Riu Caribe

Second visit to RIU Caribe, another fantastic experience! Just like last year, every aspect of this place is top level Arrival smooth and quick, room ready and perfectly clean. Design is well thought out. Bed comfortable, bathroom perfect, view beautiful Most important, people. Everyone here is nice, genuine and ready to help. Dining room servers very nice, pool and beach people great. Activities staff excellent. Everyone says hello. Beach is beautiful, they work hard to keep it clean, water clear. Lounge chairs plentiful and in good shape. Pools clean and fresh. Pool bar bartenders helpful with drink suggestions. Clean, clean, clean! Staff is constantly working to sweep, wipe and dust. Only down side was that we were right on the edge of spring break, so more crowded than last year’s early February visit. We’ll be back next year!

Having stayed at the Riu Caribe where they placed my two sons and their families and myself in the basement with no elevator access, I was told it was because I Expedia. This trip I found the hotel directly and I booked through the hotel and I chose a transfer through the hotel website. I explained the horrible situation I have been in before and they promised that they would treat me better. I had to talk with the manager to get our room changed from looking out the back. Pablo was great. The transfers that went through TIU experiences were absolutely atrocious. They left us at the airport and put us down as a no-show when we were there and having cancelled a tour through RANDY and then cancelling it when all of the problems happened in Puerto Vallarta things went really south. RANDY WAS THE MOST UNPROFESSIONAL, CONDESCENDING AND RUDE. OUT OF VINDICTIVENESS, WE BELIEVE HE DIDN’T EVEN BOOK OUR RETURN TRAVEL. HE HAD REFUSED TO GIVE US CONFIRMATION AND THE BUS NEVER CAME AND WE WERE AGAIN FORCED TO PAY FOR AND TAKE A CAB. The review has gone downhill substantially and is no longer a four star hotel. TUI experiences is the company that they use and they areterrible and unreachable. The front desk claimed that they didn’t even know who the company was that was sitting in their lobby every single day. Find another place to go.

Beware of theft!! We are on a girls trip, our 24th anniversary of traveling to Mexico and this is the first experience of someone stealing out of our bags while we’re at the buffet no less. Of course there’s no cameras and nothing they can do. We reported this in the restaurant and no one came back to even talk to us. Found the manager when we left and he said to go to the front desk. But when we were at the front desk reporting this, there’s also a gentleman there reporting headphones and sweatshirts taken from his room when he was gone one hour. Sad deal.

Vacation Dates: 2/16/26 - 2/21/26 - Room 790 The Good: Our 12:00 noon check-in was quick and efficient - at 3:30 we received an email that our room was ready - the room was an oceanfront jr suite on the northeast side of the building - the room was clean and spacious with a huge balcony - the bed was comfortable and the AC worked well - also had a ceiling fan which was nice - housekeeping did a great job each day while we were out - there was no excessive late night noise in the hallways either - we ate in the buffet for breakfast each morning and dinner twice - the buffet has dozens of options and was always delicious and the servers were friendly and attentive - we also ate in the steakhouse, Mexican and Asian restaurants - they were also very good and staff were friendly - no complaints about the food, even the snack bar by the pools was good - at the pools Israel would come around with his cart of drinks (this guy is hilarious! "Shot, Shot") - the bars were all well stocked with some top-shelf liquors, but mostly well drinks (ask for the name brands when you order) - the beach was seaweed free each morning and there are lots of lounge chairs if you go down before noon. The Not So Good: When we were notified our room was ready it took 40 minutes to get our room key cards because of all the people checking in - there should be a separate desk just for collecting your room key cards - this resort gives you a towel card for each guest and if you lose it you have to pay a fee - the towel shack guys were not very friendly - the 2 pool bathrooms were nasty in the afternoons, especially the women's (the staff try to keep up but with only those two outside bathrooms and hundreds of people, dripping wet from the pools, you can just imagine how bad it gets) - the drinks tend to be watered down and made with cheap well liquor if you don't specify one of the top shelf brands - the amount of liquor in the drinks varies wildly - some might be just a shot, others nearly all liquor with virtually no mixer - there is no pool drink service except for Israel and you might see him 2-3 times the entire day at your lounge chair - the small center pool with the swim up bar is disgusting after about 1 pm - you can imagine about 60 drunk people sweating and doing what drunks do when they don't want to get out to go to the bathroom - the other pools are ok but the main pool gets noisy from daily entertainment - someone took one of our towels from the beach one morning before we got down there but the towel guy just gave us another one after explaining what happened - this is a large resort that obviously caters more to the 18-30 crowd - be prepared to hear foul language and see females in barely there swimsuits everywhere you go, even the lobby - I would not bring children to this resort even though some people choose to. It is a nice resort overall - there are some things Riu could do better - if you're younger and into partying all day and night, this will be perfect for you - we probably would not come back to this property as we prefer a smaller footprint with mostly older people and no children.

8 days 7 nights Not enough!! Incredible beach!! Rooms are very nice. Great for couples and family’s. Pools (3) were very nice. Several restaurants to pick from. Loved the Mexican restaurant and the filet of fresh fish. Very entertaining night life. No need to leave the property.