Resort Details
Guest Reviews
Customer Ratings & Reviews
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating
10651 reviews
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May 12, 2025My worst hotel experience by far
AVOID AT ALL COSTS. WOW, we read some negative reviews and thought - most places have some negative reviews, this won’t be that bad. WRONG. It was absolutely horrible. This was the last stop on our honeymoon and we spent so much money changing our flights just to get out of this hell hole. This place is dirty- EVERYWHERE. Our room smelled horrible, there was mold in our mini fridge, and just walking through the hotel smelled grimey. The pool was absolutely disgusting- there were open bandaids on the pool deck and not even that many kids around and the water was just gross. We got moved to the RIU Palace next door which is only slightly nicer- and we paid the difference in our room cost. But that was just as bad! The room again smelled horrible and the building felt grimey just like Guanacaste. We tried staying because this was the end of our honeymoon but I woke up swollen in my face and struggling to breathe likely because of mold. We again talked to management who agreed to refund us for half our money, and we said fine. Here we are three months later and we JUST got one tiny portion of the refund we are owed. They don’t have a customer service team you can talk to about refunds, just an email account. I’ve emailed asking for updates and they’ve only responded once- months ago. I’ve asked for an update about the rest of our refund and of course they don’t respond. We will never stay at a RIU anywhere ever again.
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May 08, 2025Ok but wouldn’t go back
The hotel was old but they are remodeling now. Half of the outlets in the room did not work. My biggest complaint was that the front desk personnel could not care less if you were happy. We booked 2 adjoining rooms with 2 beds in each room. When we got there they said sorry, we don’t have that and we got king beds not adjoining. We were on a girls trip and wanted to pay our own half on our cards but they required the first person there to pay for the whole room. The front desk personnel told us incorrect information several times. We had a private tour set up and they told us you had to walk to the front gate ( a mile maybe ) to meet them, that they would not be allowed inside the gate which was not the case at all. The drinks were good but contained no alcohol. We all drank all day and never got a buzz the whole week. They had to be either leaving it out or it was watered down. The pool area is very pretty and had plenty of chairs. The food was ok, very similar to a buffet on a cruise ship. Lots of options but not the most inviting in the restaurants without air conditioning where the food sat out for hours. It was inexpensive which is what we were looking for so you get what you pay for but I would not go back to this resort.
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May 07, 2025Adventures await!
How can you not love Costa Rica! If it is your first time, this property is a great starting point. You can access many excursions from the beach or by a short bus ride to some great outdoor adventure parks The hotel has 2 sections. We stayed in the newly renovated property at the back of the hotel. It has new rooms and 2 bedroom family suits. The pools are new and it is very close to the Waterpark. There is a small restaurant which serve lunch daily as well as a small buffet. The older section leads to the beach. Restaurants and buffet are located on the main side. The pools are fun and well spread out leaving plenty of space to spread out and have a chair. The service at all pools is amazing and staff is very friendly. They do leave you alone but not a bad thing! Always there if needed but not over staying and hovering. The beach!!! Wow amazing ! Pull your chair under any tree or right up to the water. There are vendors but they are so kind and are working so be kind ! Research the Facebook groups and see the offerings from the beach. There is a fun monkey bar, monkey park, boating excursions, and water taxis. Overall this was a great location and services were readily available. We had 27 people and ate dinner together each night at an a la carte. They went above and beyond especially during a very busy week. You are not getting amenities like room service or any buffets with endless choice. It is not fancy or overdone but rather a great place to valley home while you explore the many adventures in Costa Rica!
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May 04, 2025Not the worst…. Not great at all.
The property is absolutely beautiful. But the hotel is rundown and desperately needs renovation. When we arrived, our room was incredibly hot. They had to send maintenance to try to fix it. It got a little better, but, it never really cooled down. We had to keep all of the curtains closed so the time when we were there -we felt like we were living in a cave. If we didn’t, the room would heat up too much. We paid to upgrade to an oceanfront room. And you could barely see the corner of the ocean over the top of the trees. So… It wasn’t really worth it. The bedspreads were stained, the fixtures in the bathroom were old and rusted. The chairs on the balcony were cheap plastic and cracked. Even the beach chairs were broken and a mess. The food was OK. Nothing spectacular… if you’re on a very tight budget and don’t care about the facilities, then I would say this hotel is OK. But I would never go back again. They rent waverunners on the beach, and the guys working the rentals are driving them around when they don’t have anybody to take out, so it wasn’t that relaxing on the beach because all you could hear is the motor of the wave runners going back-and-forth. Was very disappointing if you wanted some quiet beach time. It was like constant leaf blowers.It was my first experience at an RIU all inclusive. And I will never be going to another one again. I gave it three stars instead of two because the grounds were gorgeous, the pool was nice although even the tiles in the pool needed to be replaced, and the people working there were friendly.
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May 02, 2025LOVED our stay at Hotel Riu Guanacaste!!
The room, pool and beaches here are amazing! For food we loved the Italian and Asian restaurants and ate dinner there most nights. The breakfast buffet was really good too. All of the staff was really friendly and helpful. I loved watching the monkeys at the preserve next door and the iguanas. We will be back in a few years! We love Costa Rica and it was a beautiful resort. Lots of activities for kids!
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