RIU Hotels & Resorts
Reviews and Complaints

I have booked my riu hotel stay for tomorrow and have already had several issues. I requested a room and it was on hold the website and call center confirmed it should not take more than 72 hours. However, I waited 4 days and no one wanted to help. I then cancelled the request and booked an available room, and called to add on transportation. The call center said transportation was requested and it would be 24 hours for confirmation. It has now been over 24 hours and I called several times even speaking to supervisor named Eislle who was very rude and abrupt. I have been trying to book a room and transportation for nearly 5 days and it has been a waiting game with the call center and sales department and the supervisor was no help and seemed like she did not care at all. DISGUSTING CUSTOMER SERVICE. Amongst the worst I have yet to deal with.

To whom it may concern. The following is a list of the unfortunate events and lack thereof from our trip (Room listed under Claudia Dekers room 1406) June 3-6, 2021. We have approached the "manager", front desk and staff about all of these problems including the "general manager- Alejandro, and nothing was done to rectify any of these issues. Please advise if this is how the RIU hotels treat their customers after spending a substantial amount of money for what was supposed to be an amazing birthday trip for me and my girlfriends.

No welcome pack was ever given
Sandy floors in our bedroom, never cleaned properly
Not enough towels (only two were given for the 3 of us, we had to ask FOUR times for housekeeping to being us more)
No bath mat (we had to use hand towel on the floor even though we approaced management and Alejandro about this)
We can use the RIU palace hotel (no one ever told us that we could use/visit the Palace hotel next door! This would of been amazing!)
LOUD Construction of building next door (never mentioned prior to booking, we were up very early each day to the sound of building and construction demolition!)
No activities (we were never aware of any activities planned or going on by pool/club/bars or beach)
No Latino music (considering the majority of patrons are Latino, the fact that Latin music was never played ANYWHERE was biszarre. You would think you would cater to your clientell
No organization (front desk staff and hotel staff had no organization and you could tell that no one ever gave you the same answer twice when asked about hotel amenties, activies, functions etc)
No name tags for managers (How could a major hotel brand not have name tags on the management staff? It seems that they do not want customers knowing who they are to avoid having to listen to complaints)
Picking up beach chairs early (beach chairs were picked up each day starting in the afternoon at 430pm, this made us feel rushed and uncomfortable. Beach was "closed" before sunset which is why 90% of customers go to the beach at this time)
Pool closing early (We were told by the "general manager" Alejandro that ALL pool in aruba close at 6pm so that chemicals could be treating the pool water. He further told us we could risk going in but "our skin would peel and burn" What kind of manger says this?!
Late check out fiasco- must pay 10-20$ for each hour (Although the hotel was not filled to capasity, even after all the aboc=ve grievances, the processes of asking for a late checkout was a nghtmare. Front desk staff says it was $20 per hour for late check out, Alejandro said is was $10, Manager at desk said $15- UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!
Covid test was not known (One of the scariest facts was that we were never told about the COVID policy or that the hotel provided tests! By chance we asked front desk and they told us we shoudl of gone 24 hours ago!)
Lines to be made for each dinner (for an all inclusive hotel to have lines to get "coupon tickets" for meal reservations is ludicrous! I havve traveld all over the worl on Sandles and Club Med and have never herad such a thing. All inlcusive meals mean just that.)
Run out of bread at restaurants (restuarants would frequesntly run out of bread and other side items becasue they had to hold for next meal seating! This was ridiculous and so declase!)
No where to eat after dinner (how is there no where to eat after dinner?! Once we ate our "scheduled" meal there was no where on property after 9pm for even snacks!)
No service by beach (no bar/food service by the beach?)
Shampoo/soaps/ all not replenished Daily in our rooms
This honesly became the vacation from hell. If it was not for the fact that the beach side is breathtaking and the staff by pool and beach are extremly nice and professional, we would of packed up to go home early! Management has got to take responsibiltiy for this madness and improve this hotel as a whole. It is not a cheap place to vacation so none of the above was warranted!

Please advise,
Sandra Soriano
[protected]

THIS NEEDS TO REACH MANAGEMENT ASAP. I will be reporting this fraud to Wells Fargo and the proper Mexico authorities

I am also posting to all social media coverage I can find stating this exact post below to expose the type of company the Riu is. Highly disappointed!

Riu Palace Peninsula

We left Texas for Mexico on 6/3/2021, checking into the Riu Palace Peninsula in Cancun, Mexico on 6/4/2021 at approx 0100. Our stay was from that time until 6/7/2021. Upon checking out at approx 0530 on the morning of 6/7/2021, the front desk clerk by the name of SERGIO told us we owed the hotel for a brand new television because we had supposedly broke the television within our room. That we had broken some kind of electronics policy. Sergio said they had to replace it on the day of a maintenance request that we, as the guests, had entered into the app for fixing.

1. When entering the room, the first time we turned on the televison- we noticed a line running vertically approximately 4 inches away from the right side of the tv screen. We didn't say anything, nor turned in a maintenance request, because we figured we weren't going to be in the room that much anyways and the screen was still visible so it wasn't a big deal. Sergio informed us that we supposedly put this line in the television somehow and ruined the ink of the screen? (whatever that even means).

2. Sergio also informed us that maintenance had come up and replaced the television due to our request that we put into the guest app. WE NEVER put in a maintenance request to do with the television. In fact, the only request we ever made was asking for some comforters considering our beds had none, only sheets. The television also was never replaced, for a fact. Upon checking out, we had just turned off the tv before going downstairs and the line was still visibly on the screen. It didn't effect the vision of the screen but it is quite noticeable and so my husband and I both recall it being there. Sergio insisted that he had pictures of the so called damage and that maintenance had swapped the tvs. He also stated he had the paperwork from the swap. I asked to see the pictures and the so called paperwork and Sergio told my husband and myself that that was an impossible request, that he didn't have to show us anything. I also asked what day the tv swap had supposedly happened, as well. Sergio replied that it was just "sometime within our stay", that he didn't know which exact day. ALL LIES.

3. I asked Sergio for this supposed electronics policy within the hotel, he failed to provide me one, just kept demanding that we pay. I asked again for a website or something to guide me on what we had supposedly done- absolutely no response. SERGIO SPOKE PERFECT ENGLISH by the way- so there was no language barrier.

From that point, my husband and I both informed Sergio that we weren't paying for a television that was already broken upon us entering the room. He stated that all of the Riu's rooms were immaculate, including this particular establishment. We've stayed the Riu in Cabo twice before this stay and I would usually be one to agree but this time, our room shower didn't turn on from the overhead, only the handheld portion(we didn't report that either bc we weren't trying to be picky). The tv had that line in it that apparently we got the blame for, our balcony had no furniture. Housekeeping only came one time in the 3 full days we were there, we actually met them in the hall to even get towels. We went with 5 other couples and each couples' rooms had to have maintenance on patio furniture, broken ac units, dirty linens and bathroom areas including stopped up and running toilets, etc. Each can attest to this if needed.

When repeating the statement that my husband and I were not paying $500 US dollars for an approx 3 yr old 27inch television that was already broken, Sergio yelled at us saying that if we didn't pay- that he would be calling the airport to stop our flights to the US and we would face a Mexico jail for theft. I asked to speak the manager, Sergio said there wasn't one on duty. I asked for a corporate number or someone's number with authority that I could discuss this issue, Sergio again lied and said there wasn't one. No business cards given, no email contacts, no phone contacts given to us. My husband went and loaded our baggage in our taxi as we were getting close to NEEDING to leave for the airport when upon my husand's return to the desk, my husband stated that he wanted to speak to the manager ASAP and Sergio then replied that he was the manager. I literally looked at him and was said "oh, so you're the manager now?" and he just yelled at me that we needed to pay or we were going to jail and that our flights would be cancelled.

Ultimately, we were shook down in a foreign country. We had no other options for this fraud, other than to comply. We were threatened and continuously lied to. Sergio ran my credit card, I didn't sign my signature to a receipt.

I booked an 8 night package (flight + hotel) through Riu from 5/15/21-5/23/21 for Riu Palace Aruba & paid for 2 upgraded ocean front rooms. When I checked in, ocean front rooms were not available and front desk told me to contact Riu for a refund. Contacted Riu on 5/16 and was told a refund would be processed. No response so I called again on 5/26 and spent more than an hour on the phone. Was told I needed to wait for Riu Palace Aruba to confirm the refund and then I could get my refund. No response received, so spent another 1.5 hours on hold on 6/2 and was told the same - must wait for Riu Palace Aruba to process refund to get my money back. I asked for a supervisor to call me back, but so far have not heard back. I also sent a complaint in to Riu Palace Aruba and again, no response thus far. I booked through the Riu (I guess their corporate booking's office) to stay at Riu Palace Aruba - all the companies seem connected so not sure why they won't refund my money when they agree I did not recieve the upgraded room. I have spent almost 4 hours on hold with them and no resolution.

I was booked at the Riu palace Cabo San Luca may 22, 2021 thru 5/30/21. I booked a junior suite swim out room. Upon checking I realized my room faced a fence and the Riu Santa Fe pool. That location did not afford me the luxury of bar waiter service as well as it was rowdy noisy and the people staying above my room were shouting obscenities to the people at the Santa Fe pool. I called the front desk and told them I was unsatisfied with my room location and they said they would call me back with a solution. Guess what never got a call. I called again Sunday no response, called on Monday and was told we can't guarantee room location but as far as I was concerned this swim out room was un usable. I could have had the cheapest room and had the same result. Finally on Monday someone offered to change my room but at that point I didn't want to pack up and move and wait until 4 pm to check in again. I paid for a particular room which I do not feel I was given. The noise was terrible and certainly not a relaxing vacation like I wanted. When I asked for a price adjustment I was told we will make a dinner reservation for you. Really Riu. I don't want to give trip advisor Expedia Facebook and other social networks a bad review but your customer service at the Riu palace stinks. Hoping you will do the right thing.

Kathleen silvestri
Res# RNT3Gv5Z
[protected]@aol.com
Riu class [protected]

I checked in RIU ANTILLAS on Thursday May 20th, I was giving room #524. The room balcony door was broken, the safe was not working, among other things so I called my travel agent and he contacted the hotel to change my room. Friday morning I was moved to another room #1520. That room had similar problems. Balcony door droken, etc. But I noticed I took all my belongings to room #1520 and forgot my 14k Dimond studs in room# 524. I contacted the hotel manager ( Jacquelina Kelly) and explained the situation to her. She asked me to give her the opportunity to investigate the situation before I file a complaint. So I did, and Tuesday morning I spoke with her and my earrings are still missing.

The toilet in the room button malfunctioned and water started overflowing. There was no way to stop the water. No plunger in the room. It took over an hour and 20 minutes for the toilet to be fixed and room to be cleared. In this time, I took pictures to show the manager because of the amount of time it was taking. Room was flooded and I feel back.

My wy wife and I stayed from 04-22-21 to 04-24-21 in The Ipanema Tower Room 344 and our problem was two-fold. One was the cleaning service was lacking with unclean surfaces and surprise crumbled toilet paper in numerous places that included inside the top drawer of a nightstand and on the carpet near the bed. The second problem was our neighbor tenant in room 342, who liked to smoke marijuana at different times, talk loudly with cursing included, and slamming doors at all hours of the night. The room had an adjoining door which did not help. We were thoroughly discouraged and will never return to that hotel. P>S> I have never seen a hotel with approximately 100 foot of lines awaiting an elevator. The security guard said there were no stairs open to the public.

I have been calling and emailing for over a year and they do not refund my money. I have documentation of the many times I have called and emails from them with case number and how they will resolve issue and get back to me and text nothing had been done. Every time they claim to escalate the issue but still waiting. Fraud and thieves is what it is.

my husband and I took our daughter to Jamaica from march 27 to march 31st 2021 for her surprise 12th birthday. When we arrived that Saturday we were informed that we could not leave the resort that Saturday and also that sunday. The resort was aware of the lockdowns and should have given us the option of coming or not. we wasted our trip by being at resort 2 days . Everyone economy is suffering but we work hard to save money for our first vacation since the pandemic and feel ripped off. My husband was even thinking of becoming a rui member.

natasha owens, phone: 904.887.2366 [protected]@gmail.com

Our stay:
3/2/21-3/7/21
Room # was 0141
Hello,
My name is Stephanie,
My husband and I just got back from vacation and unfortunately my husband came back with a sprained ankle due to the unsafety hazard at the Riu Palace.

Riu palace doesnt provide mats either inside our room for after the pool or outside the pool when drying off or getting in the room.
I strongly think it shiuld be common sense to add these mats for safety.

This is a safety hazard as mention my husband slipped and sprained his ankle.
Due to this incident,
We'd want it to report it as it may be an ongoing problem.
We are going to talk to a lawyer because this accident could have been way worse.
Here is my information to contact me for more info about this incident.

Please email me to:
[protected]@yahoo.com
Phone #: [protected]

As a loyal customer recently went to hotel riu palace bavaro which I stay every year for my aniversayi have never been disappointed with treatment of the front desk staff especially a gentlemen name fernando would not give last name, stay at the vip room 5501 at all time no pool towel water dirty room cleanliness I had to keep towels and dry them out letting them know and there answer was they are short staff and would not attempt to do anything
Letting people with kids in the pool and cabanas and having people play there own hip hop music I come for the spanish music I pay for the ambiance of relalaxation not to be in the hip hop world, I as a loyal customer that pay top dollar and only stay in the riu hotels all over the caribbean should not have had to have my anniversary ruined

I need to know if rui santa fe los cobos will be offering covid testing at the resort for visitors to get in order to return to the United States. Please send me the answer ASAP because I really don't want to cancel my vacation.
Thank you George Stoner email address [protected]@yahoo.com
the information I got was incomplete and the email address was wrong.

We stayed at Riu Hotel from 17 to 18th of December 2020 in room 6058. Unfortunately our stay was unsatisfactory due to many factors. I believe that such incidents are few and far between. However, I wanted you to be aware of the specifics for you to address these issues as this was supposed to an enjoyable and relaxing getaway for us. We have taken this upon with the head of host and housekeeping Ms. Maria and the GM via emaiL but he never responded to our email and I wanted to make sure you are aware of it.

We are longtime residents in Dubai and often we enjoy a good staycation in different Hotels around the Country.

It all began with our check-in which unexpectedly took 45 minutes. Once in the room we used the washroom and noticed that the toilet-flush was not working and called for assistance, maintenance come-in after we had gone to explore the Hotel. We returned to find the flush working however, the water kept running, stopping only after several push-button every time we flush.

While in the room we requested for housekeeping to assemble children sofa-bed, which was only done after 3 hours and 3 calls.

The hangers in the wardrobe would not slide to either side as the rod seems larger than the hooks. Limited English language TV channels.

There are many other factors that contributed for our unpleasant stay.

Lack of handouts or information during check-in made uneasy to learn and locate services and Hotel facilities:

There is not clear signage indicating location of Hotel facilities, we asked at least 2 Hotel staff to show us the Spa and Gym and they did not know.
At the Spa, while using the Jacuzzi we noticed that the water temperature was not warm enough and few minutes-in it the water pump was turned-off.
The SPA attendant told us that they only carry hand towels and if we wanted bath size towels, we need to go out to pool-side to collect it.
We had a dinner booking at The Palm restaurant, which was enjoyable as the services and the food was great. Initially we could not locate the restaurants as no visible signage, after asking couple of Hotel staff we were pointed to different locations, one mentioning that it was at lobby level.
The quality of food and limited menu choice at all Al-Andalus restaurant was disappointing. However, the staff was very polite and helpful.
At Shamal lounge my child scratched her toes on floor rail while entering (I am referring to the rails used to close windows/door to terrace). This is a safety hazard as it is not color highlighted and levelled, necessary precautions must be taken to ensure the safety of all guests.
Our worse experience was late at night when we went to bed, the mattress is awfully hard making difficult to sleep. Some of the best things to enjoy in Hotels are the bedsheets, but unfortunately it was not the case this time. The bed sheets including the ones that we requested for kids' bed were very rough to sleep on it.

I do not know if it is normal for you to receive complaint letters from your guests, but it is certainly not normal for us to receive such low-quality service after paying considerable amount of money to enjoy our stay.

Hello,

My name is [protected] a guest from the 10-17th at Riu Las Americas.

On Nov 15th at 12:15am I was standing in clear view of the cameras that face the end of the bar with two bartenders at the theater bar.
During that time there were only 3 people present. One female server, whose was outside the bar to my left, one head green shirt bartender, as well as one other bartender Ulyses that were standing behind the bar but within 2 feet of me. Ulyses and the other Captain bartender were counting their tips for the evening and placing them in their pockets and placing paperwork in a blue bag and getting ready to leave.

I walked away from the bar with a beer in my hand and inadvertently left my cell phone on the bar top in front of Ulyses. When I got to the lobby I realized I forgot my cell phone and walked back to the bar and it was gone. At this time the bar was closed and the bartenders had left. During this time I was the ONLY guest left in the entire theater and surrounding area.

I immediately reported this to security and the front desk and we went and checked the area but the cell phone was gone.

The cell phone is described as a iPhone 11 color red 256gb at the time it went missing it had a dark privacy screen protector on it along with a Waffle House menu case (pictured below)

Inline image
This is an example the phone was RED in color but the same case

I went back to my room #653 and turned on my IPAD in an attempt to locate the device and mark it lost. I was able to access the phone and it tracked the movements from the back of the bar across the pool stairs to the second bar by the swim up area and then was turned off.

At 11:26 am on Nov 15th the phone was turned back on at the pool bar that Hugo works at as the captain and was then turned off. I went to the pool bar and spoke with Hugo with security and they looked around but were unable to find the phone. At 3:35pm the phone was again turned on at Costco at Super Manzana 21 Mz. 4 Lote 2 No. 251, 77500 CANCUN, QUINTANA ROO.

This means someone possibly from your staff mentioned above took the phone. I called Costco once back after my vacation and spoke with the Warehouse Manager Miguel whom is also investigating who brought the phone in to have it reactivated.

I kindly ask that the RIU investigates this matter and interviews Ulyses and finds out the whereabouts of my phone and have it returned to me.

Pablo from the front desk was very helpful during this period and has been aware of this situation and I would like to have management recognize him for his merit and honesty and commitment to guest relations. I have been a RiIU guest at 8 hotels and nothing like this has ever happened to me. I am hoping this can be resolved and the phone returned to me.

I have all the serial numbers from the phone and it has been reported lost/stolen by my service provider at this point.

Please contact me to help me rectify this important matter.

Thank you

Phone [protected]
or
Phone [protected]

On Sunday I tried to telephone Hotel Riu Nautilus(Torremolinos) to find out if there were any specific restrictions due to Covid 19 and there was no reply. I have and still have a confirmed booking for this Hotel from 28Dec. until 10 Jan 2021. No one has ever contacted me by Phone, Mobile, Letter or Email to cancel the booking! I sent several Emails to supervisor@riu.com and only today have they said the booking has been cancelled with a rather feeble apology.
Imagine if I had not tried to contact the Hotel! Maybe I would have arrived after several hours of journeying to find the Hotel shut, imagine! My dutch friends who are booked at the Hotel and have a flight from Amsterdam/Malaga booked and paid for would be livid.
This is inexcusable from a large Hotel chain and shows a complete lack of regard for their clients. The group has shown poor organization because when they shut down the Hotel they should have notified all the clients affected by the closure.
Covid 19 has quite rightly enabled Hotels or clients to cancel without penalization but both parties must notify the other party about the cancellation.
An alert must be sent to notify other potentially affected clients unaware that the Hotel is closed until 4th Jan 2021.
Philip Brenton.
Booking reservation: WRC0JWZE
Riu Cliente Number: [protected]

El dia de 5 de Octubre,
por causas del huracan Delta, nos transladaron al Hotel Tequila, las habitaciones estaban sucias, las camas sin habilitar, pero eso no importa por que uds nos ayudaron a salvaguardar nuestras vidas,
al dia siguiente no nosdejaron salir del hotel asi que fui al Riu Caribe a pedir que si podia pasar la noche ese dia porque nos dejaron el riu tequila hasta el jueves, la Manager de Riu Caribe, me dijo que no le importaba el huracan o lo que pasaba, que ese dia era mi salida, y sin inportarle que estaba con mi familia, me dijo que si queria quedarme por esa noche tenia que pagar $6000 mas resort fee por esa noche, le comente que por lo del huracan uds nos llevaron dos dias a otro hotel sin comidas y bebidas, pero que si me daba un mejor precio ya que mi vuelo salia a las 7 am, y ella me contesto que si queria buscar otro hotel mas barato y eso es muy malo yaque el huracan tiro los postes de luz y no podia salir de ahi
asi que le conteste mal y me trajo a seguridad para que me sacaran mis maletas a las 10 de la noche y el dia mismo del huracan.
Cuando uno ve el nombre de Riu espera comprencion de personas por que los que vamos somos familias, y no sabemos de huracanes ni desastres, pero creo que podemos mejorar nuestra calidad humana
eso es todo esperando pronta respuesta
mi email : [protected]@yahoo.com

Ricardo Vaca Enriquez

Elite
Residential
Ricardo Vaca Enriquez
Realtor
Cell [protected]
Office [protected]
9160 Forum Corporate Parkway Suite 350
Ft Myers Fl 33905

The adult side of Rui resort all inclusive in Aruba. I fell coming into the room on the small lift in between floors. When, I fell forward I tried catching myself and cut my mouth and damaged some crown work. The maid reported it to Manger J. Kelly at the hotel. This happened during my stay March 1-7th. I love the staff and hotel.

Thank you

Lisa Ann Curran
P.O. Box 255
Middleboro Mass. 02346 # [protected]