Riu Plaza Miami Beach

Customer ratings & reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

1290 reviews

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  First visit to Miami Beach…First visit to a RIU Resort…We will return to both!

  We received a personal recommendation from a friend about this particular RIU property. After much research on the RIU organization and this historic property we decided to book despite some less than glowing reviews. We love this property for the reason many others did not. We joined RIU Class membership and intend to try their other properties because of the way we were treated at this "Plaza" site. I understand that most of RIU International are "all inclusive" resorts and a Plaza Property is not. If this is one of their lesser properties; we were very impressed. It only has 284 rooms on ten floors. It is a classic 1940's Deco property that has been meticulously updated. I believe because of the intimate size; it is more welcoming than a large corporate hotel. It has a classic European resort vibe. You will meet world travelers who appreciate the value for money and attention to guest satisfaction that the management and staff provide. The accommodations are well maintained. The beds very comfortable. The grounds and common areas immaculate. Breakfast and dinner buffets were sumptuous and a great value for the area. The Pool and Alligator Bar are cozy/relaxing with great service. This is just steps from the Miami Beachwalk and they have their own beach area with umbrellas and lounge chairs. Reception is well-staffed and helpful. There are plenty of staff available and service throughout the hotel is excellent. We treated our local family who live in the area to a day pool visit with dinner and were not disappointed. Food and drink throughout Miami Beach can be expensive. Our Family members were treated exceptionally well and for a reasonable price. When you treat my family with courtesy and respect you have mine in return. We stayed at this property from April 10-15th of 2025. Through the RIU website I had briefly requested an upper floor with a full ocean view room as this was our first visit. We received one of their best rooms on the 8th Floor facing the beach that did not disappoint. A final note, I would like to thank and compliment the Managers of this property (GM, AGM, and F&D M) for their attention to detail and for hiring and retaining the EXCEPTIONAL STAFF that supports them. Accomplishing this very coordinated feat of guest satisfaction is a TEAM EFFORT worthy of notice. When we return to Miami Beach…We will only stay at Hotel RIU Plaza Miami Beach!

  Apr 29, 2025
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  Great hôtel to stay

  Staff is top notch ;) specially Lily, at front desk . The rooms are pretty big, hôtel is on the beach, but 45mn walk from océan drive

  Apr 27, 2025
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  Not terrible but not the best

  Recently returned from a 6 night stay at this hotel. It was not terrible but certainly not the best with much scope for improvement. We were in a deluxe sea view room but unfortunately we were right next to where all the deliveries were made & also all the rubbish was collected so experienced quite a lot of noise from around 6am every day. Thankfully I had earplugs with me which helped. The room itself was a decent size, the beds were comfortable but the drawers were poor quality, chipped & difficult to open. The picture on our tv went fuzzy on our 3rd night but despite several requests it still wasn’t fixed by the time we left. We also had a few negative experiences with a few of the cleaning staff. One lady asked if we wanted our room cleaning the day after we arrived & when I said yes please they didn’t seem too happy & muttered something to themselves. The 2nd was when an item went missing from our room. I asked the cleaning lady about it, she said she had cleaned the room the day before but she said she hadn’t seen it. Went to reception with a photo of the item & thankfully the cleaning supervisor was able to locate & return it. Told the cleaning lady we had it back & she seemed really cross about it again with more muttering! Didn’t see her again so not sure what happened? The majority of the staff were friendly but I was surprised at how few spoke English - the main language spoken throughout the hotel was Spanish? The pool was smaller than I expected but not overly crowded. There were usually a few sun beds available. The hotel only has 2 elevators (plus the service elevator). Unfortunately one of them was not working during our stay so people had to wait quite a long time to get in one - a lot of people resorted to the stairs but when you’re on a higher floor it’s a lot of steps! We had paid for half board but one evening we were not able to make the meal times. We asked if we could have a voucher to eat on our final evening instead (if you don’t book meals in advance you can purchase vouchers at reception). This seems to be an easy thing for them to have been able to do to but they refused. Overall our stay was ok but certainly would look for another hotel if we decide to return to the area as we weren’t particularly impressed. Sent from my iPhone

  Apr 25, 2025
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  After checkout you can use the pool! A very detailed review of the room and the pool and room and grounds.

  Tips and suggestions for visitors to make the most of your stay. A few hiccups but excellent staff response! Also, checkout is at noon! Which is pretty great! Let’s start with the common areas. There is only one pool. It is large, but pool chairs are somewhat in demand, depending on the time of day. There are several chairs in direct sun, and then a few underneath some strategically placed palm trees and then a few underneath structures that have shaded awnings that you retract and expand. The pool, unfortunately, closes at 6 PM. I’ve seen this a great deal in Miami Beach, and I’m assuming it’s because they do not wish people to get too drunk and rowdy, because… Miami Beach. The drinks at the pool bar are also quite strong, and I reviewed that separately. The pool bar is called the alligator bar. So look for my review there. A lot of unattended children, unfortunately, but that has less to do with the resort and more to do with parenting style. There is no diving. It’s really quite shallow. The grounds around the pool were nice. Lots of mature palm trees. Rooms: the rooms were certainly serviceable; as some have noted there’s a little wear-tear around the edges, but nothing huge. A stain on the couch here or a tile in the bathroom cracked there, but nothing substantial. The shower had great water pressure and was large. The breakfast buffet was in a huge room and had a good offering. I reviewed that Separately as well. We used the concierge once to try to call another hotel for dinner, but he didn’t seem like that was his job perhaps? He wasn’t busy at all. I wonder if his job is to sell certain packages from other places. He was saying things like, “I could call or you could.” We thought he would have some sort of more intel about that particular restaurant since it was only down the street. For some reason they weren’t answering their phone. The lobby is nice. It’s not as grand as some, but it’s certainly lovely and clean and spacious and feels elegant. A big issue came when we were told that the business center was down and that there was no other real option. This is when I started to give this place two or three stars, because you cannot simply have the business center down with no other option. My husband decided to work in the room, and I went out to the pool. What raised this back up to four stars was the attitude of the staff as we were leaving. My husband had an entire-day conference in a hotel down the street, and I really had no other place to be. I suppose I could hang out in a café all day, But then I’d be really hopped up on cortado! :) The Riu said that I could hang out at the pool all day if I wished. So my husband went to the conference, the bellhop took all of our bags, and I spent a luxurious day at the pool. This was unexpected and a real treat! And the person at the front desk who was offering it was all smiles. The bellhop, too, was all smiles when we picked up our luggage at 6 PM. This type of service makes a real difference!

  Apr 24, 2025
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  Not same high standard as other Riu hotels

  Pros and cons for our family stay at Riu Plaza Miami Beach Pros • For sure the location on the beach! Absolutely fantastic, prestine white sands and azure waters. • Always plenty of sunbeds available at the poolside and down at the beach • Good location mid beach with free local 'trolley' transportation to North and South Beach • Not that we used the service, but the waiters offering food and drinks to guests on the beach and around the pool seemed very responsive. Cons • Having stayed at Riu hotels in the Mediterranean, for European travellers please note that the standards are not the same. • We stayed half board and may be this was a bit of a mistake, $38 for a buffet dinner, the quality was OK but again not to the standards of other Riu hotels, quite a lot of fried food. There was 2 or 3 cooking station options per day, typically burger, chicken and fish. • A personal item went missing after the daily room cleaning, maid denied everything, it was later retrieved by the Floor Manager from the laundry area... the maid rolled her eyes and was obviously miffed... with us?!? • Hotel lobby is quite nice, clean and modern. When we got to our floor the walls were in various stages of being plastered and painting with debris on the floor... not a great 1st impression. • Room was clean and smart. Unfortunately the TV didn't work and the cabinets/drawers were 'well worn' • There is no courtesy room for you to take a shower on your day of leaving, there is a 'special offer' of $25/hr to retain your room up to 6 hours. The front desk said if you don't want to pay take a shower by the pool. So, all in all, I'm sure there will be a lot of people that may find this standard fine but having experienced a much higher quality with the same brand in Europe then I struggle to understand why the quality is not consistent across the group? Would I return? No Could I recommend it to friends? Maybe... if they wanted a night stop over but definitely not a vacation for a week or so.

  Apr 23, 2025