Riu Palace Boavista - All Inclusive

The property features first-class pools, clean and comfortable rooms, and friendly staff. Guests appreciate the convenient location, beautiful beachfront, and delicious breakfast options. Some mention well-stocked bars.

Stayed in Dec 2024. Great location on Boa Vista. At about 5 minutes from the airport, it’s the quickest holiday transfer I think we’ve ever had. And we didn’t even see or hear any planes for the whole of the trip! We had booked a standard double room but upon arrival when reception found out it was my birthday we were given a free upgrade to a swim-up room. Given the time of year and the fact we don’t tend to hang around the room, it wasn’t something we were actually fussed about having and in the event didn’t use the pool, but happily took the free upgrade anyway on the basis that it would be a nicer, possibly larger room. Very pleased with the room overall. Excellent size with a sofa and coffee table in it as well as the bed (actually 2 large singles pushed together) and well cleaned every day. The large rainfall shower was one of the nicest I’ve experienced. Room also comes with free to use optics with gin, vodka, rum and whisky in, plus beers, water and soft drinks in the fridge. Re-stocked every 2 days, though you can ask for more via the app. We did this and also requested extra pillows, and both requests were fulfilled same day. One thing to note with the swim-up rooms was that our balcony didn’t get much sun on it, possibly because of the time of year and also the direction it faces. So that’s something worth trying to check in advance if you wanted to book this room and intended to use the pool and sunbathe on the private patio. We were in block 41. I’d say half the rooms got a good amount of daytime sun (south-west facing I think) and the other half didn’t. There’s a number of large pools to choose from during the day and we never had any issue getting sunbeds either by the pool or on the beautiful beach. We’d normally come out to use them around 9ish. We’ve definitely had comfier sunbeds before though, and the parasols were so mesh-like they barely felt like they offered any sun protection at all. Grounds absolutely immaculate and a credit to the gardeners who look after them. Buffet was excellent in that it had a lot of options, though I imagine after a week the lunch options in particular might start to feel a bit samey. We ate in all 3 a la cartes for dinner and enjoyed them all. The Japanese was probably my favourite. Service in all restaurants including the buffet was excellent. Entertainment team work hard, but dancing and miming shows don’t really cut it for evening entertainment. Occasional live bands much better, and the weekly party they have at the RIU Karamboa which is next door was also good fun. All in all, a good stay, and I think the RIU Palace would be my first choice if I were to visit the island again. I can definitely see why some customers come back year after year.

One of the best hotels we have stayed at. The most amazing view ever. The staff were all amazing. Definitely will be visiting again. The beach was so clean and tidy. Plenty of food choices to choose from. Only down side was we couldn't use the water park as advertised at the karamboa but could attend the themed nights there.