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| RIU Lupita |
Debbie ~ New Brunswick |
June 2009
Arrival: April 12 - April 26
Arrival went very well. We arrived at midnight and a staff member was very good and showed us exactly how to find our room. I had a good feeling about the resort that first night. Rooms:
Rooms were clean and comfortable. Maid very creative with the towel art daily. Fridge stocked well and often but we didn't use much of it because the buffet was very good.
Restaurants and Bars:
We found the food very good and plentiful. Didn't try the a-la-carte because we liked the buffet. The buffet was a nice set up and very well done. I especially enjoyed the coconut ice cream, pasta, salsa and chips, desserts and the service. Always seemed to be lots of seating room available. Snack bar was open when buffet was closed so food was accessable all day.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
We spent most of our time at the quiet pool. It was clean and very well maintained. Went to the beach on the shuttle once but it was windy the whole two wks we were there so found it more enjoyable at the pool. Went to Akumal Bay once on the local bus and enjoyed that day for $10.00.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
The shows were good and lots of activities if you want to stay active. You could do as much or as little as you want. Didn't do any tours, they are quite expensive and this was our 5th time to the Mayan Riviera.
Other Comments:
We enjoyed our two wks at the Riu Lupita very much and plan to go back in 2010. Liked the size of the resort and the free in room safe and shuttle to Playa Del Carmen. The staff were very friendly. Great family resort if you want to get away from the party scene.
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| RIU Lupita |
Margaret ~ Canada |
March 2009
Arrival: March 7 - 14
Very efficiently dealt with, there were only a few of us staying at this hotel, we were immediately shown how to get to our room which was very easy, a poolside party was in progress, this was like a welcome committee.
Rooms
Very clean, plenty of closet/drawer space, linen changed daily. Our room had a great view of the jungle, saw some wild life swinging through the trees. We did not hear any noise from our neighbours, very well sound proofed.
Restaurants and Bars
The buffet restaurant was very well run, tables cleaned promptly. The food was excellent, much variety. Eusebio and his crew looked after us like royalty. There was one a la carte,(Mexican) but the buffet was so good, we never did get to make a booking.
Beach/Pools/Grounds
There were 2 pools but we only used the larger one. Plenty of sun loungers all around. We never had to wait to be served at the pool bar, plenty of bar tenders working all the time. They made the best mohito's and margueritas ever tasted. The beach was a 10 min free shuttle bus away, this was no problem, the bus was prompt every half an hour. It also made a stop at Playa del Carmen for the shopping.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel
The nightly entertainment was very professional, with some audience participation. The kids had their own show before the adults. A very enthusiastic animacion team made sure everyone was having a good time. We did a day trip on the ferry to Cozemel, a little disappointed, there was not much to do except shop, we were hoping for some beautiful scenery and great beaches. I couldn't find anything to take pictures of with my camera.
Other Comments
This hotel was perfect for us. Very compact, easy to get around. We highly recommend this hotel to anyone who likes a smaller environment with no fuss. We hope to go back there real soon.
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| RIU Lupita |
Lynn ~ Nova Scotia |
January 2009
Arrival: March 2006
Arrival was great...went smoothly at the airport in Cancun. The bus ride was pretty long (about an hour), but beer and entertainment was plentiful along the way.
Rooms:
Rooms were average. Ran out of hot water for two days, but not sure that that was the fault of the resort. Loved the liquor dispensor in the room. If you tip the staff your fridge will be restocked much more frequently.
Restaurants and Bars:
Average to below average...not much to choose from...not very good. Staff was great though, and made it seem not so bad.
Beach/Pools/Grounds:
No beach :-(...small pools (only two)...resort itself was very small, older, not much to do. Definitely for relaxing only.
Activities on and off the Resort/Hotel:
The resort pretty much sucked...but Playa Del Carmen, now that is a place I could get used to. I am actually planning a trip back there right now. It is a "just the right size" shopping, clubbing area that allows you to have tons of fun without getting lost. The Blue Parrot was a great club...you dance on the beach and there are swings instead of bar stools.
We went on a tour with altournative (check them out at altournative.com) The tour was awesome. It was around $120 USD per person, but was an entire day of fun. We ziplined through the jungle, kayaked, swam in an underground cave, visited a mayan village for a traditional mayan lunch, and the list goes on and on...and on; witnessed so much culture and beauty it was breathtaking.
Other Comments:
It was nice that this resort is cheaper because it is not on the beach, yet you have access to the other Riu resorts that are on the beach (a short free shuttle drive away). I would not stay here again because I prefer to be on the beach rather than lug all my stuff back and forth everyday, but if you are looking to get to Playa Del Carmen for cheap and don't mind a smaller, quieter, older resort...then this is good for the price.
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| RIU Lupita |
Shelia ~ Canada |
July 2006
My sister and I were at this resort in June. We are in our late 50's and from Vancouver Canada. I and my husband travel extensively, especially Mexico, so I consider myself somewhat of an "expert." We have been to the Mayan Riviera over 20 times as well as the west coast of Mexico, both in all-inclusives and camping.
This resort is a nice little one and if you get it for a really good price, I would recommend it. If you can get a bigger one for the same price, then I would have to think twice.
To make this short and sweet, here goes. The rooms are just rooms but are just fine. I mean, who sits in their rooms on vacation anyways. The stocked bar and free safe are a nice touch too. We were given a fruit plate and a bottle of Agave to take home. [not the fruit!] I actually don't have a clue what Agave is but what the heck. For free, I will take it, haha. The buffet was very nice. We found that it was geared to the Europeans tastes but I always found several things to eat, and actually managed to gain 3 very unwanted pounds in a week! The food wasn't as good there though as at most of the other places we've stayed at. The service was fine and the waiters are all very nice. You can help yourself to beer and wine at meals too.
The entertainment was very enjoyable and was actually better than at some other resorts. The manager Roberto was a sweetie and made us feel very welcome.
The pools are small but there again, they are just fine.
You are allowed to use the other hotels which made for a nice change. The bus runs right on the dot, and takes you to the beach club or the entrance to town. We found not being on the beach no trouble at all and we thought the location was perfect.
We had one main complaint. Most of the guests are from Europe [mainly France the week we were there] and they ALL smoke like chimneys. We hate smokers so that part was hard on us. It was also hard to meet anyone to talk to that spoke English. I have to be "politically correct" on this site, but if you want to know how we got along with so many Europeans, you can e-mail me at kensheila@shaw.ca and I will answer any questions you might have. We like to meet people while on vacation, so this aspect alone is something that would make us reconsider going back to the resort again. It was hard listening to everything being said in four or five languages. If the price was very good, I would return though. Being able to go to the other resorts helped a lot. We have fun wherever we go on holidays, so we had a great time here too. Vacations are what you make of them, right!
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February 2006
I've used this site a lot in deciding my vacation choices, so I'll return the favour.
Hotel room - small room and small bathroom, but everything was clean and the view was quite nice (looking over the golf course) It was quiet at night, but you do hear your neighbors when they get up in the morning. The building are nicely painted, unfortunately they have a very ugly staircase going up the fronts of the buildings. (it can't be helped)
Pools - Small, but very nice. The adults pool had nice gardens around it and the main pool had the restaurant and bar right near it. Most people leave the resort during the day, so it can be very quiet and private.
Gardens - nicely landscaped, unfortunately the hurricane did a lot of damage to the large trees - but this is everywhere in Playa del Carmen - I'm sure it will look better in a few months.
Restaurants - We only ate at the buffet. It's an open air restaurant- which I really like! Dinner time was quite busy, but we only had to wait about 5 minutes to get a table. Staff worked very hard, but it was inconsistent. One day our waiter did everything, got us drinks, made sure everything was good, spent a few minutes with small talk, filled our cups without asking - first rate! Other days we didn't even see a waiter, no drinks, no cleaning up ect. One thing - they were very over booked and perhaps they were short staffed for the large demand. On Valentine's day, we were given champagne and all the girl's got a rose - nice touch!
Food - Was good, nothing thrilling, we always had enough to choose from.
Entertainment - Really good. It was usually a small crowd but that made it that much more fun. The staff got right down on ground level, among the audience.
Beach Club - It's right beside the new Riu Palace Mayan Riveria. It's done up very nice, with it's own restaurant, volleyball court & Loungers. You do have to climb down a set of stairs to get to the water. The water has some rocks, so swim to the right of the beach club (VIVA''s beach) I thinks it's better there. There had been some talk about not being able to use the other Riu's resorts, but up until now you still could. We walked twice from the Riu Lupita to the Riu Yucatan, it took 30 minutes, and it was a very nice walk. When facing the street from the Lupita, turn left and walk along the cobble side walk. You will be walking around the golf course, the Yucatan will be on your right and the Tequila on your left.
Rooms - If I had a choice I would pick the rooms around the small adults pool. It seemed really nice, with nice views of the gardens and pool. Be aware that the disco is also in this area, I'm not sure if it can be heard during the night.
We found this hotel didn't have a lot of English speaking patrons. This didn't bother us, but it's something to be aware of. The staff can both speak and understand English very well. We also found that there were a lot of families, with small children (wasn't a problem - kids are on vacation too)
We only had 2 small problems, and both were fixed within 5 minutes. Would I go here again? I'm not sure, it was nice, but I've been to to many other hotels where I've been spoiled rotten, and this was a little lower on my totem pole. It has good value for the money and if they continue to allow you to use the facilities of the other Riu's it's really worth trying. 3 Days into our holiday we were upgraded to the Riu Tequila so I'll continue my review there. Other places I've been to St. Lucia - La Papilon, Riu Yucantan, Riu Jalisco, Riu Tequila - 3 times, Disney Cruise, Iberostar Tucan & Riu Lupita
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| RIU Lupita |
Teresa ~ Canada |
January 2006
This is my third review on your site Debbie and I wanted to thank you once again for all the help this site is giving travellers like me. Keep up the good work!
Now back to my review.
I noticed there are only 2 reviews for Riu Lupita. This hotel changed owners only 2 years ago. It's smaller than usual, for Riu anyway and it's not on the beach. Also because it wasn't built for Riu chain it's quite different from other Riu hotels. There is only one bar and when the hotel is booked solid it gets crowded.
The 2 pools are also small and there is only one specialty restaurant on premises - Mexican.
The shuttle bus is leaving every half an hour from 7am to 6pm and has 3 stops on the way - Playa del Carmen, Riu Playacar and private beach club for Lupita.
Beach Club - very quiet, lots of beds, beautiful beach, buffet. So far no bar, they serve only beer.
Food - as always good. We loved our New Year's Eve Gala Dinner. Everything was just perfect.
Entertainment - also good especially Mayan Show and Mariachi.
You can use any of the facilities at other Riu hotels in the area except Palace but you have to go by the taxi in the evening ( about 5US$ each way).
If you need to relax this is a perfect place for you, especially for golfers as you can golf next door.
If you need more - go to Riu Yucatan or Playacar as they are more lively.
Overall we were satisfied with this hotel for the money we paid but I wouldn't say it's a 5*
We liked location as it was close to everything and only 30 minutes walk to Playa del Carmen and 10 minutes by car to Xcaret.
I would recommend this hotel to anyone who isn't expecting 5* facilities. As for staff they do go out of the way to please you and for that I applaud them.
Special thanks to Gerardo from entertainment team for making us feel at home.
Just for information - Riu chain has 5 hotels in Riviera Maya area and they will open 6th one in February 2006.There are : Riu Palace Mexico, Riu Yucatan, Riu Playacar, Riu Tequila, Riu Lupita and the new Riu Palace Mayan Riviera. We visited all of them during our 2 weeks holidays.
If somebody wants to see our pics go to:
http://community.webshots.com/user/tenia115
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| RIU Lupita |
Della & Rejean |
April 2005
Not many reviews on the Lupita thought I'd write a little on our vacation
the week of March 25 to April 1, 2005.
Had a great time , not a big resort but everything we needed was there. The
staff are friendly and attentive. The rooms are nice, fully stocked mini
fridge, a 4 bottle liquor dispensor, a no charge in room safe. One buffet restaurant that had a wide variety of food, didn't go hungry. One
specialty restaurant, Mexican, we didn't try, was told not good. The beach
club snack bar also had a good variety of food and good.
One bar at the resort, but should of had two, served good drinks, and the
corona was nice. Didn't have bar at the beach, but did set up table that
served some tropical cocktails, but not all kinds. Had a serve yourself bar
on tap at the beach club which was great.
The beach at the beach was nice compared to some of the other resorts that
hardly had any beach front at all because of the erosion. The waves were a
bit choppy the week we were there.Had a free shuttle to beach at every half
hour.
The nightly entertainment was ok. U could also use facilities of all the
other Riu's in Playacar except the Palace. Didn't use them, so I can't
comment on them, but other people did.
I would not hesitate to go back to this resort. I will recomment this resort
to family and friends. Hope to return some day. I would rate this resort a 4
star.
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October 2004
A 4 STAR EXPERIENCE. Lovely, small, 300 room resort which has just undergone a 10 million dollar facelift when the RIU chain purchased it from Occidental group (former Caribbean Village Playacar) which is not diminished in any way for being an off-beach location. Rooms are average size, with two double beds, full bathroom (tub, shower, sink, toilet), brand new furniture (dark mahogany, lots of drawers, colourful bedspreads, curtains and painting on the wall. Hair dryer, shampoo and bath gel provided. Patio or balcony overlooking either quiet pool, golf course, or pretty gardens. One buffet, one a la carte (Mexican), one central bar services the entire resort located by the large, main pool with dolphin fountain...easy, short access from anywhere on the resort. Fully stocked fridge in each room containing 6 Corona, 4 Pepsi, 2 Orange, 2 Seven-Up, 2 soda water, 4 large bottles of spring water - all rep! lenished every 2nd day. Each room has a liquor dispenser with four 40 oz bottles of rum, tequila, gin and vodka for personal use. Beach towels provided in exchange for towel cards. Complimentary room safe. Key system to open the heavy mahogany doors. Very sound proof - couldn't hear the disco located within view of our balcony. Disco walls are carpeted and keep the sound on the inside (very loud when you are in there). The second, quiet pool is relaxing (our room overlooked this pool...Building 2023. One and two story villas painted in terra cotta or dark yellow surrounded by lots of greenery. Buffet service was excellent, food 5 star quality. Coffee urns on each table in the morning; specialty tea available. No specified seating; breakfast served from 7 - 10:30 am; lunch from 1 - 4 and supper 7 - 10 pm. Pool grill served hamburgers, hotdogs, nachos, salads, fries, popcorn machine. Drink men! u provided. Corona beer served on tap. Two theme nights (Ma yan and Mexican) - excellent food, huge variety and top quality. Mexican a la carte beautifully decorated; 5 star quality and service. Air conditioned shuttle (10 minutes away) to the Playacar beach beginning at 8 am to 6 pm every 30 minutes (always on time) and less than 10 minutes drive through the upscale, Playacar condo community. In November, Lupita will have its own beach area which is being renovated from when the Caribbean Village was in operation. It is located to the left of the Playacar beach and two hotels up the beach and will have its own beach bar, grill, palappas and loungers and of course, entertainment group and activities. It is an easy walk to all the beachfront hotels owned by RIU in the Playacar area. Five minute, $4.00 taxi ride to 5th Ave, the shopping district of Playa del Carmen from anywhere in the Playacar area. Evening shows at the hotel were provided by professional dancers from Cancun; the RIU Lupita da! ncers are in training at the other resorts and performed the last night of our stay. Very friendly group who mingle with all the guests. Mostly Europeans from Italy, Spain, France, and Germany with a few British and Canadians during our week. The resort got fuller near the end of our week. We used the facilities of the Playacar, Yucatan and Tequila and asked at Reception for a pass to the Palace which did not include food or drinks but we could use the pool, nap in the hammocks and view the hotel. We loved the RIU experience. The beach was spectacular....saw a wedding on Saturday at the Playacar on the beach. Roped off area for swimmers; lots of activities on the beach and at the swim-up pool bars. No swim-up bar at the Lupita but didn't miss it as many guests go to the beach during the day. Lupita is a quieter hotel which was a lovely retreat from the loudness of the other RIUs. No better value for your vacation d! ollar in our opinion, especially when you can Stay at 1 and Play at 4 - all located in the Playacar area. Hot 34C all week with no rain during our October 17-24 stay. An hour's drive to the Cancun airport. Having a 10:15 am flight meant leaving the Lupita at 6:15 am (argh) but they provided coffee before the departure so it would be a good idea to take some fruit and muffins from the buffet the night before if you have a departure before the breakfast buffet opens. Food and drinks at the Cancun airport are expensive ($4.00 US for a coke and a coffee, for example).
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Last updated: June 06, 2009
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