Riu Palace Tropical Bay

Just came home yesterday back to UK, with Tui. Did private transfer with Easy Breezy- highly recommend, Kevin the driver was great. Checked in on RIU app prior to arrival- check in smooth- Jameson on the front desk offered us an upgrade to ocean view room, which we declined but then he came back with a much lower price, so we opted to go for it, the view was stunning room 3314, only minor gripe there was a tree right in the line of the sunset , but that’s nature for ya, for us it was still perfect. Room was immaculate, housekeeping everyday. Hotel complex beautiful, clean and the staff are amazing, beach 10/10 stunning, clear water , white sand.no problems for lounges on beach or pool, we preferred the beach tho. Andre kept our drinks topped up without having to go the bar. Drinks- top brands, shout out to Marlene and King Bevan at the Plaza bar also the drink waiters during entertainment Natalia and Darvin for keeping the drinks flowing. Daiquiris bar for ideal air con again Crystal was always smiling. Restaurants- tried them all, Steakhouse was not the best, Rimini ok, Hamachi -shout out to Samuel, we enjoyed but Krystal for us was the nicest the server Janelle was so nice, although we only managed to get in once. Buffet - for the first 8-10 days couldn’t fault , however after this time they started to reduce the buffet options many stations closed that were open the 1st week , breakfast plenty of choice the first 10 days , however they start to close down at 10.10, even though it’s supposed to be serving till 10.30 - a few where nit happy with this and I tend to agree , your on holiday if it says 10.30 then they should honour this. Lunch buffet - again amazing first 8-10 days then limited choices and repetitive the rest of the holiday, same with evening buffet. No lobster. If I hadn’t had experienced the previous week I would probably be non the wiser, but the hotel seems much busier with lots and lots of South Americans arriving, it was also much harder to get in the specialist restaurants then and it got a bit frustrating, so not sure why the choice r stations were reduced. Entertainment- reggae band good, steel band good , Michael Jackson tribute good, White Party very good for a wild one. Went to Office of Nature, along the beach, lovely not cheap paid $120 for lobster to share, it’s like a beach hut/ bar, went about 5 shuts around 7pm. Ate out at Ivan’s amazing well worth a visit again had lobster only $39 each, much cheaper than Office if Nature, in a lovely setting romantic , round trip $40 taxi driver waits whilst you eat and drink. Did catamaran through Scuba Caribe -hotel vendors, this was also great did Ricks Cafe , snorkelling , 7 mile beach, would highly recommend. Did we tip yes we did, the staff are always smiling working long hours for very little, it’s not expected so no pressure at all but we did. Would return in a heartbeat, go enjoy and chill. Hope this helps feel free to ask any questions.

Went to this hotel last year with our grandson loved it so much went back this year with more of our family ages from 13 to 66 and can only say everyone loved it so much some are going back. Rooms clean and large need slight refresh, grounds beautiful, food ok always found something to eat lots of choice, staff always very helpful waiters couldn’t do enough for you I was also amazed breakfast buffet waiters actually remembered us could not believe it. Beach amazing sunset too, entertainment was great. Only one thing shop on site as we realised last year very expensive daughter forgot something a £2 item in uk £18 in the shop and single chocolate £6 so be aware. Apart from this great hotel.

We stayed mid August for 11 nights. Booked thru Tui, yet had private transfers and never used any Tui service. Found the hotel to be relaxed and a great location. We asked to move from block 1 due to road noise and were moved the following day to block 3. 99% of staff friendly, good fun, one or 2 were bit grumpy but never rude! We were on UK hours so found booking the à la cartes early am no issue, having said that we enjoyed the buffet the most. Plenty of option and the staff were so lovely. Lifeguards and pool bar staff were great. Sometimes we watched the entertainments other evenings we played cards in bar, and sometimes we walked to Negril Riu hotel and enjoyed their entertainment. We got the free bus provided by Margaritaville one morning and the Uber back at £4! Don’t listen to the taxi man in reception who funnily enough knew nothing about the bus that arrived everyday in front of him but could offer u a 40$ taxi!! We also did a half day out with the Scuba onsite company and was good fun. Beautiful beach, sea and sunshine.

Our experience was fantastic as usual. Thanks to Shyma (sp) and her co-workers in her section of the buffet, as well as Michelle, who cooked great omelettes. Also a shout-out to our old buffet pals Damian, Derval and Twain. Special thanks to Michael at the front desk, as well as Julian, who was a great help. Kudos also to Leonardo and "The Big Guy" for keeping the grounds so clean. Also, can you help me remember the name of the beverage guy for 4216?...he's a super dude with a great personality, and he has a big laugh. Thanks again. See you next year.

The garden view and the beach was the only nice thing 6k later, not kid friendly.