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Riu Palace Aruba - Palm Beach — 
Location: Beachfront - 6 miles from the airport - 2.48 miles from Oranjestad and 1000 ft. from a shopping center
All-inclusive - Opened Summer 2007 - 450 rooms
Description from resort website:In Aruba, the Riu Palace is beautifully designed and located right on Palm Beach, offering a most spectacular view of the Caribbean. The wide expense of soft, golden sand, virtually at its front door, invites you to enjoy the warm breeze wafting in from the ocean or enjoy swimming in one of the two
fresh-water pools. 5 Restaurants including Fusion Restaurant,Japanese restaurant, Italian restaurant and a Grill and steakhouse - 24 hour snacks - 5 Bars - "Vita Novus Spa" with different beauty treatments, hairdresser, beauty salon and massages (additional charge) - Complimentary gym, sauna and jacuzzi - Table tennis, gym, beach volleyball, workout, aguagym
 ~ Reviews posted on this page — 3
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| Riu Palace Aruba | Emily ~ Louisville, Kentucky |
March 2009
Arrival: July 10 - July 17
From the airpot we took the bus to the resort, we were the very last stop. But the bus was great, the driver gave us a breif tour and history on the island and what was good to do and what to see, which was great. Upon arrival to the Riu, it was so beautiful, the outside and inside was very very nice, not what I was expecting, Checkin was a breeze, cold drinks upon arrival. No complaints. The staff at the front desk was awesome and very friendly. We stopped at the bar from checkin and had a few more drinks, by the time we arrived to our room, the luggage was there waiting for us.
Rooms
Out room was in building B on the 9th floor. We had a jr suite with jacuzzi on the balcony. The balcony was huge and a great view of the ocean and pool. The bed was a little hard, but I slept very well. Stocked fridge everyday, sometimes more then once a day. We called for extra pillows and covers and with in the hour they were delivered. Oreder room service again this was quick and had it in about 30 minutes. The shower was nice and the tub was very nice also. Although the shower didn't have hot water just luke warm, but the tub did, so that was nice. The TV had limited channels that changed everyday, which was ok, we were there to enjoy our vacation, not watch tv. The room was verp big and clean, there was a little musty smell, but after running the AC the smell went away. Didn't bother either of us.
Restaurants and Bars
We tried the itilian and the steakhouse, which I would prefer the steakhouse, which was so good. The rest of the time we ate breakfast and dinner at the buffet, which was my favorite, dinner was the best. We ordered room service a few times for lunch and late night snack which was good. The buffet had theme night a few times a week which was fun. The pool bar was great and on top of it, drinks made before the next one was completely empty. The lobby bar was great also. They made some different drinks then the pool bar who didn't know how to make it. So different drinks everyday. We really enjoyed Barry's Bar (outside). If you tip there they will remember you and your drinks are ready every single time and you are the first one to order even if you are last in line. They are great to talk to also, they will give you advice on anything from sightseeing to shopping or anything. I have never met so many out going people.
Beach/Pools/Grounds
The beach was great not to crowed. Although it was dificult to find shade due to everyone getting up a 6:00am to place towels on the chairs, but thats ok, I enjoyed the sun and when we needed shade we packed up and sat at the pool bar. But other then that the beach was great, no waves, soft sand. The wind was a little strong, but it would be way to hot without it, so it was nice to have. The sand blew a little with the wind. but if you sit closer to the water and post you chair faceing the pier it was fine, the wind didn't hit you as much. The pool was a little on the cool side, but it was easy to get used to. Pool chairs were a little easier to get, but we didn't stay in it very long any way. I laid out more on the balcony then any where-guranteed a spot and chair! The grounds were kept very nice. They were out there every morning cleaning and taking care of the plants but watering them or trimming them, it was nice. The plants, the grass and the fountains were a good touch to the resort, it was very nice to look at. We did get stuck in the rain one afternoon, but it was gone within minutes. It did rain a few mornings before the sun came up, but it didn't rain anyother time while we were there, which was great!
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
We didn't do much activities at the resort. But we did do a snorkling trip with DePalm tours which included 3 stops, lunch and drinks, which was very nice. The snorkling was fun, my husband enjoyed it more then I did. But the crew was great entertaining staff and the food was good. I would highly recommmend them.
Other Comments
I took over 100 pictures, if you would like to see them email me and I can email them to you. You all will love Aruba and the RIU!!! We are going again this July with our 7 year old.
emily.hill@jhsmh.org
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| Riu Palace Aruba |
Vickie ~ USA ~ Nashville, TN |
December 2008
Arrival: December 2008
Went very smoothly. We decided to take a cap instead of the bus. It was well worth the extra $25.00. We were already checked in and drinking at the bar when the bus arrived. We did not receive our luggage in a timely manner. This was solved by sending my spouse to retrieve the luggage.
Rooms:
The room was extremely large and the bed is huge. The mattress was hard but sleep-able. We did not spend much time in the room but it was lovely. One issue we did experience, one beach towel per guest. I would have preferred two towels per guest.
Restaurants and Bars:
The food was better here than other RIU resorts we have visited. The Steak house was great but the Japanese restaurant could have been better. The buffet was good, not great, but good. The bars were a great place to hang out and relax. We learned that all house wines were not the same at the bars. If you are a wine drinker, make sure you visit each bar to find the one that suits you best. Anna was great at the pool bar. She gave us excellent service and we did not tip until the end.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
The beach, pool and grounds were beautiful to say the least. You need to be on the beach by 7:00 am if you want an umbrella. You did not have to stay on the beach but secure your chairs and leave a few personal items (sun screen, bucket, book). It worked for us and we never had any items taken that we had left. The hallways in our hotel seemed to smell musty but our room was fine.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
The shows were the same as most all inclusive resorts - nothing to write home about but still worth watching for an hour. The other activities seemed to be fun, but we did not participate. Our vacation goal was to do nothing and we succeeded.
Other Comments:
The night life was pretty calm. If you are looking for a place to relax and enjoy the sun, this resort is perfect. We had a great time and would recommend this resort.
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| Riu Palace Aruba |
Paul (Woodbridge Golf Group)~ Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
December 2007
Arrival
-5 hours flight from Toronto, Skyservice.
-Pleasant flight, seats on Skyservice are normally very tight, this was a new Jet, with a little more leg room
-Airport in Oranjestad very small, however very efficient.
-Hotel check-in was outstanding, we were a group of 16 golfers in Aruba for 7 days of golf.
-We here herded into the lobby bar, given cold drinks and a seat, 2/3 front dest reps, had us fill in a check-in form, these were collected your name called, you got your ID bracelet, room keys, check-in package etc.
-By then our luggage was lined up in the lobby, with bell-hops at the ready, you gave them your room number and a tip and your luggage was taken to your room. Have another drink in the bar and 10 min's later go to your room and everything will be there.
-Staff were very friendly, all spoke english (this is a Dutch island)and they could not be more helpful for anything you wanted.
-More than 5 star service.
Rooms
-Rooms are all Jr. Suites, two queen size beds, large sitting area, Chesterfield, 2 chairs, coffee table, lamps, etc., in-room safe, well stocked in-room bar (4 bottles rum, whiskey, sherry, vodka, you can reqeust your preference) plus a stocked frig (beer, water, soda pop)replaced with what you take out every day. (give the room maid a small tip first day, and your room will be well stocked all week)
-A/C works well, beds are comfortable, clean linen & towels etc every day. TV has CNN, North American programs, and some local.
-All room have a balcony with two lawn chairs, and a full view of the ocean, beach, and pools. (spectacular view's)
-Again more than 5 star rating.
Restaurants
-Excellent food, a-la-carte resturants, you must book your reservation between 9:00 & noon each day (this is a pain) we did not use as we were on the golf course everyday during the window of time, however did get into the Italian & Steakhouse on an exception basis from the hotel manager (Richard) very helpful and accomodating. Both meals were outstanding, the evening buffets offer very fresh, and a wide selection of foods, cooked at stations, with GREAT service.
-All Inclusive features, all meals and snacks:
Breakfast:
-Full American breakfast buffet, on the spot cooking stations, fruits, juices and Java
-Continental breakfast/snack
Lunch:
-Hot and cold buffet and on the spot cooking stations
-Pizzas, pasta, salads and assorted desserts
Dinner:
-Buffets and on the spot cooking stations
-Special evenings: theme buffets (twice a week)
Optional dining (reservations required):
-"Krystal" Fusion Restaurant
-"Sayuri" Japanese restaurant
-"Milano" Italian restaurant
-Grill and steakhouse
Snacks 24 hours a day
Beverages:
-Unlimited local and imported beverages 24 hours a day
-Mini-bar and regularly restocked liquor dispenser
-Room service from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.
-I know your sick of me saying this.....again 5 star ++ food & service.
Bars
-Lobby Bar was a good meeting place.
-Excellent selection of drinks.
-Great service.
-Entertainment every night, not your normal local kids dancing & singing to canned music. Acts were semi-professional, with great shows and something differend almost every night.
-There is also a sports bar, hidden behind the main desk in the lobby, best kept seacret in the hotel. Seems to be open 24 hours a day, has all types of video machines, pool table, game table, well stocked bar, and if Victoria is there, she is "top-notch".
-Also located in this bar are several well stocked frig units with made up sandwitches, furit, drinks, etc. with take out packs for your use when going on island tours, golfing, etc.
-Pool bar is equally first class, with great service, good selection, friendly staff. There is no beach service, I think its because its a public beach with a board walk through it where guests from other hotels pass by.
Beach and Pools
-Beach is very nice, sand, expansive, normal beach lounges, and shade huts.
-Water is fairly calm, however does drop off quickly. (small children would need to be closely supervised)
-Very large expanse of pools, with plenty of lounges for your use.
-The hotel consists of 3 towers in the shape of a horseshoe, pools are in the centre, natural shade from some to the towers if you want it, and plenty of sun on the other side's.
-With approx 600 rooms the pool and beach did not seem that crowded when we were there.
-Incidently, I should of talked about the WIND earlier. It never stop's blowing (about 40/60 kms per hr) day & night. This may seen bad and annoying, wrong, without it the heat (85/90 all the time) would be somewhat un-bearable. Believe me after your first day, you get use to it and its almost like its not there as it is so constant.
-It is a bit of an adjustment on the Golf Course. (see below)
Grounds
-Grounds are vey good, this is a fairly new hotel, (opened July/2007) and the local grass, bushes, flowers, etc., are still growing and need some help. However lots of evidence of hotel maintance staff working on the grounds everyday.
-There is a board-walk along the beach that is easy to walk and runs the length of the hotel area. (2/3 kms)
Activities
-Our group (16 guys) golfed everyday. Did not see much of the hotel activities, however did see salsa lessons both at the pool and in the lobby bar. Given this is a Riu, and 5 Star ++ I am sure there are plenty of activities for everyone.
GOLF:
-Our group take an Island golf trip every year.
-We played everyday at the Terra De Sole Golf & Country Club.
-It is not included in the hotel package, not sure of the cost per round, we paid $700.00 CDN$ for 7 rounds for the week. Club rentals and a very well stocked pro-shop on site. (See Oliver (local pro) he was very helpful)
-While the club is busy, 4-somes appear to be all good golfer's and you can play 18 in about 4 to 4 & 1/2 hours. (normal)
-It is an 18 hole Pete Dye Course. Par 71, Slope 124. Play the white tees, over 6,000 yards good for the mid handicaper. There are blue and championship tees if you are a scratch golfer. Due to the wind holes play much longer and white tees provide a good challange. Most of us are 12 to 18 handicap and found it excellent to play.
-Check out the par-5 14th hole.......it is awsome, took a 10 the first day brided it the next 5 days). This is followed by a par-3 all carry over water into the 40km per hour trade winds........use one or two extra clubs.
-3 holes on the back nine run along the ocean, with the wind always constant right to left. Hit all you have down the right side and let the wind bring it back, you do get use to the wind. We had some rain the first day, you can see it coming in advance off the ocean. If you see it take cover, it comes in hard and strong, head for a stand of Divi Bushes to break the wind and rain...........however if you get wet, it will be gone in 5 min's and the sun comes out and you are dry within 15 min's.
-Take beer & water from the hotel (free bar) cost is very expensive at the golf course, especially if you play every day. Our gourp even started to pack fruit and sandwitches from the sports bar (see above) for the day. Carts have coolers with ice supplied. Pack a small folding cooler in your golf bag to carry drinks and food from the hotel daily.
-We played the Moon Palace in Cancun last year and this course is almost as good as the 27 holes there. We rate it #1 in the Caribbian for golf. Tera De Sole is #2. (in our humble opinion)
Tours
-We had a bus to take us to and from the golf course.
-We saw some of the local areas daily from the bus, we were offered a tour of the island, however did not take it, other than a couple of local excurssions to Oranjestad (capital city) to a flee market (lot's of deals) and the Rennisaunce Hotel on main street to the Steakhouse next to the Casino. (Excellent service and food and quite reasonable in cost)
-It is a very pretty small island, with very friendly people everywhere you go.
-Along the hotel strip there are several local resturants and a shopping court with some high-end stores that were just starting to open (new) while we were there. There is a fountain/music show each night in the courtyard of the plaza well worth seeing.
-We also tried several of the resturants (even though we were on an all inclusive package) the food and service was very good, no worries about local water and food problems with any of our 16 guys all week.
Conclusion
-The rating for this Hotel is 5 Star.........
-We would rate it 5 Star +++
-Hotel staff were very helpful and friendly.
-Everyone spoke English, there is a local dilect, (spanish/dutch) I think, that most local's speak. Spanish seemes to be a first or second language for all staff.
-Would I recommend this hotel to friends........YES.
-Would I return again............YES.
-Remember I warned you about the WIND>>>>>>>>>>>>
-Enjoy.
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Last updated: March 18, 2009
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