We were a group of 4 couples, ages 62 to 65. We spent one week at the Riu Palace Punta Cana. Our overall experience was very good. The service and staff were excellent, and we found everything to be very clean, despite some previous postings. We were offered to upgrade to a room overlooking the plaza for $35 more a night, but decided against that. Our rooms were midway between the lobby and the beach and we found that to be very convenient. The "U" shaped layout of resort made it very easy to get around, not a ton of walking. Since the pool area was rather sheltered it was much less windy than the beach. It was crowded, so we took turns going down at about 7:30 to save lounge chairs by the pool. This way we were assured 8 chairs together. Drink service was very prompt and delivered by very good looking young men. Yes, ladies do notice!
The food was above average, but seemed to cater more to European tastes. They could do a better job of labeling the salad dressings, and the rolls were always dry. At the Steak specialty restaurant the steak was okay, but the lobster was awful. We also ate at the Brazilian and found that to be hit or miss. Some of us had really great meat and others was overcooked and dry. The Italian was our favorite, but thought it odd to not have Caesar dressing on a Caesar salad. The breakfast buffet offered plenty of choices. The made to order omlettes were excellent, and we loved the fresh donuts. We ate lunch at the place nearest the pool for a few days but soon tired of the same offerings day after day. We took a walk to the Riu Bavaro and had lunch one day. WOW! I advise taking that walk for lunch at least once. So many more choices of everything, paninni sandwiches, many kinds of greens for salad, etc. We also stopped at the Riu Bambu for a drink on the way back. Cute place with a nice little bar right on the beach.
One of our group had an issue with the lock not working on his safe, which was addressed and taken care of promptly. However, we had a problem with trying to cancel a restaurant reservation twice due to change of plans. We were not able to communicate that we wished to cancel our reservation for 8. I understand this is a Spanish speaking country, but when a large percentage of your guests are either American or Canadian, you need to be able to communicate, at least in key areas. So, twice there were tables set for 8 that we tried to cancel.
We took the "sunset" cruise offered through the on site dive shop. It was a nice way to spend a couple of hours. There were to be snacks and drinks. The snacks were just chips and nuts, but the rum was very good, and there was plenty of it. My expectations for the snorkeling part of the trip were pretty low, having read some of the other forums related to snorkeling, or lack thereof, but we were pleasantly surprised. There was a good variety of fish and the water was clear. Of course we returned well before sunset, but we had a good time and thought it was worth the price of $39 each.
The nightly entertainment was not great. The local dancers are very good, but it seems like mostly the same dancing but with different costumes. We watched the show once.
In conclusion, the staff was helpful and very friendly, our rooms and the grounds, restaurants, rest rooms, etc., were spotless, and constantly cleaned. The food was slightly above average on the whole, with some standouts and some misses, mostly due to personal taste, I suppose. We all had a great time and would likely go back to the Riu Punta Cana.

We had stayed 5 years ago in the Riu Bambu and hoped that the Palace would be as good or better as it is a Palace. Well there was 6 of us going this time and we all had high hopes. We were soon to learn that this was not going to be as nice. Our friends had trouble with a leak in the room. When they called the front desk about it they didn't send someone to check it they just sent a maid with a towel to wipe the floor. Then they had trouble with bugs in their room. We were luckier in ours no bugs and no leaks. But I did call down 2 nights in a row asking for a blanket as I just couldn't take the air conditioning. well the blanket finally came on the 3rd night. We had to catch the gentleman that restocked the bar and bar fridge to ask him to please put up a new bottle of rum, ours was empty. we went for a meal at the ala carte Steak house. A friend ordered the chicken she said it was very good. My husband and another gentleman ordered the ribs. They only got 3 little ribs and they couldn't even cut the meat off them. I ordered the surf and turf. It was half a lobster tail and steak. The lobster was ok but I could not eat the steak. we all ended up going to the buffet and eating there. what a disappointment.
The maids were great. The staff very friendly. We strolled over to the Riu Bambu to find out if it had also changed and were suprised to find it hadn't. We met a few couples that were staying there and they said they were having a great time at the Bambu with no complaints at all. And the food and service was great. If and when we do go back to Punta Cana and if we do deside to stay at a Riu hotel you can bet it won't be the Palace it will be the Bambu.

When we (2 couples) were looking for our annual Jan/Feb sun and surf trip we checked out DR. Two of us had stayed previously in Punta Cana at the Melia Caribe, but since we had stayed at RIU's the previous two trips we decided to try it. We were seriously considering the RIU Bavaro since it had just opened, but then a deal came up for a corner suite at the RIU Palace for less. So we took that. We were soooo glad we did.

First of all the suite was beautiful...exactly like the picture on the website. We were first assigned to the bottom and first floors, but changed to the first and second floors....good move. Very spacious and elegant....yes there is marble all over so one needs to be cautious....but it is gorgeous. Perhaps bringing slippers (or wearing your flip flops) would solve that problem.

The grounds are lovely and they are constantly working to maintain them, as well as the entire building. We saw workmen painting the exterior, cleaning the chandeliers in the lobby, and actually changing the slip covers on the lobby chairs and washing and drying the upholstered backs! Our rooms were cleaned well everyday (I watched the maid actually move all the furniture to do the floors) and we always had plenty of bottled water. I did have to ask for washcloths the second day, but they were there by turn down that night.

We all prefer the ala carte restaurants and particularly liked Krystal's, the Japanese, and the Italian. We were disappointed in the over-cooked meat at the Bodega (Argentine) so only went there once. We also ate at the buffet which is OK, but not elegant like the al a carte ones.

The beach is gorgeous and the constant breeze (rather strong at times) certainly keeps it comfortable. Yes it was crowded but I heard all the motels along that strip were booked. The water in the ocean and the pool were both cool, but once in and active it was refreshing.

Yes, the chair saving at the pool and the reservation system are not to our liking, but seems to be standard at the Riu's....we have just learned how to deal with it.

We had an issue with a leaking air-conditioner but once we made it clear it was that rather than the toilet (a plumber was sent up first) it was fixed while we were at dinner.

We walked to the other Riu properties and were very glad we were where we were. The Riu Palace is old world elegance....massive lobby with huge pictures, painted walls, lovely sitting areas, stained glass ceiling....you get the picture. When we went to the Bavaro....supposedly the top one currently.... we were disappointed. It was just not our style....very modern, vivid colors, no carpet in the lobby so noisy, metal accents.....and no major landscaping. Sure they have it planted and in 5 or 10 years it will be nice, but right now rather stark. If you are hesitating between the two, look at the pictures and just know the feel is totally different.

Sun and surf in an elegant setting is what we were hoping for and they delivered.

After staying at over 15 AI resorts throughout the Caribbean and Mexico I would rate this as one of the better ones we have stayed at over the years. It's not perfect as I will explain below, and people have vastly differing expectations, but we would go back here in a minute. And that is a bit surprising as we did not plan to be here in the first place, but ended up getting bumped to this Riu from another property that was overbooked.

Top Positves
1. The beach is spectacular, probably the nicest we have been on in 25 countries. A wide beach with soft sand and lots of palms for shade. It's nicely maintained by the staff and has lots of lounges to use. There is even an offshore shipwreck to observe as the tide goes in and out.
2. Service was prompt, warm and genuine. There was plentiful, friendly staff that really wanted to please. Yes the staff's native language is not American, but they speak a whole lot more American than I do Spanish and they get along fine. Although gratuities are part of the AI, we have found that a dollar or two here and there can garner fabulous service from the maid, waiter or bartender.
3. There is a wide range of food, much in the European style. We especially enjoyed the variety of cheeses and breads. There are many "standards" to choose from at each meal, along with wonderful daily specials if you are open to try new things. The Dominican and Mexican inspired dishes were especially good.

Top Issues
1. Smoking is prevalent everwhere on the property among the guests. The resort caters to an "international" clientele which brings a lot more open smoking than we are used to in the Northeast US. And many folks do like to smoke the Dominican (and Cuban) cigars that they buy locally.
2. Service in the ala carte restaurants is very rushed. They only have fixed early and late seating times. Once you are seated it seems to be a game to see how fast the servers can get you out the door. Expect not much more than 45 minutes for a complete 3-4 course meal.
3. Desserts are generally tasteless at all dining venues. There is a wide variety presented, especially at the buffet restaurant, but all except one that we tasted during the week were lacking in flavor. Personally I'd like something with real flavor worthy of the calories.

Facilities
The 6-year old resort is still fresh and well maintained. The decor in the public spaces is a bit over-the-top for our tastes, with Italianate/Moorish/Moghul influences. Our third floor room overlooking the garden and adjoining resort was comfortable and nice. We had no hint of the musty odor that others have noted. The gardens were immaculate. The pool seemed a bit small for a 650-room resort and lounges there seemed to be at a premium. But that didn't bother us as we are "beach people".

Food
As noted above there was a wide variety. In general the ala carte restaurants were a bit of a disappointment. Generally they seemed to be trying to do something fancy, but fell short in the execution. The exception was La Altagracia where we had wonderfully simple grilled chicken and lamb chops. The antipasto bar in the Italian restaurant was a treat, better than the mains there. The tropical fruits were wonderful through out the week. The spiny lobster was very good either hot or cold. We enjoyed the paella. Some of the protein-based salads at lunch were very nice. But everyone's taste is different. We heard compaints from some that the hamburgers were disappointing, but we never tried them with the many other choices.

Bars
There were several open at any one time and service was generaly prompt and accurate. They serve a lot of sweet fruity rum drinks that are not my preference. But they have a full top-shelf international bar that they will pour generously if you are nice to the staff. The wines were limited and generally undrinkable, except for the "champagne". Beers are local lagers, mostly Presidente and Brahma. Be sure not to miss the Mamajuana - local spiced aged rum as a "nitecap" before heading back to your room for the nite! The room's minibar was well stocked, with four full bottles provided in each room.

Entertainment
We stayed on the beach away from the daily pool "games". There was a live band every evening on the Plaza for listening and dancing. The stage "shows" were generally disappointing. There is a casino two resorts down the beach if you must gamble. Some took a cab to the Hard Rock Casino a few miles away and said they enjoyed it. There are 8-10 shops on the property for "shopping therapy" and local visiting "artisans" come in and set up on the plaza most evenings.

Go with an open mind and enjoy!