Riu Palace Antillas Adults Only - All Inclusive

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

6020 reviews

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  All Inclusive Resort for Couples Only

  My husband and I were part of a group of nine friends who stayed at the Riu Palace Antillas in January, '25. Riu Hotels has two branded, side by side hotels next to each other on Palm Beach in Aruba. One is for families, and the other, the Antillas, is for adults only. The two hotels are handled by two different management companies. I mention this because one of the couples in our group, accidently reserved a room in the wrong Riu and had a lot of trouble switching their room.to the Antillas building. Once they were able to switch their room, they had difficulty rectifying their bill. The Antillas Hotel has newly renovated rooms. We stayed in a Junior Suite and it was spacious and well laid out. The bed was very comfortable. The only complaint with the room is that the bathroom has only a large frosted glass interior window that is situated next to the bed. There is an automatic light in the bathroom that goes on when one enters. If any guest needs to visit the bathroom in the middle of the night, the light from the window shines right on the bed and will very likely wake anyone sleeping. The beach is lovely and well maintained. It is extremely crowded. Folks start taking their places early in the morning. If you show up after 10am, there's not much space to arrange your chair. And nothing under an umbrella or palapa for shade. There are two pools. A very large one, and a swim up bar pool that is smaller but fairly raucous. The food and drink is extremely plentiful. There is free alcohol served everywhere. If you are a member of AA, this is not a place for you! I'd rate the alcohol service a 10. I'd rate the food preparation a 5. The quality of the ingredients was very good. As with most buffet service, the quantity of the food is amazing but the taste of the food is meh. The steak restaurant was probably the best, the Krystal came next, and the Italian restaurant was the worst, mostly because it didn't taste like Italian cooking. Breakfast is served in the vast buffet hall. It is probably the best meal of the day. One problem was that reservations are not available for any of the restaurants at dinner time. Since we were a group of nine, this was problematic. We had to wait on line and take our chances that a large enough table could be assembled for us. If nothing was available, we would be given a "buzzer" that would notify us when a table was finally available. All in all, we mostly enjoyed our stay.

  Jan 27, 2025
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  Riu Rules!

  We just came back from a vacation at the Riu Palace Antillas. It was wonderful! Beautiful beach, clean and fresh pool, plenty of towels. Every day our rooms were mopped and cleaned. When we arrived, there was a mixup in the rooms we needed, and we had to use rooms that weren't really appropriate. The next morning Davidson found us the correct rooms and had our luggage moved! Thank you Davidson. T The food was delicious, fresh and plentiful. Lots of variety. Watermelon was sweet, canteloupe good. Coffee Machine in the 24 hour room dispenses good cappucino. There were many vegetarian options at all meals. I loved the fresh pumpernickel bread and the baguettes. We tried new foods, like nondairy yogurt, and added lots of nuts and berries. Omelletes made to order. Lunch had different options every day, and it was delicious. 2 big salad bars, including fresh fruits, veggies, cheeses of all sorts, and every ingredient you can think of. We did get on line one evening for the Steak House first sitting. We arrived at 5:15, waited about 45 minutes, then had one of the best meal experiences ever. This is the "high end" restaurant with no extra charge. Nice tableclothes, fancy silverware, wine glasses, etc. The Caribbean lobster was out of this world! The Chef came to talk to a vegan customer, and created new dishes just for her, all delicious and appetizing. Thank you chef Fredo. Yuliana also did a fine job serving at the Steak House. We appreciate Nico, the dining room manager, for his good cheer and quick service, overseeing all aspects. Luz, the breakfast server, was very attentive. Yami in Reception helped us several times, always answering questions and following through. The Social Activities Staff had fun things for us to do, including water aerobics, my favorite. They circulated to engage with patrons. Evening entertainment was uneven. The "Pirate Show" was so poor we walked out. But the next night was Audience Participation and we've never laughed so hard and so long at a group of people doing silly things. This was the height of good entertainment. I love karaoke but it started too late. 10 pm is not a good starting time. How about 8:30? Better. Rooms were large, small but good balconies. The Casino is clean and smokefree. Plenty of gaming, lots of slots. Also there is sports betting and poker tables. My group has been to many all inclusive adult resorts in the past 10 years, and this ranks among the best. We'll come back next year

  Jan 27, 2025
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  Very nice! Great service at the restaurants, bars, beach, & room attendants.

  Great stay, great property, wonderful luncheon staff, beach staff (@0600), great waiters at night. I just wish there was a better way than waiting 30+ minutes to be sure you get a table. I was disappointed with the evening entertainment. Years ago they were fabulous shows, not anymore. Great afternoon entertainment, especially the saxophone & bongos player 💝 outstanding!

  Jan 26, 2025
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  A lovely resort with excellent staff!

  This is a really lovely resort in the high-rise section of Aruba. We want to give a special shout out to Yami at the front desk 🩷 we had a situation with our room, and when we explained it to her, she was so kind, helpful, and attentive, and took excellent care of us! She made a big difference in our vacation experience in Aruba. Also, Owen, a server in the amazing Steakhouse there was outstanding. 👏

  Jan 25, 2025
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  Loved RIU Antillas!

  This was our second trip to Aruba and second stay at the Antillas. It was the most relaxing vacation we’ve ever had and we will definitely be back ❤️

  Jan 25, 2025