the entertainment team was they don't have a clue everything was shouting and screaming and no further forwards there was a man and women singers and comedy act that was so funny but the rest was very bad karaoke was awful poor singers trying to have fun and the entertainment team screaming in the back ground the music was going on and off all the time the sunbed wars were ridiculous we went down and got a sun bed one day only cos the man and women were going and was talking to some people who took there towels down at 5 in morning it's shocking then to be told by another couple they went at 10 to 4 you are supposed to be on a chilled holiday not worried you not getting a bed apart from they 2 issues we had a lovely stay

We had a very pleasant stay at Riu Buenavista. The hotel is very modern, with a chic design, offers plenty of facilities, and caters to different needs. Accessibility - it is fully accessible, with even a chair lift for the infinity pool. We stayed in an adapted room, and it was absolutely fantastic. The size was perfect. Cleanliness - the room and general hotel cleaning is superb; however, it would be nice if the sunbeds and glass around pools were also cleaned to the same standards (they were not touched at all during our stay as we always positioned ourselves in the same spot so could see the same stains day after day). Food - we ate all breakfast and lunches at the Atlantico, which became the Grill speciality restaurant in the evening. We ate most of our evening meals there too. The choice of food is great. Some reviews stated that the food was repetitive. This is somewhat misleading, as the number of options means you can have a different meal each day. I was glad that options were repeated throughout the week, so I was able to have my favourite dishes like squid or steak more than once. The hotel caters well for gluten intolerance and other food allergies. Alcohol - the wine was very good, so I enjoyed it enough. Staff - everyone is nice, attentive and hardworking. Big shout-out to Vanessa - the best staff member of them all. Riu Party - now I understand why people like it so much. We always stay in the Playa Paraiso area; however, this was our first stay at Riu, and we will definitely stay here again when we return to Tenerife.

Great hotel food same each day gluten free options pizza and pasta That also have gluten free bread our room was accessible with a walk in shower entertainment was ok entertainment at night was the entertainment staff but I would go again

The hotel is very clean with a variety of pools of which there was always sunlounger space around 8/9AM. The beach they claim to be near is a sorry excuse for a beach. Entertainment team seem to be lovely people but the entertainment at night was shocking. Our family actually thought we were being pranked when the ‘musical express show’ was on — lip syncing staff who didn’t know the words, singers screeching instead of singing, costumes on back to front, people clearly just copying others, technical components were cut short and the whole crowd were just staring at each other - awful! Food is so repetitive, literally nothing changes. The restaurants you can book into are a little better but food takes a while to be refilled. Cleaners are amazing and clean the room to a very high standard. Drinks were the worst thing about this place. If you come for all inclusive choose somewhere else. The cocktails are settings on a blender and taste of water/chemicals/bleach with no flavour whatsoever. You can ask for classic cocktails but it seems no one really knows how to make these either and they taste worse. Cups are so small so you are up and down every 10 minutes. Really disappointed with this hotel.