Hotel Riu Palace Paradise Island

551sharlenek wrote a review November 2024
New Jersey

Don't waste your time off or money!!!

Drinks are extremely watered down.
Food is not good at all and cold. Ginger ale is sprite coke mix No activities. Alot of stuff didn't work. Toilets, elevators, staff, chairs at pool,showers . Meat not real/full beef. Rooms not cleaned &restocked daily

Date of Stay: November 2024

Ashleywhip24 wrote a review November 2024

DO NOT STAY HERE

Hello fellow travelers. Buckle in, because this is going to be thorough. I've traveled the Caribbean for over 30 years, and my stay at RIU Paradise Island has been the only negative experience I've had. Unfortunately, I selected this resort as a destination for a girl's trip with my dear friend, and now I owe her an apology.

I usually take negative reviews of resorts down here with a grain of salt, because how can one possibly have an unsatisfactory stay in the Caribbean? Well, one can. This resort has has cornered the market on terrible customer service, erratic policies, and a total lack of interest in their guests.

To be clear, there are many kind staff members who attempt to compensate for the for the overwhelming surliness and lack of care and attention from the rest of the staff, but unfortunately these individuals are incapable of overcoming the general feeling that the resort employees are offended by having to serve the guests.

Case in point:

Mini bar restocks are advertised as being available 24/7. Our mini bar was not restocked today, so we called the front desk at 6:00 p.m. and were informed that "the mini bar people have gone home, but room service can bring you water." I questioned the attendant about the accuracy of her information, got a face full of attitude, and eventually went down to the bar and asked for the beverages that should have been delivered. The bar staff was horrified and apologized profusely, but it took another substantial tip to get the service that should have been included in our stay.

Our in-room safe malfunctioned, and the gentleman that eventually came to fix it blamed us for the problem (too much cash in there. What??). He then became surly when it took him several attempts to reset it, and once he was successful I asked him if I needed to re-enter a new passcode, and should I do so with the door open or closed. He responded: "You can do whatever you want" and slammed the door on his way out. I can't make this stuff up.

The individual manning the towel stand became angry when we woke him from his nap yesterday to retrieve towels. We tried to laugh it off with him, but he wasn't having it.

You cannot reliably obtain reservations for the specialty restaurants. You have to grease the door attendant's palm to get a table, even when the restaurant is visibly vacant.

It took us four visits to the front desk over the course of three days to get on the complimentary Wi-Fi network. They treated us as if we were completely incompetent. My friend and I are attorneys. We're fairly tech savvy - in fact, we met an IT specialist from Washington at breakfast this morning who had been unsuccessful in 'cracking the code' during her 4 day stay.

Our room keys have failed at least twice a day. We now have a collection of 12 defunct keys decorating the bureau in our room.

The room service menu is so limited as to be laughable. We were tired last night and went down to the buffet to take a decent meal up to our room. That was not acceptable. We were chastised by the management, both verbally and later by email that "for our safety, food may not be removed from the resort premises". Pretty sure our room is on the resort premises.

In summary, the majority of the staff at RIU Palace Paaradise Island seems committed to making one's stay as chaotic and difficult as possible. Everything off property is amazing and a total blast. It's just a bummer when you have to back to the resort.

Date of Stay: November 2024

Jrflossy wrote a review December 2024
Langhorne, Pennsylvania

Good Resort and Tips!

I was worried coming here after the negative reviews. But was pleasantly surprised. Very small resort compared to what we're used to. Never a line anywhere. Great coffee bar and jerk chicken and pork by the pool. Never had a prob getting chairs. some tips:
If you want a balcony make sure you tell them. We did not have one and really missed it. People complain about not getting resv for dinner. If you can't go directly to the restaurant after 5pm and they will most likely accommodate you We are foodies and the food at the restaurants were very good. Buffet just ok Pool very warm. nice beach. We got a taxi and went downtown and the straw markets. Atlantis a 12 minute walk or $5 cab ride. great martini and sports bar. overall was very good

Date of Stay: December 2024

sherrybI630PE wrote a review December 2024

Honest Review Xmas Vacation at the Rui

Thus adult only hotel is very dated! From the moment you walk in the main lobby, riding up the elevator to the entrance to the bedroom.

Got our keys at 4pm. Felt this was a bit of a wait. Thought the rooms were supposed to be ready by 3pm.

Room Quality: (1/5) Room 1530. Large and sprawling room overlooking the ocean. Beautiful view. While the room was clean. The decor is old and outdated, dark furniture, dated window coverings, colonial style furniture snd
bed. The mattress is fine. The pillows are horrible. Perhaps they can invest in high-quality feather down pillows since we are paying a $hit-load to vacation at the Rui.

The bathroom is dated and the shower works intermittently… water running and stopping in between the shower. Major plumbing issues.

Food variety: (4/5) Great breakfast options including eggs, bacon, breads and fruit (pineapple, watermelon, mango. Etc). Lunch is great. buffets includes a wide variety of staple jerk chicken, beef and fish. Chicken soup a must! Dinner is a repeat but fresh-hot and delicious.

Buffet does not offer lobster unless you book at the Steak House. Hit the Steakhouse ordered the surf n turf: three over-cooked shrimps, veggies and cold 5oz steak. Super disappointing!

Beach access 4/5 right at your feet. This time of year the water is rough limiting access to the ocean. The weather was great 24 degrees each day.

Service: 3/5 the workers are nice and accommodating. Despite the bar tender at pool side completely ignoring my presence. I’m not a snob! But please don’t overlook your guests… the ones that help support your salary.

Proximity to Atlantis 15 minute walk or $10 USD can ride. Great for gambling and hitting up high end stores.

Overall value for an all-inclusive experience 2/ 5.

For the price of an all inclusive the experience was lack lustre. We left our comfortable home to enjoy the beach, food and room for rest and relaxation. But we didn’t get this experience entirely.

I would not recommend the Rui. I’d find a good hotel and pay for meals on the go.

Date of Stay: December 2024

scrappy7769 wrote a review December 2024

If you want lots of drink as it’s all inclusive,and average food it suit you ,but not for me

Hotel is old and dated, stayed for a week on 11 floor ,the room was damp had to get fresh pillows as they were wet ,the room smelt of mould ,the seals in the patio door had corroded with Salt air ,shower wasn’t great ,sockets hanging off walls ,good point right next to beach ,which is great ,food is average ,plenty at the buffet ,breakfast is decent ,but the speciality’s restaurants are not any better than the buffet ,there is nighty entertainment which wasn’t my cup of tea ,more like a club 18/30 stuff ,bar Is open 24/7 which attracts a certain crowd,which is fine but not for me

Date of Stay: December 2024

brendacC883IX wrote a review December 2024

4 star resort, good value for your money

We returned from 4 days yesterday
The resort is very nice. The rooms are dated. However they were clean and we had everything we needed.
Lobby is beautiful. The weather was not great while we were there, but that is not the resorts issue. The beach, sand, ocean is some of the prettiest I have seen. We were never bothered by people selling stuff. The jet ski guys was all we saw.

The buffet is massive and had so much variety, made to order omelets, eggs, pancakes. All of the sides extras you could ask for

We ate at the Bahamas-Steakhouse and Kulinari-seafood and both were outstanding. I didn’t take any food pics. The pool side jerk chicken and pork were very good

The entertainment staff did a great job. Drinks at the bar-if you want a name brand alcohol order it that way. Don’t just say vodka tonic, you will get Barton’s (no offense if that is what you like) they had both Tito’s and Absolute. Service around the pool was a little slow but it wasn’t an issue.

Both pools were so warm and wonderful. Not an issue getting chairs at pretty much anytime. Staff will take chairs for you to your spot on the beach.

We didn’t go anywhere other than the resort and that was our plan. There is a gift shop/ convenience store at the end of the entrance.

We would recommend this resort to anyone. There really was nothing bad. Is it the Atlantis-no. We also weren’t wanting to pay the Atlantis price. This is a great smaller resort that you will make friends and staff will remember you.

Staff to mention Kay-male
Bartender at the main lobby bar, Kelson & Lemarco at the restaurants

Date of Stay: December 2024

653macd wrote a review January 2025
McLean, Texas

Love the people of the Bahamas

We stayed at Hotel Riu Palace Paradise Island 12 years ago. We only stayed 4 days and this time we stayed a whole week. The Riu is exactly as we remembered it. Everyone at the resort was wonderful, friendly, and helpful. There was one issue that was never resolved; but didn't impact our stay. Okay if you must know the toilet in the room was not tightened to the floor so it wabbled...lol...we told them 3 times at the desk and it was never fixed. Not a big deal. The room was clean, the young lady who took care of our room the whole week we were there did a wonderful job and left us with a surprise most every day. It was a delight to see what it was going to look like when we returned to the room in the afternoon. A gentleman who worked there brought her some Dr. Pepper, a six pack, because they don't carry that on sight. Wonderful staff!!! Can't say enough good things about them; housekeeping, dining, pool, bars, spa...they were all superb individuals with great personalities. We had a great time at this resort.
The food there was top notch! I don't believe I had a bad meal there. Because of the limited things I eat for breakfast, I had the same things for breakfast everyday; but the other meals were great. We were able to secure a reservation for the Bahamas Steakhouse and Krystal Fusion restaurants both were fantastic! I definitely recommend making sure you book these two restaurants, you won't be disappointed. We ate at the buffet for the rest of the evenings we were there. I am a truck driver and drive all over the U.S. eating out over 300 days a year. This causes one to not want to eat out. I was never pleasantly satisfied with the food every meal I ate there. Not once was I wishing I was home cooking for myself as I am most of the time.

We did a diner sunset cruise on a catamaran and had a blast. Crazy but the food was good there as well. We did the Pirate Jeep Tour, also had a great time. And we utilized the spa. All were enjoyable.

The entertainment: I would only give about 2 stars for. The Michael Jackson show was a disaster. The entertainer who portrayed him didn't lip sing half of the time and when he did move his mouth he didn't know the words. It really wasn't a good show. The other shows are very similar as they have the exact same people performing. So it is almost like the same thing over and over with different costumes and songs. The music is much too loud for the room it is held in...louder is not better. The pre-shows however sometimes are local talent and they are good. I wouldn't miss them. In my opinion they should simply hire more of the local talent and instead of having them do a half hour or hour; they should just have them to the show for the evening. I think it would be much more entertaining and enjoyable. The Riu dancers are good; but there really should be a better variety. If I was to suggest something; it would be hire more of your local talent to do shows each week; and try and see if you could get a comedian to come out. I would ditch the dancers though if it was me; or maybe just use them a couple nights a week. We would play for 4 hours at the clubs. That would go over much better. Everyone would love a Michael Jackson show....but find someone who cares about the show and does a good job. We were at the Riu there in Jamacia, they had a great MJ impersonator, put on a fantastic show...it was the best one we saw there. If you could find someone like that you would have something. Just my two cents.

Word of caution to my U.S. brothers and sisters. If you purchase more than $800 per person you will need to declare it at customes. The U.S. government will charge you what came out to be about a 6% tax on everything over the $800 duty free limit. If you purchase jewelry worth more than your duty free limit make the jeweler put the amount you paid for the piece. We didn't know what was going to happen and we paid a tax on an amount more than we spent. They want to make you feel like you got a great deal so if you pay $1000 for something their paper they give you may say $1500. You will pay the tax on the $1500 not what you spent. Just an FYI.

I highly recommend Riu Palace, Paradise Island, Nassau, Bahamas! The beach is great, the food is great and the people are wonderful! I don't believe you will regret staying there. Oh...try and get the 14th or 15th floor when you go. Trust me, it will make your stay much better!!!

Peace!

Date of Stay: January 2025

parkersturbridge wrote a review January 2025

Parker says "Nice for a quick winter getaway"

This is a nice all-inclusive adult resort. Kind of basic, but it did the trick for a January getaway into the warm weather. Staff were friendly and accommodating, especially buffet staff and the guys at the beach who brought chairs, tables and umbrellas.

Check-in/out - Easy, but beware "rush hour", when it gets busy.

Rooms - Somewhat dated, but we were on an upper floor with a great view and an outdoor terrace. Bathrooms were nicely done, in our room at least. Our towels were not replenished unless we chased someone down, but again, friendly when we did so. Some outlets need to be repaired.

Food - The buffet was excellent, with a wide variety of good foods. Great breakfast and dinner in main room. Lunch was offered outside by the pool or in one of the smaller rooms...again buffet. Outside lunch was limited but plenty inside. Snacks provided in the afternoon...more like a continuation of the buffet. Dinner buffet went late so you could grab a midnight snack there or in the bar, which also had sandwiches, popcorn, nachos, etc...24/7.

Restaurants - There are four "specialty" restaurants. Difficult to get a reservation and for the most part not worth it. The "Sir Alexander" was a solid "B", the steak place was an "A" and their "premier" restaurant, Kristal, was an epic fail. Raw sea bass, overcooked beef and (pet peeve), food was not served at the same time. Don't bother.

Drink - Great selection of cocktails. Beer good; wine not great but passable. Pool bars are great and staff is amazing. Indoor 24/7 sports bar is okay, mostly crowded, with a show every night. Pool bartenders will give you a show...singing and dancing.

Beach/Pool - Pool area nice. The beach is very nice, but if you want sun, you have to sit strategically. The only bugs on the beach were the vendors. Stay away from the sketchy tropical drinks, dancing turtle shells, cigars and other offerings. In their defense, they were friendly and not menacing...actually quite entertaining sometimes.

Things to do - Other than all of the above, nothing. No shopping, casino etc. Not near town, so your only option is a decent loop walk to the Atlantis for a little bit of overpriced shopping or gambling.

Date of Stay: January 2025

K8226ZDclairep wrote a review February 2025

Do not recommend -- former big fan of this resort

TL:DR, I would not recommend staying at this hotel.

I'd been to this resort four times previously (2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019) and had beyond-lovely experiences each time. I recommended it to my group of girl friends who were looking to take a getaway trip (February 2025). When I arrived, I was embarrassed that I was responsible for suggesting the Riu Paradise Island. It has gone downhill in multiple ways, which I will detail below.

1) Lobby – upon walking in, there is a stench of sewer that I know comes from the water on the island, but how this has not been addressed is beyond me.

2) Rooms – from the moment we opened the doors to our room, the room never felt “clean”. I could see streaks of cleaning residue on the furniture (and the room smelled strongly of it) but I could still see what I am assuming were feet-grease marks on the floor from the previous tenants. The rooms are very damp—when we woke up in the morning, our floor was actually dew-y wet. Like, when we stepped on the floor with only socks on, they would get wet. How gross? I’m unsure if that is just the condensation from the air conditioning of the rooms below us, or the buildings inability to de-humidify properly. To pile on to the mugginess feeling, our swimsuits and cover ups that we hung in our rooms never dried... in the 4 days that we were there. We put them into our suitcases to head home, damp. In addition to the general feeling of uncleanliness, half of the outlets in our room did not work. Our safe had no instructions on it. Luckily I remembered how to operate it from previous stays, but otherwise it would have been unusable without instructions.

3) Staff – my memories of the Riu from previous trips were of happy workers, always looking to make your stay special and smiling/almost over-serving us. On those previous trips, I was so happy to tip them generously and thank them for their hospitality. This trip, the servers were no more interesting in making sure we had what we needed at mealtimes than the man on the moon. We had to ask multiple times for breakfast coffee/cups, drinks at dinner. One time at breakfast we were told they were “out of champagne” but then saw other servers bringing mimosas to multiple tables near us. Upon following up, champagne magically appeared and we were given mimosas. Just overall a strange experience, especially when having told my girl-friends “be sure to bring cash for tips, the waiters are excellent and over-accommodating”.

4) Transportation – I am a Riu Class Member and was offered free transportation to and from the airport. However, despite following up the day of our arrival AND the day before our departure to make sure we were booked on a return bus, the bus never arrived. The bus was to pick us up at 5 am and take us to the airport, and at 5:30 am, the doorman at the Riu told us we should go ahead and get a cab because we were risking missing our flights. Why offer free transportation and make us go through the trouble of booking the transport if it would not show up?

5) Pool – if you are looking for a relaxing beach vacation, the Riu pool is not for you. It reminded us of spring break for 21 year olds – overcrowded, loud, water gets pretty gross towards the end of the day. We were actually drinking quite a bit on our trip and do enjoy an afternoon party vibe, but even then could not convince ourselves to get into the pool…

6) Beach – amazing, the men working the beach chairs and umbrella were extremely nice and helpful at setting up chairs. The beach itself is lovely and the water is the most beautiful I have ever seen.

7) Reservations at the restaurants – upon checking in we found out that we needed an app to make dinner reservations at the restaurants. We also found out that the restaurants were fully booked… upon check in. How is one to get reservations if the reservation system is inaccessible until check in and then by that time, it is too late to get one? Very frustrated by this point. We had to beg the front desk to assist us in getting reservations. Then (here is where it gets wild) we walked into our restaurant at the time of our reservation to be seated in a 70% empty restaurant! We looked around at all the empty tables and asked “why in the world was it so hard to get a reservation here?” It was clear to me that they open a very limited amount of tables for dinner at the restaurants. To me, this greatly diminishes the Riu experience… Why not offer your guests the best food via dinner reservations? The buffet was ok but no one left a buffet meal saying “that was good”. Our feedback after buffet meals was “that was ok, thank goodness for the pizza slices”.

Although this review might sound snobbish, I can assure you that I am not. I travel pretty frequently and this was the most disappointing stay I have had in a while. I would not recommend this resort to a friend and am embarrassed at having done so and having my friends spend their money to travel and stay here.
Sincerely, a former big fan of the Riu Paradise Island.

Date of Stay: February 2025

christinemQ7633XF wrote a review March 2025

Beautiful beach, good service, food has room for improvement

The beach was breathtaking, and the rooms were clean. Most of the staff was kind and friendly. The buffets were good, except for the lunch buffet during the week. The restaurants were terrible. The Japanese restaurant’s sushi had dry fish and bland stir-fry that didn’t taste like Japanese food. However, the sorbet for dessert was delicious. At the steakhouse, the filets were cheap pieces of meat, but everything was cooked well-done, regardless of how you ordered it. The serving sizes were extremely small. The drinks were good and not watered down, but the pool bar closes early. Despite these issues, I would return because of the beach and would stick to the buffets.

Date of Stay: March 2025

jancB8754SB wrote a review April 2025

Take it up a notch

Bed was super comfortable. Room was nice. Sheets were never changed during 3-night stay even after placing card on door requesting room to be made up.
Evening entertainment fair, not up to other all-inclusives we have visited.
Food was good, not great. Lots of choices, but pretty mediocre in quality. Peach yogurt was just plain yogurt with a few peach pieces tossed in. Very good omelet station.
Poolside staff fun. Poolside bar drinks were good.

Date of Stay: March 2025

andreay819 wrote a review April 2025

Not what I expected

I will start with the positive. The bed was comfortable and the cleaning personnel was friendly.
However, the food was terrible. I became sick every single night. The speciality restaurants were subpar. I expect a lot more, especially since they required reservations. The pool area has stains from the seagulls poop everywhere. Looks nasty. Beach umbrellas are unavailable and stored at the pool area because it is too windy. Even though the neighboring beaches gave out umbrellas. We were told it was too windy. Every single day!! Tips were expected from the entire staff. I thought is is something the RIU prides themselves on, that their staff does not accept a tip.
The hotel needs to be upgraded. The floors are worn as well as the bathrooms.
I will not be back and don't recommend this place to anybody.

Date of Stay: April 2025

tanyagT1512JN wrote a review April 2025
Boca Raton, Florida

Not what I expected at all!!

This was probably by far the worse resort that I have gone to. The food was awful. I had the most horrible experience for my birthday. They need to have more activities and better food choices. I will never return here. I don’t advise anyone else.

Date of Stay: April 2025

bshive15 wrote a review May 2025

Trip end of April 2025

Just got back from a 5 night stay at this location. During our stay, most of the couples were retired age. However, some younger couples started to show up the last day or two of our trip. Here are some PROS and CONS

PROS:
- Buffet was good! Alot of different options each day and night. Bahamas steakhouse was good! I had the ribeye and it was cooked to perfection. My wife has the ribs and they were cooked perfect. However, the sauce on the ribs wasn't my favorite but I did see others enjoying them. Coffee bar was awesome! Great milkshakes and all different kind of cakes/snacks. The Red Velvet cake was fantastic!

- Beach & Ocean were the best that I have ever been part of! Soft white sand along with the clear blue ocean water! We sat in the swim up bar and just enjoyed the view each day!

-Pool entertainment staff were always having games and music by the pool. You can win Riu Bucks which you can use at the live auction each day at 5:30pm. They auction off Bottles of liquor, t-shirts, coffee cups, traveling cups, etc. You can earn RIU bucks at nightly entertainment as well during their games at 9pm before the 9:30 show.

-Taxi over to Atlantis was only $10 and it was great to walk around there. Go after 6pm and you can get into the aquarium for free and be able to walk around everywhere instead of paying a day pass to go over there.

CONS:
-Entertainment wasn't the best. Same dancers for each show and they were pretty corny. The Michael Jackson show the songs that we enjoy the most were only played for about a minute and then ended. Some of his non popular songs were played longer which was a disappointment.

-Bartenders weren't the best. Took a little bit to take your drink order in the swim up bar and bar by the beach. Not too friendly but they are trying to get drinks for everyone so I get it. Servers by the pool are fantastic! We had a great time with Shania as she was very friendly and always in a great mood! Make sure to get her when you are by the pool!

-Resort is smaller than we are used to.

-Room service doesn't have a big menu. Would like them to expand their menu!

If you are looking for a relaxing/small resort this is probably perfect for you!

Date of Stay: April 2025

mlinnas62 wrote a review May 2025

Paradise in Paradise.

The entire trip from the welcoming we received upon check-in, to the entire stay. We were treated like royalty. The resort was immaculate. The Oceanfront suite we had was gorgeous. The entire staff were very attentive, from bringing your chaise lounge chair onto the beach for you & setting up your umbrella, to greeting you as you come into the restaurants. I have no complaints. The only thing I would change are the pillows in the room. I had no problem with them & slept like a rock. My husband however said they felt like a bag full of rags. Other than that every little detail was wonderful

Date of Stay: May 2025

O6314BZnicolez wrote a review July 2025

HIGHLY RECCOMENDED

We enjoyed every minute of our stay ! The food was DELICIOUS. The view and vibes were on point. One of the most beautiful hotels and the service was outstanding! They deserve all the stars!

Date of Stay: August 2024

lexycal wrote a review July 2025
Centreville, Fairfax County, Virginia

Stunning Beach, the rest ok

This hotel is about 25-30 minutes from airport. If you get in early be prepared to wait until 3-4 pm, rooms don't open early so dont think it will. The buffet was OK. Make reservations as soon as you get on property.
2 pools, a swim up and a large "open " pool. Both very nice. Loungers at the pool are fist come first server. Under the pergalas are best if you dont want sun all day. Same for the beach, no charge but always tip the helpers.
The beach is beautiful, clear and flat water.
I found all servers to be nice and helpful.
View from our ocean front suite was amazing. Hate that the bathroom doors allow for everything to be heard.
Cons:
Don't drink the water. Use the water bottles in the room. There is a possibility you could get a stomach issue.
Calypso lounge had good dancers but no real rhyme or reason to the shows. Just something to do in the evening. The DJ could do better. People are looking for a party at the resort and the flow kept falling off.
Room service is just the food from Calypso longe.
The building itself needs a freshen up.
All and all a ok choice for all inclusive, mid range price point.

Date of Stay: June 2025

Z3089MTdr wrote a review July 2025

Avoid this place if you want to have a good time.

Honestly we've been to the bahamas many times staying in different places to try new experiences. This place the Riu fell short of our expectations. The vendors on the beach will attack you every day till you get a jet ski, parasailing, hair braiding cigars or weed. It became over bearing where we stayed by the pool all day instead of the beach and we love the beach more so than the pool. The staff are not friendly, for a place with mixed reviews they should be more welcoming and to give their guests a time to remember on their vacation. Instead we got told what not to do or what we cant have, like a beach umbrella on the beach or pool to avoid the extremely hot sun even for the elderly people here. I sat by a table near the coffee and expresso place near the lobby and the 1st thing someone working there says to me was I cant eat a pastry while I'm sitting here with my coffee. I was going to ask for a sign that says this but I didnt see any signs and I didnt want to go back and forth with his ignorance. I recommend staying somewhere else which will appreciate your time and buisness. No one here cares about pleasing the customers rather its another job they have to do and give more service and they certainly want tips for poor job done. Hope this helps.

Date of Stay: July 2025

Y5694INwilliamw wrote a review July 2025

Disappointment in its finest

Disappointed and Deceived – Not Worth the Hype

I rarely leave reviews, but I felt compelled to share my experience to help future travelers avoid the same disappointment. We stayed at the Riu Hotel in the Bahamas, and unfortunately, it fell far below expectations in almost every category.

Let’s start with the rooms: dated, worn-out furniture, uncomfortable felt blankets, and a weak air conditioning system that barely works in the Bahamian heat. The phones in the room don’t work, and room service is practically nonexistent—it took over an hour just to get a simple request like an extra pillow.

There is zero ambiance when you arrive—no welcome drink, no cold towel, no music, no visual appeal in the lobby, and worst of all, no gift shop or spa. The entire entrance experience feels like an afterthought.

The hallways and overall decor are visibly tired and lack any charm or elegance. There’s no energy or character that you’d expect from a Caribbean resort. Even the staff, while somewhat friendly, didn’t go above and beyond in any way to make guests feel special or seen.

The pool area is cramped and small, with no umbrellas for shade, and guests are practically sitting on top of each other. The beach is no better—also small, crowded, and lacking atmosphere. If you’re hoping for nighttime entertainment or a lively resort vibe, prepare to be underwhelmed. There is only one small area with live music or any type of scene, and unless you grab a chair hours in advance, you’re out of luck.

Finally, let’s talk about the food—bland, repetitive, and uninspiring. Not what you’d expect at an all-inclusive resort that’s marketed as upscale.

Worst of all, the online photos are completely misleading. What you see is not what you get. Everything appears luxurious in the pictures, but in person, it’s clear that the resort is in serious need of updates and better service standards.

Sadly, this was a major letdown. If you’re considering the Riu in the Bahamas, I would highly recommend looking elsewhere unless drastic changes are made.

We checked out after day one into a new resort

Date of Stay: July 2025