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Hotel overview

The Riu Palace Bavaro is a fabulous 24-hour All-Inclusive beachfront hotel located on Arena Gorda beach in Bavaro, Punta Cana. Enjoy sunbathing on one of the most paradisiacal beaches in Punta Cana or take a refreshing dip in one of the 9 pools, 3 with a swim-up bar. Accommodations include brand new and spacious Friends & Family rooms as well as the Elite Club by Riu concept for Adults only with swim-up rooms in premium locations and additional perks. 


The hotel offers an endless number of recreational and sports options like beach volleyball, snorkelling, kayaking, a gym and RIU Fit activities as well as 3 Tennis courts, a multipurpose sports court and the Riu Splash Water World water park in the resort. 


For the little guests you will find the Riu Land Kids club with an open air playground, a cinema and a pool and also a Mini Splash with slides and a pirate boat. 


There are 32 food and beverage venues with everything from a breakfast buffet to an all-American favorites restaurant, from a food court to an ice cream parlor, a coffee shop and more. For dinner you can choose one of the a-la-carte restaurants serving Mexican, Asian, Italian and fusion cuisine or the Steakhouse and of course the main buffet. 


Evenings are filled with nightly shows and live music at the hotel theatre. You can dance the night away at Riu Pacha discotheque and Riu Party events in the resort or enjoy the elegant atmosphere in the Lobby bar and try a handcrafted drink from the Mixology cart.

Location

Punta Cana - Beach
Punta Cana, Dominican Republic (PUJ) : 30 miles

Property information

Year Built: 2011
Last Renovation: 2024
Floors: 4
Total rooms: 994

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Hotel details

Dining

Dining options are available for this property.
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Amenities

Multiple amenities are available at this hotel.
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Activities

This property offers numerous activities.
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Hotel advisories

Advisory Student Groups/Spring Breakers (either groups or individuals, regardless of age) are not allowed at any time during the year. Guests disturbing or generating complaints from other guests or hotel may be removed from the property, at their own expense. Parties in rooms are not permitted.

General policies & fine print

Check In: 3:00 PM
Check Out: 12:00 PM
Minimum Check-In Age: 18
General Policies:

Check-in Policy - Deposits or credit/debit card hold authorizations are not requested at check-in. Minimum age of 18 is required for check-in, an ID/Passport will be requested upon arrival.

Convention Policy : Groups traveling together can book this property for their stay taking advantage of group benefits such as 6th or 11th complimentary guest, Group dinner reservation, One complimentary cocktail hour with a selection of appetizers, One complimentary massage for the group leader, Complimentary room upgrades to the next category, Fruit plate and bottle of wine for the VIP, Private check-in when arriving together,  Welcome sign. Applicable with Wedding Collections and Social Packages. Consult terms & conditions.

Hotel Spring Break Policies:  Spring Breakers (either groups or individuals, regardless of age) are not allowed at any RIU property, at any time during the year. RIU Hotels & Resorts, reserves the right to withhold admission to any Spring Breaker. The hotel reserves the right of admission and may request clients to show passport or official ID to prove full identification. Guests can and will be removed from the property at their own expense in case of any disturbance or complaint from other guests or hotel staff. Parties in rooms are not allowed. Spring break groups or unruly behavior is not allowed all year round at any property.

The connecting Junior Suites has a minimum occupancy of 4 in each room booked.

Transfer Policy - A price may display when children stay free, if your vacation includes transfer to your hotel.

General Information - Room taxes and service fees are included in vacation price.
Minimum night stay restrictions may apply.
Reservation changes may not be permitted unless authorized by the hotel.

Pet Policy Pets Not Allowed
Early Departure Policy:
  • Early Departure Penalty: 1 Night Applies: Sunday - Saturday 04Jul24 - 23Dec26
  • Early Departure Penalty: 2 Nights Applies: Sunday - Saturday 24Dec25 - 30Apr26

Ratings & reviews

TripAdvisor traveler rating

TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_4.0 10418 reviews
  • TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_ 3.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Nice week but elite club not really worth it. Dirty swim up.

    Positives: - lovely beach and lovely pools. No problem getting a sunbed at the pools. Although can be difficult at the beach. - hotel looks very nice and is overall clean and modern. - drinks in the elite club bar were very nice. - always easy to find something nice to eat. - very comfortable and large king size bed. - great that you can cast stuff to the tv. Negatives: - The elite club service is hard to justify off our experience. - I assumed elite club rooms would be by the elite club pool but they can be quite far. Ours was behind the theatre which was very loud at night. - The swim up pool had dead centipedes in it, when I complained they promised to clean it same day and they didn’t. After further prompting it was cleaned but there was a nest in the wall by the pool and they kept falling back into the pool, loads of them. - The swim up pool was absolutely freezing so barely anyone used theirs. - We didn’t get the welcome bottle of wine you are meant to get in elite club rooms. - We only got one elite club cup to share between two people, we asked for another but that was refused even though other people we spoke to had got two. - I have a RIU class account and had requested a sunny room as you can through that service, but our room and pool got zero sun at all throughout the whole day. Which was very disappointing. - They give you robes but not slippers which seems odd. - The lifeguards/staff at the water park were paying absolutely zero attention to anything at all. So be careful with kids. - The staff doing the ‘turn down’ service do just walk into your room. So make sure you use the ‘do not disturb’ sign!

    Feb 09, 2025
  • TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_ 5.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Wonderful stay!

    We just returned from a one week stay for a family vacation. There were 5 of us and we booked the “connecting” junior suites. They were not connecting but right next to each other. This was fine for us, as we had our teenager and tween in one room, my husband, myself and our 8 year old in another. We stayed in 3070 and 3071 in the main building. Room was right above the entertainment stage which I enjoyed. It is very loud in the evenings so if you are early to bed, likely not a good room for you. Beautiful view of the ocean. Food was good- buffet gets a little old after a week for breakfast. Steakhouse was excellent, Mexican was really good, Italian was ok. We did not get the opportunity to go to any other restaurants. Plenty of chairs around the pool. My only complaint is the beach. Major chair saving game. The beach is set up weird with chairs haphazardly all over the place. There are not enough chairs and if you go any later than 8 am, you will not find a spot. Lots of broken chairs as well. Water was clear, calm and warm. Service and drinks were excellent! Enjoyed having drinks around the pool every day. A tip goes a very long way. Room service was fine, mini bar replenishment was fine. We will definitely return. Well worth the cost.

    Feb 08, 2025
  • TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_ 4.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Wrong Hotel

    We had a reservation for Hotel Riu Macao but they overbooked and we had to stay at Riu Bavaro 1 night

    Feb 06, 2025
  • TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_ 5.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Brilliant holiday

    We had the best time here in Dominican! We came for 10 days including a 2 & 3 year old and 9 adults. Hotel staff cannot do enough for you! The cleanliness of the hotel was amazing they are constantly cleaning the hotel grounds, rooms, toilets and beach! The swimming pools are great with loads of space and never overcrowded! Beach was gorgeous, busy but you can move the beds to where you want with lots of space for shade from the palm trees! Evening entertainment was great for kids and adults! Food the buffet was great lots of choice and they did different countries for different nights! Also we requested some celebrations as my sister turned 30 without hesitation the following night we had a table with balloons, they sang with some bongo drums and gave her a cake :)! The food court by the main pool is brilliant and perfect for lunch and snacks! The restaurants are good we found the Asian the best! The only downside I would say is they don’t really cater for kids food in the restaurants. 1 minor point is they could have a toilet near the main buffet area and a cash point in reception area. (Cash point is at the shop which is like a 5 min walk) All in all a fantastic trip and would definitely recommend and return!

    Feb 05, 2025
  • TRI_LOGO_ANCILLARY_ 5.0 star tripadvisor rating
    Great stay!

    We had a great stay here. I the rooms were clean and in great condition. The food was good, nothing outstanding but your typical all inclusive food. Beach and pools were amazing and no issues. Bar tenders and drinks was all good. Jesus at the buffet was amazing. He went out of way to memorize everyone’s breakfast drinks had tables setup for our group. All around made a memorable experience. The zen sit down restaurant would be my only issue. Hostess and wait staff at zen were board-line rude. Food portion was really small. Overall, would stay again in a heart beat.

    Feb 04, 2025