Hotel Riu Bambu - All Inclusive

Felt Unsafe and Uncomfortable - Not the 4/5 Star Experience We Expected I don't usually leave negative reviews, but I feel it's important to share our experience at Riu Bambu, Punta Cana, especially for other young travellers or anyone considering this resort. From the moment we arrived in the Dominican Republic, things went wrong. At the airport, two men grabbed our luggage and tried to take us to another bus, one even grabbing my wrist and offering me a card to "sell drugs." We were terrified - and although a TUl rep was nearby, she offered no real help or support. Unfortunately, the resort itself wasn't much better. We experienced repeated unwanted attention from staff - from being asked if we were a couple at check-in, to staff calling out "mamacita" and commenting on our bodies from below our balcony. We were followed from the beach to the bar by a man who made us feel unsafe, and this completely ruined the relaxed atmosphere we were hoping for. The food was very poor for a supposed 4-star resort — unless you wait an hour for the steakhouse, the buffets are below standard and clearly not designed for British or American guests. Thankfully, we met some lovely British guests who helped us feel safer during the rest of our stay. But overall, we would not return to this hotel or recommend it to others - particularly young women travelling alone or anyone expecting TUl's usual safety and service standards. 2 stars only because of the location and the few kind guests we met. Otherwise, an extremely disappointing and stressful experience. The only good thing i can say about this hotel is, the lovely waiter in the buffet, WilFredo Nicest member of staff in the whole of the hotel, no flirtation, no aggressiveness over tips, just a very kind friendly member of staff! please if you ever end up going to this hotel, tip this man! only good member of staff in the building. Other than this, i wouldn’t recommend for young girls alone.

We had a very nice time. The food was not all that great but they did have many options.

So we have come to the end of our 2 weeks here and this is our thoughts. We were a group of 10, 7 adults, 2 teens and a baby and we are all fairly well traveled. We all had a great time over all, our rooms were fine, clean and had everting we needed. We had issues with our aircon leaking and after 5/6 attempts it was finally fixed, this didn’t affect our stay. The food was hit and miss, never went hungry and didn’t get sick but not everything was to our taste and we aren’t fussy, we tried the steak house which was ok and the Asian which was very nice. We spent most of our time on the beach or at the Tui pool as the others were just to rowdy for us and these were much cleaner and quieter. All in all we would come back at the right price

worker is the best Manuel Victor and Cassandra?

Staff was r

We booked a week at the Riu Bambu Punta Cana for our family of 4. 2 pre-teen boys (12yrs & 10yrs), my husband & myself. This resort was not at all what we expected. One of the main reasons we booked here was for the waterpark. The waterpark is so far away from the resort, we only visited once. It is located at least a 10 minute walk away from the resort. We also booked here as it appeared to be a family friendly resort. This was not the case for us. The rooms are NOT family friendly. There is NO privacy. The only privacy is for the toilet for which this space is too tiny to actually change in. The shower and sinks are open concept and while the shower door has frosted glass and some colored glass blocks, this is not private at all. The A/C in the room was so cold it caused condensation everywhere. I actually thought it may freeze over! We could not see out of the patio door, the floor of the room was slick with moisture and the door to the hallway was actually dripping with water! Both sinks in our room leaked. We had to put coffee cups under the pipes to attempt to catch the water. This resort is also very large with a lot of walking. There are no carts whatsoever. Lastly, this resort was too much of a party atmosphere and far too busy for our liking. We stayed a single night at the Riu Bambu before we transferred to the Riu Palace Punta Cana, which is located next door to the Bambu. We are so thankful we did. We would not have enjoyed our vacation had we remained at the Bambu. A huge thank you to Elvis Smith at the front desk for his assistance in getting us transferred. For note, we did not have any issues with service, food, drinks etc. for the short amount of time we remained at the Bambu.

This is situated in such a beautiful part of the world, the beach is breath taking. The staff are very polite and helpful, This hotel however is in dire need of a refurb, I struggle to understand in what world this is a 5 star hotel. The rooms are below standard, they're dated, tatty. The sinks all cracked, the shower didn't work properly, the TV was broke, basically little things that make the room appear run down. The decor around the hotel is so strange, it looks like it's trapped in the early 00s compared to other RIU resorts. The swimming pool advertises as 24hrs but guests are kicked out at 7pm every night while they barricade them off. Some tips if this is your first time here: Don't be put of by the reviews if you're on a budget, this is a good place to stay to visit Punta Cana... But this isn't the best place. The food is great, a selection of food that suits everyone's needs and desires, the drinks are good - all in all great all inclusive range. Bring a flask water bottle with you before you come. Use it to fill your drinks, keeps them cooler for longer, especially when you're heading the beach. Bring everything you need before arriving at the resort. The shops here are VERY expensive. Sun cream is 27 dollars, a hat is 50 dollars, cigarettes 20 dollars and vapes 21 dollars etc. There is a free bus to a souvenir shop 10 mins off the site, book this at reception. It is much cheaper to get all your holiday souvenirs than using the on site shop Download the RIU app and book a visit to the wellness spa. It's free and a beautiful indoor space, good to visit of an evening when the sun has gone down. This does book up quick so reserve a few days before. Too see Punta Cana on a budget, book a boogie tour, they're fun and you see the authentic Dominican countryside. Don't bother bringing Dominican currency, just only bring dollars. It's easier to work with conversion wise and EVERYTHING in tourist spots deal with dollars. I've been the Dominican a few times and never ever used their own currency, even the hotel price in dollars.

The resort will not let certain drivers (transport) into the hotel to pick you up for excursions or even to the airport if they are not regulars that come to the resort. They make you pay for a taxi to take you to the front gate. The beds were super hard & very uncomfortable & no good TV connection. Channels blurry & maybe 3 English channels that were super blurry. Would not book at this hotel again.

Had a problem with my door locking however the manager ana helped us and moved us to a different room! Safe was nice and helpful

The spa was good , but it will be better if you got transportation to the spa. The spa Pool was amazing , but the re was to much out of service or not working at the moment .