We just got back from Cancun Friday Aug 1 after staying at the Riu Palace and it was amazing. There were 11 family members in our group. We didn't want to come home we were treated so well. Everything was so clean and the people there were so helpful and very friendly. We have stayed at an all inclusive before in Jamaica but that didn't even compare. I had read other reviews about the hard beds so we got a mattress pad the first night and it was fine. Be careful of the water in the bathrooms of your room...non potable. Two members of our group did get sick but I don't know the cause because they told us the water they used for cooking and drinking was filtered and the rest of us were fine. Our food was great. It is hard to get into the restaurants because you do need to make reservations so do it the first day you arrive for every day of your stay. If not you probably won't get a reservation but if you stand outside the restaurant during serving times they always have openings from those who don't show up and you could get in. We had very clean rooms and they were very nice with beautiful views. I would definitely recommend this place to friends.

We loved the Riu Palace...it was our first time staying there plus our first time in Cancun. No problems checking in, the room was great and clean. Service was outstanding...you never had an empty drink!

Food was better than I expected - the buffett was better than any all inclusive buffett I have been to in the Bahamas or Jamaica. It was hard to book the restaurants...we had to wait in line for about a half hour one day (its right by the bar outside, just get a drink...or two!) and we were only able to get into the Brazilian restaurant and the steakhouse. The steakhouse was good and I would do it again...the Brazilian was just OK.

The pool was great and service out there was great (the large pool with swim up bar) we never got in the large main pool outside the main lobby. Beach was very rocky (but sooo beautiful!) I would just take some sort of beach/water shoes and it would be just fine. We couldn't resist going in the water but it did scratch up your feet some. And maybe I am just a wimp.....

Things I will comment on that I read in reviews before I went: The smell - I didnt smell anything. I am going to guess that it is the same smell I have smelled in both the Bahamas and Jamaica - it is just because it is so humid and its just a mildew-y smell. I smelled it in hallways only (not rooms) and it didnt bother me on those trips anyway. I can think of a lot more to complain about. Look outside, you are in CANCUN!!

Beds - yes they were hard but didnt bother us. It is two full size beds put together if you get a king room. So sometimes you were sleeping on the crack and the bed would slide a little bit. No injuries to report.

Check out Rodolfo the bartender at the outside bar - he was there from 6pm-midnight. He was GREAT and was our favorite! He would see us coming and begin mixing and serving all of our drinks (4 of us). All in all, the service was the best I have ever had, the room was very nice and the overall experience was great for mine and my husband's first time to Cancun. The Riu Palace is the place I will definitely go back to when I go back to Cancun!!!!

Just got back July 31, 2008 This was my 15th AI and my 9th in the Cancun area. My 2nd Riu. This was by far the best AI I have stayed at. As many other reviewers have stated the staff are over the top friendly and accomodating. The food was the best of any other AI. We checked in, went to reservtions and booked our restaurants for the next four nights. Each restaurant was fantastic. There is even an alternative at lunch time to the buffet and that is the Itialian restaurant. The buffet is also very good. Ok, enough about food although that and drinks are why we all go to the AI's. Drinks and bars are plentiful. Room service was good. Cleaning is continous. Even though they were booked to capasity while we were there, service never faltered. Our room was cleaned twice a day. The lobby and pool and beach area were being cleaned all day long. No big deal on towel cards, they gave you towel if you had a card or not. The beach and ocean there on site are great for swimming. Not too rough and mostly smooth sand bottom. Suggestion: There is a spa on the property with massage service. The price is around $100 US for a 50 minute massage. Directly across from the hotel is a massage parlor we went to and got a great massage for $49US for 50 minutes. Warning. We booked the jungle tour on a windy day, they give you a boat, showed you the throttle, then set you out on the ocean with instructions to drive very fast. We were airbourne more often than not. It would just about shake your innards out. I thought perhaps we might die! We booked this at Blue Ray and the only way to get back into the boat after attempting to snorkle in such choppy waters was to be hauled in over the bow like a big marlin. In the future, I will make sure the snorkel tour boat has a latter. All in all, good vacation.

Just got back from RIU Palace Tuesday(7/29). Once you saw the hotel from the bus ride it looks gorgeous. I went with my boyfriend and three of my friends ages 24 - 26 and our 47 year old friend. My friends commended me on picking such a luxorious place (having stayed at 3 star hotels before this trip). When you walk in the lobby is gorgeous. Very clean place. I will break everything down to the best of my ability.

Hotel Staff - Most of the staff were very friendly and made you feel at home. We tried to tip everyone a few dollars here and there because they all work so hard to keep this hotel running fabulously. They were always cleaning to keep the place spotless.

Restaurants - The Brazilian for dinner is ok. If you like to eat lots of meat for your dinner. The Japanese was our favorite by far, very delicious sushi. The Spanish restaurant was ok as well, but I got a little freaked out when there was a crawfish (eyes and everything) in my dinner. My boyfriend enjoyed the stuffed chicken with spinach. The buffet is pretty good, although it got repetitive day after day. But plenty of variety and good quality food for an all inclusive. They have leftover food for the drunk people (my group included) strolling in, but it was all nasty food that no one wanted to eat during the day, so go for the room service that runs 24hrs or get some pizza from the guys on the motorcycles.

Rooms - The room wasn't too extravegant considering how beautiful the lobby was. The floors are definitley slippery when you have your balcony door open and the humiditly spills in. The shower had a steady temperature for the most part, but there was times when it would get really hot and then really cold. No vent fan in the bathroom so you had to wait for the mirror to clear. We had a partial view of the ocean and the lagoon so it was like having the best of both worlds. The beds weren't that horribly hard, but I did have back pain after the first night so you might want to request the mattress pad, and one of my first pillows smelled really bad so I had to ask for a new one. There is a pungent musty smell throughout the upstairs floors. Some days the smell was worse then others, but at least our room didn't smell.

Elevators - Some times it took forever. I tried to take the stairs one day (we were on the 6th floor) and I almost passed out. Not only are there a million stairs, but you have to walk around the elevators on each floor to keep going up. I had to stop at the 4th floor to take the elevator up the last two flights. I would dread being on the 8th floor god forbid the power goes out.

Entertainment - My group generally stayed on the quiet side and went in the quiet pool and at night time we went out to the clubs so I couldn't really tell you too much about it.

Pools - Although there were a lot of children in it, the quiet pool was definitly nicer as far as the cleanliness goes. We went in to the activity pool once to go to the swim up bar, but the water was really murky and warm. It was really nasty. And yes, the pools really do close at 7pm.

As far as the noise in the hotel (ie the slamming of the doors) they are generally loud if you don't hold then until they close. So any people complaining that people were slamming the doors I don't think it was intentional. Our first night we got in fairly late and the people in the rooms next to us called security and complained that we were making too much noise and the guards threatened to kick us out. I'm sorry, but not everyone is going to go to bed at 10 pm. And as far as the guards telling us we were going to be kicked out on our first night without giving us a warning was totally uncalled for. We paid our $1000 just like everyone else and we can do whatever we want on our vacation.
I think the families that complained about us should stay at a more family oriented hotel because the RIU Palaces doesn't have much to offer children.

Overall the RIU Palace was really nice and I would stay there again, despite the few small negatives.