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Riu Naiboa: Traveler Reviews

Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com
TripAdvisor Traveler Rating:
  • A summary score based on quality, quantity and age of traveler ratings.
3.5 of 5 stars 255 reviews
255 Reviews
5.0 of 5 stars
83
4.0 of 5 stars
84
3.0 of 5 stars
38
2.0 of 5 stars
30
1.0 of 5 stars
20
TripAdvisor Popularity Index:
  • Measures overall traveler satisfaction based on ratings, reviews and other sources.
#38 of 74 hotels in Punta Cana
Show Hotel DetailsHide Hotel Details
  • Hotel class: 3 of 5
  • Rooms: 362
Description: Located on the eastern tip of Dominican Republic, hotel is ideally situated within a lush tropical landscape and calm waters. This description is based on information provided by the hotel.
Address:
Playa Arena Gorda
Punta Cana
Dominican Republic
Check Rates: $213 Avg. Price
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TripAdvisor Traveler Reviews

Reviews of Riu Naiboa

( 12-16 of 255 )
“Great hotel”

Riu Naiboa

May 6, 2008
1/1 found this review helpful

It was so beautiful there, and we would love to go back!! The thing is you cant really leave the resort, at least we didnt, as its kind of dangerous too. You have to stay within your resort. The good thing is if you stay at the Riu, there are 4 other Riu resorts you have access too!, so you can check out the others. Weather was beautiful, and beaches were gorgeous

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
cat09Ohio's Summary
Date of Stay: May 2006
Traveled with: Spouse / significant other
Visit was for: Romantic getaway
Age group: 25-34
Member since: April 17, 2006
  • My ratings for this hotel are:
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 3 of 5 stars Check in / front desk
    • 3 of 5 stars Service
Would I recommend this hotel to my best friend?
most likely
I recommend this hotel for:
Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, A romantic getaway, Girlfriend getaway, People with disabilities, Older travelers, Great pool scene, Families with young children, Families with teenagers, Tourists
I do not recommend this hotel for:
Pet owners
I selected this hotel as a top choice for:
Beach / Sun
Was this review helpful? Yes No
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Average price*: $213 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com
“Decent stay but in need of major updates”

Riu Naiboa

Apr 29, 2008
1/3 found this review helpful

The price for our stay at Riu Naiboa was excellent. The location was great and the beaches were beautiful.

We stayed at the Riu Naiboa in May 2007. The most important thing to remember is that the Riu Naiboa is an older hotel. It's frequently listed as a 4 star and it's not. It's a 3 star at best.

The hotel is in immiedate need of renovations. Our room was hot and humid the entire week we were there. We requested service on the A/C several times but the room never got to what we preceived as a comfortable temperature. The hotel lobby had cracked walls and they were actually doing some ceiling repairs during the time of our visit. Most of the public areas just looked older and tired. Our bathroom was substandard at best. There was mold growing in the shower stall.

The buffet food was okay. We stayed for a week and there was a bit too much repetition but it certainly was very edible. I wasn't a fan of the snack bar food at all, but my husband enjoyed it. It was mostly hot dogs, hamburgers, and pizza that had been under the heat lamp a bit too long.

The staff at the Riu Naiboa is excellent and very accomodating. They were extremely friendly and willing to honor all requests. We were there for our first anniversary. The waitstaff sang to us and presented us with a cake at dinner that evening.

I would recommend this hotel for an economical stay. Overall the experience was pleasant and if Riu would do some much needed renovations, it would have been fantastic.

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
seetheworld0506's Summary
Date of Stay: May 2007
Traveled with: Spouse / significant other
Visit was for: Personal event (wedding, ...)
Age group: 25-34
Member since: May 06, 2007
  • My ratings for this hotel are:
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Check in / front desk
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
Would I recommend this hotel to my best friend?
most likely
I recommend this hotel for:
Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, A romantic getaway, Girlfriend getaway, Older travelers, Great pool scene, Families with teenagers, Tourists
I do not recommend this hotel for:
Pet owners
I selected this hotel as a top choice for:
Beach / Sun
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Check Rates
Average price*: $213 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com
“Good for the price.”

Riu Naiboa

3 of 5 stars
New York
Apr 28, 2008
2/3 found this review helpful

My boyfriend and I stayed at the Riu Resort for 5 days, 4 nights. There are 5 hotels situated within the resort, we stayed at the Naiboa... one of the more reasonably priced hotels. The 2 "palace" hotels are the more extravagent hotels. While the Naiboa isn't the nicest hotel of the lot, it was still a good hotel that was only a 4 minute walk away from the ocean. The only not so good part of the trip was the food. All they really serve is buffet food that is not tasty and can leave you a little queasy at times. You can make reservations at one of the very few "resteraunts" they have throughout the resort, but you must do so by finding the guy who scheduled the reservations at 7am every morning. It is limited seating so if you don't find him until later you most likely will not be able to make reservations. I would highly suggest eating at the resteraunts rather than the buffet if at all possible. Most of the staff are bilingual and can be helpful if you only speak English. I would recommend staying at the Naiboa if you are looking for a reasonably priced place with a great beach.

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
annie444's Summary
Date of Stay: April 2008
Member since: April 28, 2008
Was this review helpful? Yes No
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Average price*: $213 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com
“Hated it!!!!!!!!”

Riu Naiboa

Apr 13, 2008
3/11 found this review helpful

Okay so to make a long story short..... My husband and I got married in Key West FL 4-5-08 with 22 of our closest friends and family ( LOVE KEY WEST) it was great... But after the wedding we left there to go to Punta cana for our honey moon..... Worst idea EVER!!!!!! when we got there we had to pay 10.00 each for entering the country. you walk 5 feet and they take the card from you.... The guys bombard you to be the first ones to take your bags at the airport so they get your tip.... if you dont give a good tip they call you cheapy cheapy..... Yeh welcome to my country!!!!! So we get the the hotel and a horrible bus ride through thier country where they drive like the police are chasing you... i swore we were in a stolen bus....NO ONE there speaks english....i asked my husband our first night there if he thought our travel agent would fly us home the very next day... well we tried to make the best of it, it was our honeymoon after all....the room was disgusting..... the curtains smelled like someone pee'd all over them... they dont use fitted sheet so you are fighting all night to keep from touching the nasty molded mattress that looks like they got it from a homless shelter, our air conditioner leaked the whole time and had mold and mildew on the ceiling... we had to keep towels on the floor to keep from slipping on the tiles that were covered in puddles of water..... we called to have it fixed and they did come to fix it but as soon as they left and the air kicked on there was a puddle again..... Punta Cana is very pretty but the rude people there make it the worst place EVER!!!!! We will NEVER go back..... we saw people tasting the food at the buffet and putting the spoons back in the food, coughing all over the rolls of bread. your honey moon is a place you would go for your anniversary but we will DEFF. be in Key West next year....Our best advice we can give is DONT GO!!!!!!!!!!

  • This TripAdvisor Member:
    • Liked — Coming home!
    • Disliked — Everything
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
gettingmarried0408's Summary
Date of Stay: April 2008
Traveled with: Spouse / significant other
Visit was for: Honeymoon
Age group: 25-34
Member since: May 22, 2007
  • My ratings for this hotel are:
    • 1 of 5 stars Value
    • 1 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 1 of 5 stars Location
    • 1 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 1 of 5 stars Check in / front desk
    • 1 of 5 stars Service
    • 1 of 5 stars Business service
Would I recommend this hotel to my best friend?
no way!
I recommend this hotel for:
Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, A romantic getaway, Girlfriend getaway, Older travelers, Great pool scene, Families with teenagers, Tourists
I do not recommend this hotel for:
Young singles, An amazing honeymoon, A romantic getaway, Girlfriend getaway, People with disabilities, Older travelers, Great pool scene, Pet owners, Families with young children, Families with teenagers, Tourists
I selected this hotel as a top choice for:
Beach / Sun, Great food / Wine, Other
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Check Rates
Average price*: $213 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com
“Just as GREAT the second time around!”

Riu Naiboa

Apr 13, 2008
1/2 found this review helpful

My husband & I just got back from a wonderful vacation in Punta Cana. We stayed at the Riu Naiboa, but honestly spent most of our time at the Riu Taino or Riu Bambu pool and grounds. The Naiboa is a great place to stay for the price, but it's a little further away from all of the festivities...which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you want to get away from it all.

Rooms: Rooms are average at best. Very small, and the bathrooms need some serious work. We spoke to the reception person and asked to be moved to a comparable room. Surprisingly, we were offered an upgraded room (suite) which was VERY nice. The service and staff at the Riu Naiboa couldn't be any better. They absolutely bend over backwards to make sure you enjoy your stay and have everything you need.

The absolute best part about the RIU hotels are their beaches...they are perfect! Soft white sand, crystal blue water, and not too crowded, with plenty of lounge chairs to go around. A word of caution to the prudish: the majority of vacationers in Punta Cana are European, so expect to see many topless women. It's not a big deal. Get over it, Americans! Relax and enjoy yourself!!

Food is average...we had plenty to eat, but don't expect spectacular flavor...the food tended to get over-cooked sitting under the heat lamps on the buffet. Veggies & fruit are exceptionally fresh and delicious. Drinks were OK...the only complaint here is that the beer was often served a little too warm for my taste, and the ice in the dacquiries was non-existent at times so it was like drinking syrup. I'd recommend sticking to rum & cokes or other mixed drinks with ice. Oh yeah...and the Mama Juana...stay away! It will send you over the edge in a heartbeat!

This was our second trip to the Riu Naiboa in PC, and we were actually a little nervous going back...we had such a great experience the first time, we were scared that we were going to get 'let down' the second time around. Absolutely did not happen!

Our second stay was just as great as our first trip 2 years prior, and we will definitely be returning in coming years.

  • This TripAdvisor Member:
    • Liked — The beautiful beaches and privacy
    • Disliked — The rooms -- need to be repaired & updated
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
ItsMillerTime24_7's Summary
Date of Stay: April 2008
Traveled with: Spouse / significant other
Visit was for: Romantic getaway
Age group: 35-49
Member since: March 27, 2008
  • My ratings for this hotel are:
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 2 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 3 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Check in / front desk
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
Would I recommend this hotel to my best friend?
absolutely!
I recommend this hotel for:
An amazing honeymoon, A romantic getaway, Girlfriend getaway, Older travelers, Great pool scene, Families with young children, Tourists
I do not recommend this hotel for:
Young singles, People with disabilities, Pet owners, Families with teenagers
I selected this hotel as a top choice for:
Beach / Sun
Was this review helpful? Yes No
Check Rates
Average price*: $213 (year-round)
Call now to book: 1-800-454-6835 from hotels.com

Reviews of Riu Naiboa

( 12-16 of 255 )
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Riu Naiboa Address

Playa Arena Gorda, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic