Riu Palace Macao

Stayed here in September, a few months after Riu Palace Bavaro, mainly for the adults-only side of Riu. Since I've done both, here's how they compare. The 18+ setup is the first big difference. There are no kids anywhere in Macao, and the vibe is calmer. The lobby is nowhere near as impressive as Bavaro's, but the smaller size is a plus. Most guests, us included, loved how cozy and private the resort feels. The buffet is the biggest surprise. At resorts we're usually most excited about the à la carte restaurants. The à la carte here was great, with Krystal as my favourite (the octopus was fantastic), but the buffet was even better. It's very clean, the choice is huge, and we had a themed dinner every night of our stay...sushi, cold cuts, fresh eggs, daily fish, deserts, avocado, mangos, smoothies etc. The drinks are amazing, and the main pool is one of the best I've been to. Bermudez is the king. The real value is that booking Macao gives you the best of both resorts. As a Macao guest you get full access to Bavaro. We went there for morning coffee in the lobby, which is great, and to their pools when we wanted a different ambiance. We also hit their ice cream shop, which Macao doesn't have. Bavaro has a bigger sports bar and a much bigger entertainment area at night. It's the bigger resort, so that makes sense, and going over there is a must. Bavaro's food court is also nicer than Macao's. It's a 5-minute walk, with pizza, tacos, fried chicken and a noodle/fried rice spot. It doesn't work the other way around. Bavaro guests can walk over to Macao and use the pool, but that's it.

Rooms ok but had faults needed fixing but didn't get done. We had 3 rooms in 4 days. Music was ridiculously load. I love my music but it was the DJ shouting all the time and the volume must have been heard miles away. We got stuck in a lift and no help. The lifts were very dodgy. 3rd room had 🪳 Cockcroaches in the bathroom every night. Save your money people. I love Riu hotels but that one is a no no for me.

Here now cant wait to go home entertainment none existent , 1st week was lovely but 2 weeks is to much ,staff are lovely don't get me wrong but its absolutely boring in the evening

Very nice hotel and holiday. Stayed here several years ago and the hotel is vastly improved. Room was beautiful, spacious and our oceanfront balcony was enormous. Hotel is nicely laid out and very clean. The staff are friendly and helpful and much nicer than at the Bavaro where we stayed last year. Food was generally very good and buffet was never busy. No problem getting in to any of the restaurants at night. If you are contemplating the Macao or Bavaro the Bavaro is much busier and the buffet there is hectic and restaurants at night difficult to get in- we went for lunch one day and were glad to return to the Macao. The only thing that we did not like - which you cannot blame the hotel for - were the loud Americans in mostly the bar pool but on a couple of days they came around the other pool and they could be very loud and drunk- but that’s their way of holidaying- just wish they could just talk to their friends and not shout. It was very very hot and the water in the pools by the afternoon was too hot and so not nice and some sort of water cooling system would have been great. Plenty of sun beds and umbrellas around the pools and cabanas. Waiter service around pool was mostly good. Beach was nice with sun-beds and palm trees for shade. A generally nice relaxing hotel stay with on the whole good food, good drinks and excellent service- particular shout out for Elvin who was excellent. Shows at night generally very good but the entertainment team need to realise that it’s an adult hotel and not Riuland and realise that not everyone wants to play with balloons after every show- similarly during the day we don’t all want to play games - so entertainment team judge your audience. We would return to this hotel and feel that the Dominican Republic standards have improved over the years on the food and drink side but be aware there can still be shortages of supplies which can be annoying e.g. no bacon at breakfast and coke/Pepsi products out of stock. So in summary we would recommend this hotel and just avoid the party pool and Riu parties off site if that’s not your thing.

We have stayed at many RUIs over the last 6 years. This is up with the best. Refurbished and rebuilt 3 years ago, it’s not as big as the other 3 RUIs in this cluster, but it feels more exclusive. Staff are all polite and work hard. Food is good for an all inclusive and evening entertainment is pretty much the same as other hotels of this brand. As with all RIUs, the music from the pool area can be a bit loud and annoying, but this applies to all we have visited. Plenty of sunbeds especially on the beach, and drinks delivered to the beach by waiters. Good coffee shop open 7- midnight.