Staying at the Riu Palace May 7th. What to do/expect

[Valencia214]

Greetings All,

I will be coming to Aruba for the first time, staying at the Riu Palace May7th -12th with my sister and other family and I would like to know what is going on in the Palm Beach area at that time. I would also like to know what to expect at the Riu Palace since it is fairly new. I have not been able to find any real reviews about it. I am so excited and want to make sure that I am able to experience the life & culture of Aruba!! Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!

[Chadd]

The Riu is not the real life and culture of Aruba. In fact there is very little near there that could be described that way.

[Andrea J.]

imo the RIU is a magnificent property .
it is totally out of place on aruba and does not fit well with the overall scheme.

that being said some of the other places in the high rise are a bit overwhelming looking too and do not leave a great footprint on aruba's coastline.

but back to the RIU
when one gets beyond the grandeur of the place they do indeed love it.

the rooms are large and very elegant..classy elegant not snitty nosebleed kind of elegant.

the pool, overwhelmingly beautiful.
restaurants good.
casino small but nice.
the beach is great with tons of shade and a nice shallow entry with no huge drop offs

the palm beach location is very busy and lots of things to walk to.

disclosure..... i loved the old aruba grand, now where the RIU sits. i miss the grand.

the RIU is a whole 'nuther world and although seemingly out of place it is magnificent indeed.

but for me, i am a tank top, shorts +birkenstock kinda person that likes to be very laid back down the road apiece at eagle beach.
analogy........Riu:Nieman Marcus LaCabana (at Eagle Beach ): Target.

andrea

Greetings All,

I will be coming to Aruba for the first time, staying at the Riu Palace May7th -12th with my sister and other family and I would like to know what is going on in the Palm Beach area at that time. I would also like to know what to expect at the Riu Palace since it is fairly new. I have not been able to find any real reviews about it. I am so excited and want to make sure that I am able to experience the life & culture of Aruba!! Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!

[DANNYO]

I have never stayed there but friends of ours just got back and loved it.They said that restaurants are good and the service was great.You do know that this is an all inclusive property?Enjoy your vacation.

[Valencia214]

Wow, I am sad to hear that the Riu seem so out of place!! I definetly planned on venturing out into Palm Beach and elsewere to experience the people and culture. I could never confine myself just to the resort. I am still sooooooo excited to be coming to Aruba since I have heard nothing but great things bout the island, culture and people. Thank you all for all of your responses!!

[Fish On]

We just got back from a stay at the Riu. It is a very nice resort, with some decent restaraunts. I would agree with Andrea that it can be a little too fancy, for me at least, but very nice none the less. Four of the restaraunts require reservations that must be made between 9 and noon, The men must wear pants. That bugged me a little being on a island but I got over it quickly. The buffet is full of choices, I think I gained a couple pounds in there, shorts are welcome there.

I would recommend renting a jeep for a day or two if you want to explore the island. We rented a car but were only able to see half the island due to some of the roads, hence the jeep . The snorkling was awesome, wish I could do that again tomorrow.

[Chadd]

You need to leave palm beach of you want to experience Aruba. Palm beach is very close to being a typical American beach that happens to be in a wonderful foreign country.

[Andrea J.]

and the great thing about aruba is that it is so SAFE and SMALL

you will be able to venture off property and see the way the arubans live

most everyone leaves their resort on quite a regular basis to dine, tour, play etc..

you will lke the riu
it is magnificent
you should also take a few minutes to tour the other resorts at palm beach and at the low rise area, eagle beach.

have fun

Wow, I am sad to hear that the Riu seem so out of place!! I definetly planned on venturing out into Palm Beach and elsewere to experience the people and culture. I could never confine myself just to the resort. I am still sooooooo excited to be coming to Aruba since I have heard nothing but great things bout the island, culture and people. Thank you all for all of your responses!!

[Valencia214]

Thank you all again for your wonderful insight. I was told Eagle Beach is nice also. Renting a Jeep crossed my mind but now is apart of the plan. I don't know how I am going to focus at work next week knowing that I am leaving in 4 days! I see that I am going to have to start to plan a second trip already. Thanks!!!

[Valencia214]

Hello All - I have another question regarding the weather. I checked the forecast for later this week/next week and I saw showers almost every day. I was so upset b/c the main thing that I hear from individuals that frequent the island is that the weather is sooooo sunny and just great! Is that forecast common and turnout to be overcast???