Hotel Riu Playacar - All Inclusive

We stayed here for 10 days as a couple and really enjoyed it. The hotel is immaculately clean, the staff are super attentive and are always working to keep things pristine. The staff in every area of the hotel were all so nice and attentive, they really make the hotel what it is. The food was good in all the restaurants except unfortunately, the Mexican was awful (which is ironic given its Mexico!) We ordered enchiladas which were swimming in sauce and had several bones in them. The starters were cold. The food and staff in all the other restaurants were great. The drinks at each bar were consistent and very good, as was the poolside drinks service. We were here in the off season so there was always a good choice of loungers and seats everywhere, nobody gets up at the crack of dawn to claim them. Our only complaints were: 1. that the quiet pool is not adults only, it had many children in it and was therefore not quiet or very relaxing. 2. Unfortunately we had a room in block 4, facing the hotel next door. It blasted loud music till late most nights and till 2am on weekends. The base was so loud that the furniture in our room was rattling. I understand our hotel can't help this but it's surprising that the other hotel has no noise curfew. To make it worse, a few nights into our stay, the people in the room next door to ours had a party till 3am. I called reception because we couldn't sleep and they said nothing could be done. I called back two times because it was unbearable and they ignored my call. Thankfully those people checked out the next day otherwise we would've asked to move rooms. Aside from these issues (some out of the hotel's control) we had a great experience and really enjoyed Playacar.

Lovely 2 weeks back here! We couldn't fault anything, from our clean and comfortable room, great variety of food, immaculate gardens and incredibly hard working staff across all departments. The entertainment staff were fabulous in their enthusiasm and energy and a special shout out for Jesus and his aqua fit classes... Great fun,

This was a fantastic hotel. Absolutely pristine grounds, room always cleaned thoroughly, the hotel itself is always cleaned thoroughly every day. The drinks were great and food was good. Buffet a little repetitive but that’s what you expect at a buffet. A la carte restaurants helped provide something different and the food at those was lovely. Staff at every point have been absolutely perfect - there is no one I could fault. From the bar staff at the pool, at the lobby bar, to the groundskeepers and maids, everyone has been lovely. I have stayed in a RIU Palace in Jamaica where staff were pretty miserable and here in the Playacar it’s completely different. I would recommend this hotel 100%.

I would say the hotel is good, not the best. It is very clear of people attempting to sell substances to the guests and the security, staff and management are not appearing to do anything about it. Sometimes blatantly offering this in front of the security staff. I don’t think it would be just this hotel being affected.

The hotel is impecable, it seems that they keep the grounds well clean . The food is fantastic, we didn’t even went to the restaurants, the buffet has everything. the shows at night great. We will be back.

Only 1 disappointment- the rooms are dated & we where given a adjoining room which had 0 sound proofing & i basically felt like i was sharing a bed with the stranger next door, this totally ruined my sleep all week & not to mention the dampener it puts on any connections you may want to make with your partner! Majorly fooked off about that. The rooms are also very very dated & smelt kinda foosty. Otherwise delighted :) Location 10/10 Beach 10/10 Cleanliness 11/10 Food 9.5/10 Be aware that the street sellers will see your wrist bands and say they work at your hotel to get you into their ‘family’ shops..they do not work at your hotel this is in-fact a tactic to get your money. Shop in the shops with prices as they are often x5 cheaper.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ — Great stay at Playacar! Overall, we had a very nice experience at Playacar during our one-week stay at the end of October. The price and value were well balanced — not quite a 5-star resort, but definitely a solid 4.5-star in my opinion. Food & Drinks:
The buffet was consistently good with lots of variety. The à la carte restaurants were less impressive — especially the Japanese one, which turned out to be buffet-style too. We tried the steakhouse once and the Italian restaurant a few times and always found something tasty to enjoy. I didn’t like much for the wines offered, so I stuck with Prosecco and beer — both were good choices. Room & Facilities:
We had requested buildings 7 or 8 by email, and they kindly accommodated us. However, our first room was above the steakhouse, making it impossible to keep the balcony door open due to noise and smell . We asked to move and were relocated to Building 6, which we liked much better — it faced a peaceful tropical garden. The room was spotless every day, nicely decorated, and we received fresh towel art daily (which we really appreciated). Housekeeping did an excellent job, and we always tipped generously. Note: the fridge is not restocked unless you request it — we forgot one day and ran out of water, but we survived! 😄 Entertainment & Beach:
Entertainment was great, both day and night — shows at the beach, bar, and theater, plus a fun white party at Riu Tequila next door. The beach was beautiful, with warm, calm water and no seaweed during our stay. Even though the water was a bit murky near the shore, it cleared up further out. There were always plenty of sunbeds available at any time of day — no need to wake up early to reserve one! We loved relaxing by the pool facing the beach, enjoying the music and entertainment. Drinks were served nonstop, and the staff was always friendly and hardworking. Service & Cleanliness:
Service throughout the resort was excellent. The staff really goes above and beyond to keep everything clean and make guests feel welcome. I made sure to tip not just waiters and bartenders but also the cleaners and groundskeepers — they truly deserve it! Overall:
10/10 for cleanliness, service, beach, room comfort, and buffet food. The only downside was the à la carte restaurants, which could use some improvement in both design and menu. Still, we enjoyed ourselves very much and would happily return

It's a nice hotel with great staff, but it didn't quite live upto expectations. Positives: The entertainment team. Most of them are brilliant. Billy was so kind and was the only members who made the extra effort with us. My daughters are shy and he really made the holiday extra special for them so a big thank you to him. They were up dancing and had a lovely holiday. April and the gentleman (Sorry I've forgot his name) who do the aqua dance / aerobics are also superb and work incredibly hard. The Neon and White party nights are incredible. They're across the road at the Tequila, they start off slow but once the balloons come out and the music kicks in, you're in for a great night. Most of the bar staff are nice, but they will always prioritise Americans. I tipped 20 - 50 Pesos per order every time but it was never really appreciated and it would never get me served quicker. The staff are fast though and work very hard. Drinks aren't bad but not amazing, knock offs are used. The branded drinks were given to Americans automatically most of the time and it did feel a little unfair. We had the same wrist bands etc. so it wasn't to do with premium drinks bands like some hotels have. They also didn't pay an additional at the bar. The food was good and had plenty of options. However if you have dietary needs its bad. I'll get on to that below. The Bad: The beach is lovely, but we went in august for 14 nights and we managed to swim in the sea twice. The good days the water was still brown but ok to swim in. On the bad days the smell was atrocious. We didn't see the fuss at first and the smell wasn't to bad despite the seaweed/sargassum. But then after a week the smell was sickening on the beach and at the pool. This is everywhere on the coast though and the hotel works hard to clear it. I feel really sorry for them and the tourist industry as a whole. The Food: This is only bad if you have dietary needs, so if you can eat normal then skip all of this. I have Coeliac disease and quite frankly the hotel doesn't have a clue. Next to no one in the restaurant areas speaks English. I don't speak Spanish so I'm in no way suggesting they should. I'm just pointing out it causes issues when communication is vital. I downloaded a Spanish card from Coeliac UK explaining what my condition is and foods I must avoid prior to going. I shown this to staff and explained gluten will make me very Ill and was told no problem by staff. I was then sat down and given warm bread rolls and butter. Straight away alarm bells rung in my head. In the main buffet area they have a cabinet with bread but like all bad gluten free breads its inedible cold, but their is no where safe to toast it like in a lot of European resorts. They had muffins and cookies twice in the two weeks that were nice and they also had little banana breads that would rotate with carrot cakes. They were decent and very much appreciated. Everything contains gluten! White rice, Hummus, sauces, everything mexican including corn tacos contain wheat. Foods that has zero need to contain wheat, contained wheat. Everything is labelled with alergens however items will say they don't contain wheat but do. For instance the mousse says no wheat, but it has crushed up ice cream cones at the bottom. After 10 days I did get ill and was was ill for a week or so after getting back. I did email Riu and the hotel direct to share my concerns but I didn't recieve a reply from anyone. I will say again though, if you don't have a special diet you'll have lots of choice and lots of nice food. The buffet is better than the restaurants however. Their was one Chef who made me gluten free pizzas at lunch. So a huge thank you to the head chef at the pizza station for making me pizzas. Overall the hotel is nice, the staff are nice, the hotel and rooms are kept very clean, the food is good if you can eat normally, the entertainment is decent, Some nights are better than others, but overall we enjoyed the shows and entertainment. You will have a good time. It wasn't anything special but we had a good time. Lack of training around gluten free food, the sargassum and also everyone outside the hotel trying to rip you off (be wary. They will try and charge you £40 for a £2 ball. £9 for 1 bag of lays crisps. Even at the 7/11. Don't expect to find a bargain as they don't exist for tourists in Mexico.) all this did give me some negatives hence the score. I think 4 out of 5 is fair. I don't want to score the hotel low as my circumstances with my diet won't apply to 90% of people but i would advise caution if you're coeliac / celiac and do suffer with symptoms from it. The hotel has a lot going for it. But it also isn't perfect. If they can improve of thr dietary issues I would return however I couldn't as it is. My wife and daughters who return thought.

This hotel was more than we expected!! We have stayed at other Riu hotels but this was the best ever! Food ,entertainment both day and night were of a high quality and the rooms clean,fresh and air-conditioning great! One small let down, the steak house only offer one steak (ribeye),but the one offed in the Italian restaurant made up for that . The only show we didn't like was the Abba experience, the group didn't really look like the originals, and rather made too much of the dancers, who covered the singers a lot of the time !! The other shows were good and the one of all the regions in the world was fabulous!

This was our fourth visit to the Playacar resort area since 2008. We tend to go back every 4-5 years because we love it there - the beach is stunning! It’s a relatively quiet and relaxing resort, within walking distance of Playa Del Carmen (about 30-40 minutes) along the road or the beach depending on tide times. There are a few taxes you need to pay before travel / at the hotel when visiting this area of Mexico. They are not particularly expensive or a problem but you just need to be aware of them in advance, that’s all. You can easily go on lots of great excursions from here too on bus or boat. We have visited the ancient Mayan ruins at Tulum, which was amazing and went to a lovely and relaxing beach there after. But we are quite lazy really so haven’t ever been on any of the other excursions as tempting as they sounded! We have stayed at Riu Lupita and Tequila previously, both of which were nice at the time. If staying at Riu Playacar, you can also use the restaurants, bars, pools, sun beds and other facilities (all inclusive) at Tequila and Yucatan (both a short walk) during the daytime, which is great. We have stayed at this hotel on our last 2 holidays there and loved it. The staff are welcoming and the service in bars and restaurants was always good. Everything in the rooms is included, with no hidden extras. On both occasions our room was cleaned daily, spacious and comfortable with a selection of different pillows. In the main it was quiet, with only some noise from other guests returning from the bars but not after midnight or anything like that. This time our shower wasn’t very powerful although still adequate. There didn’t seem to be a general problem with water pressure but the hose / head looked quite old, so could have done with being replaced. The food and drinks were lovely and fresh with good variety. We didn’t try any of the a la carte restaurants on site as we love a buffet! So can’t comment on those. This place is great for wildlife lovers - saw some colourful birds, iguanas and raccoons. There was also a little monkey walking through the reception area a couple of mornings and he even joined us for lunch one day in the outside restaurant! He was very cute but his table manners needed a bit of work. Everywhere in the grounds were these cute little Agouti creatures - saw some with baby ones a couple of days. Adorable! I didn’t use the gym because I’d accidentally forgotten to pack all my spandex and lycra but my partner did and said it was good. Although it does start to get busy after 6.30am and you may have to wait a little bit for the machine or pair of weights you want to use. There’s lots of sports activities here if you like that sort of thing - volleyball, soccer, jet ski etc. The entertainment team are good fun too! We loved this hotel and would definitely return again in the future. Very relaxing holiday with only 10 minutes of rain in 2 weeks! Land and sea temperature was just right at that time of year.