Hotel Riu Palace Reviews

Having stayed next door at the Oasis Atlantic for the first 4 days of our holiday we checked out of there and moe to the Riu Palace. What a world of difference between the two hotels , the Atlantic would struggle to be 3 stars in my opinion whereas i can't understand why the Riu Palace isn't a 5 star. The hotel is spotless , the service / staff superb , the food excellent. The pool area is well designed and we had no trouble getting a sunbed whilst we were there. I don't understand previous comments re towels not being availabe till 11:30 , we got them on the way to , or just after breakfast with no problem at all. Talking of breakfast ; wot a fantastic spread on offer every morning , freshly cooked omelettes / pancakes , every type of fruit /meat/cheese / cereal, champagne , fresh smoothies , it was all there. Our room was very comfortable , airy and spacious with a lovely sea view , unlike our previous room ath the Oasis. We ate at the hotel on 3 evenings as the choice and quality were of a very high standard ,again a fantastic choice of dishes on offer. After dinner a relaxing drink on the terrance or a drink in the caberet bar was a good way to finish off the evening. we had previously eaten in a couple of local restaurants , Origens and La Trainera both being very good , The Ventura not quite so good. The promenade much loved by other reviewers was used by the local youths as a hangout and they were quite vocal into the early hours on a couple of nights. The beach , such as it is , is made up of large rocks , although there is a small jetty from which you ca swim / snorkel if you wish as the water is very clear. Beware the stong current and large waves that can come in unexpectedly. All in all i would definitely recommend this hotel and would return again ourselves.

We thought the Hotel was very good due to the fantastic staff, nothing is too much trouble and everyone of them from the chambermaids up were always smiling and always greeted us. The pool guys were also excellent, as soon as they see you they bring cushions for the sunbeds and arranged the parasol if you wanted shade. Although they say you cannot reserve sunbeds be aware that our German friends do, so if you cant beat them join them, many Brits did.

We chose this hotel because we wanted half board, many hotels in Madeira only offer bed and breakfast. The food was very good, for the evening meal you can choose to be waited on at your table or choose from an excellent range of food that the chefs cook in front of you. They call it ";Show cooking"; and we thought they put on a great show.

The Hotel is exclusive to the TUI Group (Thomson in Britain)is about 6 years old and has won many awards from TUI over this time.Although only a few years old we thought that it was beginning to look slightly worn. The Hotel is tribute to concrete and over time this has started to get a little tatty in places, We also thought our room looked well used.

The Hotel is right on the seafront and it looks as though most rooms have a sea view, ours had a great view and we went to sleep most nights with the sound of waves lapping the shore. Being on the seafront it is a 35-40 minute walk up STEEP paths to get into the town of Canico, although you can use the local bus service, it cost 90 cents each to get into town. There is nothing exceptional in Canico but it has the nearest Supermarket if you need it.We only used it for the odd bottle of wine. You have a mini bar in each room but a little pricey, a short and a mixer will cost you about 8 Euros so cheap wine from the supermarket made our spending money go little further.All spending in the hotel can be charged to your room if you wish.

This was our first visit to Madeira and we booked the variouos island tours on offer thru the rep. We did the West island tour and the East island tour, both a full day with lunch included and a very knowledgable guide. we also did the Introduction to Funchal, a half day tour visiting the Botanic Gardens, the Farmers Market and Blandys Wine lodge. Madeira is a beautiful island with many contrasts and these tours give you taste of this. The whole island is very mountainous but these have been tamed by a fantastic road system of bridges and tunnels, a tribute to mans ability to overcome the environment.

All in all an excellent holiday, we would return to this hotel agin because of the superb way the staff look after you.

Just got back from an excellent week at the Riu Palace, this hotel is fantastic spottlesly clean and the staff are all very friendly and helpful, the food was also very good.

On arrival you are given the choice of two dinner times 1800 or 2000 hrs they then allocate you a table for the sitting of your choice this table is yours for the duration of your stay at breakfast you just sit at a table of your choice.One tip if you like a drink from the mini bar do not bother a small miniture scotch is 5.20 euro, buy a litre for around 15 euro in Funchal.

The hotel is right on the sea front with a nice promanade in front, the prom is used by a lot of locals for jogging and walking and even walking late at night there are plenty of people around and it is quite safe to stroll. As you leave the hotel by the rear gate if you turn right after around 500 yards you come to a flight of steps up these and to the left is a small super market, resturant and a bar. If you turn left on the prom after around the same distance there is a resturant and a small locals bar, this is where the locals come each morning and swim in the sea there is showers and toilets here also.

We found that the hotel was in an ideal position for a peaceful break some may find it a bit isolated, but the hotel run a bus service through out the day into Funchal, this must be booked after 1830 the day before. There is a local bus stop outside the hotel that two buses stop at the 155 takes you to Canico and then onto Funchal, the 155 expresso goes direct to Funchal, both stop at the cable car station there the cost for both is 1.50 euro each way and the journey time is around 15 to 20 mins.

The cable car is 15 euro for a round trip upto Monte, here we took a tobogan ride in a wicker sled, what an expierence not for the faint hearted but you must do both as you would regret it we are sure.Also the lavarda walks are stunning they are graded to how hard they are so ensure you take advice before you decide what one of the thousands there are, before you set off.

In all what a great island Maderia is, will we return? yes some time in the future.

This was our first holiday in Madeira and will (hopefully) not be our last. It is a beautiful island - so much to see and do.

We deliberately picked the Hotel Riu Palace in Canico because we were looking for a quieter location outside of the main town of Funchal. For us this was the ideal spot - a first class hotel, virtually on the sea front, in a quiet spot on the island. The village of Canico is a mile or so up the hill (pretty steep - but local bus service is good) and there are a couple of hotels including the Riu Palace down on the waterfront.

The outside appearance of the Riu Palace is perhaps a bit 'fantasy-like' BUT, once inside you can immediately appreciate the style and character of the place. First impressions were of a very friendly and helpful staff and that the hotel was SPOTLESSLY clean throughout. When booking, we deliberately asked for a highish room in a quiet part of the hotel - and this is exactly what we got. We were on the 6th floor (ground floor is the 2nd floor)and looked straight out to sea - with a wonderful view of the 3 Deserted Islands.
Our room was a really good size and a good size bathroom complete with bath, shower, loo and bidet. The rooms are cleaned every day and towels changed daily if you wish. There is air con in the room - which is carpeted - and a very effective ceiling fan, also 2 comfy arm chairs and a table. Outside on the balcony are 2 reclining lounger chairs - with cushions and small tables/stools.

We don't throw our wet towels over the balcony to dry in this hotel! There is a good pull-out airer on the balcony for this purpose! You can get towels for the swimming pools from reception and they are yours for the time you are there - handing them in when you leave. There is a safe in one of the cupboards (small charge for this) with an electronic locking mechanism. We were very pleased with the room - very spacious and comfortable.

As for the meals WOW! What choice - from champagne for breakfast if you wish to the freshly made fruit 'smoothies' - to swordfish cooked in champagne for dinner. Yes, we kid you not! There really is something for everyone in this splendid restaurant - whether fish lovers, meat lovers, vegetarian or whatever. If you wanted a fry-up for breakfast fine, or just cereals or yogurt fine. If you are quick, you can sit outside on the terrace and eat your breakfast! Same at dinner - so much choice and so attractively prepared and presented. We found it so difficult to choose sometimes. At the time of writing this we've only been back a few days, and haven't dared get on the scales yet! There are 2 sittings for the evening meals - we had the choice of 6.30 or 8.30. It seems to be the case that your table (sit where you like at breakfasts, but you are allocated a set table for the week/duration for dinner)is yours for the 2-hour time slot. We opted for the 6.30 sitting and could come in at any time and eat providing we were out by 8.30. You can see the hot food actually being cooked in the restaurant itself - under cooker hoods etc.

The waiters/waitresses looked impeccably smart in their uniform and are so friendly and helpful. This is the case for all of the staff, they all speak when they pass you anywhere in the hotel, they smile and give the impression of really enjoying their jobs.There is quite a young hotel manager and he is very 'visible' and obviously is an inspiration to his staff. They work very hard.

There is a heated indoor pool, 2 outdoor pools (maximum depth is about 1.55 metres) - one of the pools is heated and one is not so warm! There are some seats built into one end of the warmer pool and this bit becomes a jacuzzi - with water jets - from time to time! In this general area is a small children's pool. This whole area is pleasantly landscaped and with an ample supply of sunbeds and umbrellas. Nice and relaxing and not too cramped/crowded. Hotel staff are on the lookout for newcomers to the pool area and as soon as they see you have found a sunbed they bring you a cushion and make sure you have an umbrella.
The back of the hotel leads to the promenade - through a gate with a coded lock on it (you are given the code!!) and this stretches for a quarter of a mile or so either side of the hotel and is very pleasant to walk off all that dinner! The 'beach' is really a collection of very large grey pebbles and a small jetty which some people were swimming from. This seemed a bit of a dodgy thing to do considering the currents around the jetty - unless you are a strong swimmer.

This is certainly not the place to come for noisy night-life/clubs etc. The entertainment is based in the hotel and there is live music, piano player etc. We went to a very good demonstration of Ballroom and Latin American dancing in the bar/saloon - which has a stage, dancing area and comfy seating/tables.
The Thomson rep,Mia, was very helpful and knowlegeable and gave a first-class welcome party, (the hotel manager also gave a welcome - very impressive) telling us about the island and the trips etc. Again, so much choice! We opted for the afternoon trip to Funchal and a whole day tour of the Eastern part of the island. Both were interesting and very scenic. We particularly liked the levada walk - along the footpaths beside the irrigation channels - there are lots of these in Madeira. There are many walks of varying difficulty. At one point toward the end of the levada walk was a viewpoint called Balcoes. The views of the mountains and valleys from here were absolutely stunning. Don't forget the camera - but you need a good head for heights.
Other folks said they went on a trip to the west of the island and this too was very impressive in terms of the scenery.

Being a mountainous island, most of the roads are very twisty and steep though - but that goes with the territory! The bus and coach drivers know their stuff though and are very good.
Do go and have afternoon tea on the terrace at the famous Reids Palace Hotel in Funchal. This is on of those things that just has to be done! The 3-tier cake/sandwich stand and its contents are wonderful - as are the views over the bay and the town from the terrace. Not cheap (25 euros each when we went) - but not sure you can put a price on the experience. Just like going back in time a few decades.
A plus point for the Riu Palace Hotel is that it's only about 15 mins from the airport and about 5 miles from Funchal. Yes you can see some of the planes from a distance as they come in to land or take off and you can hear some aircraft noise - but it's not too loud and is in no way a problem. This is nothing to be put off by - honest! Am not sure if the airport is even open during the night as we were never aware of any planes about after 9.30ish at night and before 8 in the morning.

We were in Madeira later in September and the temperature was around the 80 degree mark. Mainly sunny, a bit cloudy at times but with a pleasant breeze which seemed to come up around the middle part of the day and go down again later. Yes we did have some rain - a heavy shower on one afternoon and some overnight rain one night and unfortunately some fog and rain when we were on our trip to the high peak - but then it brightened up later.
Most of the days in our week in Madeira were sunny though.
But hey, this is a very green island!

It's probably fair to say that when we were at the Riu Palace the age group of guests were late 20's upwards with only a couple of children there. Given the absence of sandy beaches, it's maybe less of a destination for younger families. However, we can only say that we thoroughly enjoyed our time in Madeira and would go back to both the island and the Riu Palace Hotel asap if possible. Do go and see for yourselves. We think you will not be disappointed.

We have just come back from a wonderful holiday staying at the Riu Palace, greeted with a complementary glass of Madeira wine whilst we were all checking in which was fairly smooth.

We had booked a room with a 'limited sea view', but still had a fantastic front view of the ocean. The room was absolutely spotlessly clean, comfortable beds and tastefully furnished with a large balcony which had reclining lounger type chairs and two small tables.

The bathroom was also very clean and quite spacious with a powerful shower. There were fitted rails in and around the bath area for older residents and an alarm cord, also in the bath area.

We went half board, the food was excellent, hot and plentiful and expertly cooked with lots of choice. Most of the meat had the fat painstakingly carved off which is rare and was appreciated.

The staff were just so professional, helpful and genuinely seemed to want to be there, many sharing a laugh with the customers.

The bar was moderately priced, the same as the minbar. The entertainment wasn't great, but watchable, and did their best! They had a classical piano player in the lounge bar which was quite nice.

The grounds were well looked after and attractive, the pools clean, general access in the hotel would be good for people with mobility problems.

The only suggestions I could possibly think to improve were:

The cold pool floor had a few chunks of the plaster missing in places which were quite sharp, this could really be fixed.

There were lots of lovely looking salad dishes with dressings at dinner, but most weren't labelled as to whether or not they contained fish / meat / seafood, which was a bit frustrating, and tended to avoid just in case.

A fridge would be handy in the room rather than a minibar, and the hotel shop is exorbitant, get the stuff in Funchal for less than half the price.

There is a free courtesy bus from the hotel to Funchal and back 6 days a week, but you must book it from 6pm the previous night. Talking of Funchal, we can highly recommend the 'Sea Born' catamaran cruise, 3 hrs for E25 each, the staff were informative and friendly, and watch out for marine life, such as dolphins and turtles, it was wonderful.

In summary; we had an absolutely brilliant holiday and got rather depressed about he thought of going home! There wasn't really much for a family if they are expecting to be entertained, we didn't see any kids clubs or 'entertainers' but the hotel seems to be catering mainly for more mature guests and romantic couples which was one reason why we chose it.

Notes on the resort: There is a promenade at the bottom of the hotel but no real beach, its all rocks. There are no shops nearby at all apart from a grossly overpriced dirty looking supermarket and a couple of snack bars, and it is extremely hilly which is very pretty but probably not great for the less mobile.