Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas - All Inclusive

The ocean views are beautiful, but there aren’t safe places to swim, and vendors at both the beach and marina were aggressively trying to sell souvenirs or excursions every 30 seconds. If you’re happy spending a week by the pool without leaving the resort, this could work. If you want more to do, I’d choose somewhere else. The gym is tiny with very little equipment, so I walked to the Santa Fe gym for morning workouts. Also, the entertainment area and RIU Part nights get very loud, which won’t suit you if you go to bed early or dislike noise. The resort itself was about what we expected, and we had a great clear boat ride excursion on the ocean. We booked through destination services, who were great and provided good transportation to and from the resort. The pools were clean, with snacks and drinks nearby. Food was above average but not amazing. The a la carte restaurants were decent, with Krystal the best and the steak house a letdown. The lobby was lovely, and the coffee shop’s desserts and fruit made a nice snack or a place to relax out of the sun. The resort has very few amenities, though. Hope this is helpful.

IRMA in the buffet area was outstanding, and the hotel and staff were lovely. The Wi-Fi didn’t work for my work needs, even after two hours spent trying to fix it, and the hotel cable didn’t work either. Minor hassles in paradise. We had a great time and will be back. Thank you!

The food was mixed. Breakfast buffet was decent, but the dinner buffet was bland and disappointing. Specialty restaurants didn’t take reservations, and a two-hour wait is ridiculous. The Asian restaurant was the one exception: there was no wait on arrival night and we enjoyed the meal, though the “seared tuna” was so thin it cooked all the way through. Our room was awful: very dated and dark, with A/C that never cooled enough. We requested two double beds but got two standard beds, much too narrow for two people. Rooms like that shouldn’t be advertised for more than two.

The rooms, grounds, and open areas were immaculate, and service was impeccable everywhere we went. Food was great overall: the Japanese restaurant was so-so, while the buffet and steak were top notch. Our stay also gave us access to the adults-only Baja California next door and the younger crowd at Santa Fe, including the pools, buffets, entertainment, and pool party. Specialty restaurants weren’t included with that access. Fabulous stay, and we’ll definitely return!