Resort Review: Hotel Riu Palace Costa Rica

I’m BACK! And I can’t wait to share the ins and outs of our Costa Rica vacation!

I know what you are thinking….Joi you are back at a Riu Resort. LOL, YUP! I don’t know how this happened, but it did. Originally for vacation we were supposed to go to the Dominican Republic. After all of the media stories, we felt more comfortable picking a different international location. With such a short notice switch- we had to think quick on where we wanted to go and stay, make sure we stayed in budget, and ALL-INCLUSIVE. Long story short, we ended up at another Riu brand resort haha! They should really sponsor us at this point.

In Costa Rica, our resort shared a private beach with Riu Guanacaste. While we were jet-skiing it literally looked like the plopped two resorts beside each other in the jungle.

To be honest, Riu Palace Costa Rica topped all of my expectations. I was so shook from Hotel Riu Santa Fe in Cabo, I just knew that this Riu was going to be lowkey trash. But it was beautiful. One other thing about Costa Rica that I shared on my instagram stories, is that October is the rainiest month in Costa Rica. I remember looking at the weather and every day had rain. To be honest, we only saw rain two times, and it was both at night. The rain did not ruin our vacation at all. I loved the rainy season actually, everything was so lush and green! The only bad part about rainy season was we were not able to visit the waterfalls because the rivers were too high. But other than that, everything was absolutely perfect.

Let’s chat about this resort!

The Hotel Riu Palace in Costa Rica hands DOWN had the best customer service I’ve ever seen. While you are at the pool, bar, or the restaurant, the hotel staff is literally everywhere to help you. At the pool they would bring pool side drinks and waters if you needed it. At dinner, they were there to make sure all of our orders were prepared to our liking, and also providing exceptional drinks. Literally bomb. The hotel even had room service (only for the really drunk nights though, I would aim to eat at the restaurants!)

We stayed in the Garden View suite, but honestly it was more like a Jungle View. Which I wasn’t complaining at all, absolutely fabulous. Our room had a rainfall shower head, and also a separate room for the toilet. We even had our own balcony to relax and enjoy listening to the monkeys.

Unlike the Riu Santa Fe, this Riu had way more beach/pool seating. The only downside (if I would have to pick one), there was only one pool bar. That could get really crowded if you come late to the party. The resort also had direct private access to the beach. But beware, you will get hounded for purchases of beach hats, or awful massages from the tour people.

The Riu campus also had a casino, which had premium liqour (very cheap price, I drank at the resort where my liquor was already paid for LOL!), and the club right beside it. I will say that this resort really takes pride in making sure they provide exceptional customer service, and making sure the resort grounds are perfect.

Now let’s get to the part everyone really cares about….the food!!

The first day for lunch I tried the Italian restaurant for lunch, and Japanese for dinner. For lunch I had the Lamb chops, and they were pretty fire! For dinner, we were a little late on arriving, so our food took a way longer to come out…but I had the Duck Ramen…so bomb!

The second day for dinner we tried a restaurant called Krystals, which is considered Asian Fusion. Mostly everyone had the Duke or the Lobster Risotto. It was still pretty amazing food.

For our last two nights we had the Steak House, where I ordered the exact same thing both times because it was just that good. I had the 16oz New York Strip Steak with grilled veggies and lobster tails. It was probably the highlight of my food experience. Seriously….

I have to say, this resort was breathtaking. The only thing I would change about this resort is making it adults-only. I know kids are a precious gift from above, but there is something not soo fun when you are trying to take a shot in the bar pool, and a kid tries to jump it. LOL I highly recommend this resort if you are trying to have something more inclusive for your first time in Costa Rica. If I was to go back, I think I would rent out an Airbnb and experience the Costa Rican culture a little more.

Stay tuned for my next blog post on a full breakdown of our trip!