Riu Palace Baja California Adults Only - All Inclusive

Customer ratings & reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

2761 reviews

• 

  Honest and Practical Review

  We stayed at the RIU Palace Baja CA the beginning of October 2025. The year before we stayed at RIU Santa Fe. Comparisons will be at the end of the review. The humidity was off the charts when we arrived. They had Mimosas offered at a nearby table at check in. It seems they walked around offering to some as I saw this after we arrived and before we left. We may arrived while the employee was on break or handling another task. Either way the offering was available. Check in seemed long, but possibly they were finding rooms clean and ready. The staff was most polite and helpful. We stayed in the standard junior suite. We knew the room view was a gamble, but we didn’t mind. We don’t stay in the room much. We ended up with a view of the Santa Fe on the RIU Party side. This also didn’t bother us, but if the sound of bass bothers you, ask for the other side or book a garden view or ocean view. The room was clean and stocked with drinks. We opted for room service daily. They clean and remake the room like it’s brand new each time. My only negative is they don’t restock the fridge each time. It’s possible they didn’t realize there was a need as we only drank the water and sparking water out of it so it appeared stocked. Either way I know I could have asked for more. The tub in the middle of the room is odd. We only used to dry suits. The buffet food was good every time. The steakhouse was decent for a resort. Don’t expect Ruth Chris. People line up for this restaurant so get there early. The salmon was very good and the filet was a B my partner said. The only other restaurant we went to on the property was Agave (Mexican). I would have rather went to the buffet. The wait staff at breakfast and the buffet are amazing, but once they see your face multiple times they seem to move on to others they haven’t seen to put on the charm for tips even though we tipped every time. The pools are nice. People save chairs early, but we never had a problem going and finding a spot later in the afternoon. The infinity pool has all the RIU activities. If you like being right in the middle of that, go reserve early. The staff will take drink orders all around the pool and they also have an alcohol/drink cart come by often. We opted out of Elite when booking and I am glad I did. The bar is enclosed and secluded. The pool area is also off to the side and palm trees block the ocean view. I saw no reason to attempt Elite a next time. But, that’s only off of what I saw not experience. We were there when Hurricane Priscilla hit close. The amount of work that the staff does to prepare for a storm and then fix it back the next day was beyond impressive. After the storm mostly went through, people started going to the pools again. They set up the bar and music and games and food in one of the restaurant locations just in case. The improvising was great! The shows at the main stage were good. They don’t have anything good when a night RIU party occurs. I wish they had that for the older crowd who doesn’t care to attend the RIU party. The best part of a RIU party for me are the delicious jalapeño poppers. No joke, for some reason they are amazing. The Gold Bar is the best. They have better quality alcohol in bottles, Makers Mark, Absolute etc. but you have to ask for it. The Daiquiri is the next best. They also have a cart at night by the stage highlighting two drinks, also slightly better alcohol options. Now for the comparison- The kids at the Santa Fe when I went did not bother me, but being at an adults only was very nice. Some adults party hard so just cause it was adults only, didn’t make it more low key and sophisticated. The food at the Santa Fe was good, but at Baja it was even better and always had something new. The steakhouse at Baja was a lot better than Santa Fe. Don’t even bother write the Santa Fe one. The drinks at Baja were better and the wait staff around pool was nice. The Santa Fe has plenty of bars all around within walking distance of all pools. The shows were better at Baja minus RIU nights. Santa Fe has more pools, so although a bigger resort it felt like people were spread out more and wasn’t as crowded. If I were to go back, it would depend on who I am traveling with as to which resort I would pick. If you just want to relax and have a good time, you can’t go wrong with either.

  Oct 11, 2025
• 

  Total disappointment

  Total disappointment with this resort. I Regret booking our anniversary celebration here and should have gone with another hotel. Room not available until after 5pm. Was told from 1:30 until 5:00 that the room was still being cleaned. Had dinner reservations at 6 and only wanted the ability to shower and clean up from traveling before dinner. Was told nothing could be done- we had to wait for our room. Found out from an employee what really happened with our room and it had nothing to do with cleaning our room. I would have been more understanding if we were told the issue and not lied to the entire time. The next evening a bill was slipped under our door, we prepaid, there should be no balance. Bill was for the guest before us. Later we go to talked to the concierge desk to ask a question and told there was a balance on our room. Again, at the check in desk there was no balance. It was one thing after another. Management just gave us the runaround, very disappointed. The beach has a steep slope, and not an easy swimming area. There is not a large area on the beach to relax, mainly what the pool area is for. The different restaurants are nice, when open. Check your reservation on the app, you will not be notified if the restaurant closes the day of your reservation. The 24 hour service needs to be researched before you book.

  Oct 11, 2025
• 

  Wonderful pool waiter

  Jose H a waiter at the pools was phenomenal! Always had a smile on his face, very attentive, knew what we wanted and needed, always checked on us and very kind and personable! Great at what he does! We had so much fun!

  Sep 19, 2025
• 

  Nice rooms, but skip the Ocean Glimpse Room

  The facility was recently remodeled and the rooms were very nice. Unfortunately, the "partial ocean view" was not worth it, as one can barely see the ocean - it should be called an ocean glimpse room. It was much quieter than the Riu Santa Fe next door, with a more mature crowd (probably averages 30-35yo). The gym was tiny, with just a couple of pieces of weightlifting equipment and a few cardio machines - there were 10 people in there when I visited, and it felt crowded. The buffet meals were pretty good - a better selection and better quality than many all-inclusive buffets. The restaurant food was a disappointment, at least the Italian (I had very dry salmon) and Mexican (I had boiled-chicken fajitas). The drinks were terrible. We tried margaritas, mojitos, daiquiris, all were terrible. The pina colada, though, was good, but you need to stick with beer if you want to get a decent beverage with consistent amount of alcohol. We went to the Friday night party at the Santa Fe next door, and it smelled like human feces and sweat and the music was generic - it was awful. We skipped the Saturday party, but others said it was much better.

  Sep 18, 2025
• 

  WE LOVE ANGEL AND CARLOS

  Had an overall lovely stay at this resort during a family & friends trip. There were a lot of different pools and places to check out, and while most of the staff were kind and accommodating, I want to give a personal shoutout to ANGEL in the Elite Club bar and CARLOS on the Riu Fit/Entertainment team. These two employees went above and beyond to make our vacation memorable. Angel is an incredible bartender and is super fun to be around. He made everyone in the Elite Club happy and made it easy to talk to each other. Carlos always looks like he enjoys his job on the pool deck and he’s not afraid to walk up to anyone to start a friendly conversation or game. His positive energy spreads to everyone around him, and I’m grateful we got to cross paths during our stay! If you’re looking for a good time, visit Angel and Carlos! Some downsides — We visited during a tropical storm so it was raining during half of our vacation. Many events were canceled which was upsetting and service was limited, so that was unfortunate but understandable. The WiFi was spotty during our entire stay. A cruise ship also ruined the view, since it parked right in front of the resort for two days straight. The pool closes at 9 p.m. which I think is too early for those wanting to have a night swim after dinner. Make sure to ask someone about nut allergies or other dietary restrictions if it’s unclear. Many times, the food court did not have labels, so you just had to figure it out on your own. The discoteca also closed on Saturday without warning so we walked 15 minutes to get there for no reason. I wish the Riu app would include last minute changes in events and business hours. Overall — a fun experience with some inconveniences and unexpected closures caused by a lack of communication. Not a trip killer, but something to keep in mind!

  Sep 08, 2025