Riu Waikiki Hotel

5 readers found this review helpful

This hotel is amazing, I stayed here with my Boyfriend which was our first holiday away together! We had an amazing time here everyone is so friendly, entertainment is very good! Pool is clean and lovely, Rooms were standard but had everything that you needed. I highly recomend this hotel for familys with little kids, Couples and also groups of people it was really a good holiday and we will be returning!
Thanks for a good holiday Riu Waikiki.. See ya soon!!

I totally agree with the rating of the last person. Went last week and yes the weather was terrible but that did not stop the sunbed's being covered in towels from about 6 in the morning even though it says in the hotel brochure that this is not allowed. The food was totally boring and no themes I hated having to wear an wrist band but understand the reason for this. My partner had been to the Jamaican Rui and like the last review was totally shocked at the standard of this one in comparison. The dining room was like the moon no atmosphere. Just like a holiday camp really. Although in the hotel brochure and outside the dining room it said to dress appropriately this was not adhered to and the staff did not enforce it but god forbid you sat in the wrong seat even though the dining room was not full you had to stay in that seat for the whole of the week. The area is rife with time share touts and this is the reason we will never return to the Islands.

1 reader found this review helpful

Despite the hotel only being 3stars, It was up to a very high standard in many places. The rooms were all very clean, so was the swimming pool. Great kids club and entertainment at night, staff all very helpful. There was a good choice of food every day and you could see the chefs cooking the food. I would highly recommend this hotel.

4 readers found this review helpful

Just returned from Gran Canaria,stayed for 1 week at the Waikki. First impressions were good and it just got better and better.Good food,surroundings great staff,rooms cleaned every day,towels too. We went as a foursome and none of us could have faulted it. We would definitely reccommend this hotel and would say it was more 4star than 3. Next time we look for a holiday we would go for the Riu Hotels first and if they are on a par with this one i don,t think we would be disappointed. Thankyou Riu.........

4 readers found this review helpful

This will be our 3rd Christmas and I cant wait. The hotel is very comfortable and the rooms are a good size and spotless. The food is excellent and the Chefs go out of their way to provide top class food. Great for kids and adults alike. Guests from all over Europe all very friendly.

1 reader found this review helpful

We stayed here last 2 weeks in June, 2010. It is true that the hotel contained a majority of Germans who never spoke (unlike one lady who thought I was German and tried to discuss the toasting machine with me).We all know that the majority of Germans can speak English but they did not want to engage in any kind of contact with us. I find this very regretful as the war was a long time ago and relations could be much better.All of the World Cup Football commentary was in German. The rep told us that the % was, 70 German, 20 Dutch and 10 English. Even so we still did not let it worry us and enjoyed the holiday. The food was fine,the entertainers worked very hard during the day but alas the nightly entertainment they provided was very amateur. The biggest let down was the 'Bus Rep' a large lady called Michaela (or Mikala). We were to be picked up at 10.30 p.m for a 1. 25 a.m. flight home. and mins before the bus arrived another guest received a call from a friend at the airport telling him that our flight was to be 6 - 8 hrs delayed. When the bus arrived he contacted Michaela (the Bus Rep) who DENIED any knowledge of this fact and asked him not to say so on the bus. Of course, it was all a very big lie, as when we reached the airport letters were already waiting for us plus vouchers 8 euros each for food. I said to her "what am I supposed to do for 6 or 7 hours and her unsympathetic, sarcastic answer was "SHOP". She ommitted to say that all the shops were closed except one cafe type where we could get a sandwich and a drink. The vouchers mentioned around 8 outlets and they were all closed. I was disgusted with Thomas Cooks treatment of passengers. There were young children and elderly including ourselves who were left stranded with the hard airport seats all night.Surely some type of temporary accommodation should be available for these occasions. We could have been left at the hotel in more comfort on the lounge settees which no one used after 12 midnight and collected in the morning.Thomas Cook has had my views and I hope the 'Bus Rep' is dealt with after her lies. She was a most uncaring and rude person.

1 reader found this review helpful

me and my husband went here for honeymoon in june 2010 and had a fab time,staff was polite,food was lovely with plenty of choice,cocktails were nice but a bit weak,yes you had to get up early to secure sunbed but dont u everywhere.
entertainment was ok,theres a kids club and had water polo,shuffleboard etc in day.
entertainment in eve was ok but bit amateur.
my only complaint was beds ae a bit hard.
such good value for money!!

4 readers found this review helpful

we arrived at 9am and checked in,was told we have buffet for us at 10pm in restaurant,rooms pretty basic but nice and clean,tv only 2 english but who cares,only complaint was bed too hard.
breakfast 8-10am in restaurant and 10-12 at bar,so much choice of breads,croisssants,cereals,english breakfast etc.
lunch at 12-3 at pool bar,hot dogs,burgers,paninis,pizza chips etc or u could eat in restaurant 1-3pm,could chose from salads,and mixture of things from hot station.
dinner you have to choose either 6.30 or 8.30 sitting,plenty of choice
no complaints about food apart from fish had too many bones
pool area was lovely,yes you have to get up early for sun beds but dont you everywhere??
entertainment was ok,kids club,darts,water polo,shuffle board etc,evening entertainment was fun but a bit amateur.
staff were lovely and work very hard.
would deffo go bck!!

9 readers found this review helpful

I stayed at the Waikiki in April during the school Easter holidays with my boyfriend and it really was great value for money! We paid £540 each all inclusive and booked through Portland Direct.
As soon as we arrived we were asked to sit down whilst the staff took our cases to our room. The receptionist explained in great detail how and where to get our food from and when. She also gave us a bus timetable for the local buses and the hotel shuttle bus.
We were in the main block which was block A. Our room overlooked the baby pool and the main road but it was always very quiet. The rooms are so clean and exactly what we needed. The ceiling fan was very pleasant and silent so we could have it on during the night. The balcony was a good size and had a drying area for bikini's and towels. The shower was a power shower and again it was all very clean. The maids visited the room every day and cleaned and tidied it so that it was spotless. Anything you leave out of place (make up etc) is all organised neatly for when you return. There was plently of storage space for clothes, shoes etc. The fitted wardrobe also had plenty of hangers for both of our clothes.
As for the food, we couldn't fault it. There was so much choice all day long! Breakfast is served in the restaurant until 10am and there you could choose from cereal, toast/ bread etc with jam, chocolate spread etc or you could have a cooked breakfast, or you could choose to have fruit or cold ham and cheese. If you missed breakfast then a continental breakfast is then served at the snack bar up until 12. Then lunch is served in the resturant which was different each day or if you preferred you could have food in the snack bar (the pizzas are cooked from fresh and are gorgeous!). Dinner is served in the restaurant and you can choose your sitting on arrival (6:30 or 8:30). We had the second sitting so that we could have a sleep before hand! Cakes are also served at 5:oo at the pool bar alhough I didn't have any - you didn't need to with everything else but they did always look a bit dry. All the food was changed regularly as if it were on a timer. The workers checked that people were using the servers provided and stopped people using thier fingers.
As for the drinks you could use the machines to make any type of tea, coffee, hot chocolate and there was even squirty cream in the chiller to top your drinks. You could also help youself to fanta, fanta lemon, coke, diet coke and sprite from the machines and they provided ice and fruit for your drinks. Fresh juice was also available. Wine and lager was also on the selve serve but we preferred to order spirits and mixers at the bar instead. You can also order cocktails although they did tase a bit stale to me.
You could help yourself to ice cream out of the freezer at any time (chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, toffee).
The entertainment team tried their hardest to get people involved in daily activities and seemed to be very good with children. We didnt watch the night time entertainment after the first night because we preferred to have a walk around or to sit on the terrace near the pool with drinks.
I could not really fault the hotel in any way. The only suggestion I would make would be to improve the cocktails and maybe add umbrellas etc.
Playa des Ingles as a resort did not seem to have much happening but I should think this is because of the time of year. We went to a few of the lively areas to give them a try. The Gumbo area is full of drag shows - they are worth a watch but would not take any children there! I also would not want to hang around there after the show at sparkles. We also went to the Kasbah centre which is meant t be another lively area but it was completely dead and expensive. One round of 4 drinks was 32 euros.
Over all if you simply want to relax for a week and indulge then this is a perfect holiday for you! I should add though that there are not many british people in the hotel at all so you do feel like the minority. Yes they hog the sunbeds too so play them at their own game...we did! Oh and if you do go in April then I would take a few cardigans. I wore them over dresses because it did feel chilly in the wind at night.

8 readers found this review helpful

just returned from a weeks holiday at the riu wakiki,had a great time,yes there were a lot of germans there but everybody respected each other and got on.the wakiki is an all inc hotel the food is good,the rooms are spotless the hotel is clean,didnt see any roaches etc.the pool is big enough theres plenty of loungers,daily & nightly entertainment if you want it.beer & wine on tap inside resteraunt and at side of bar,which is staffed as well.snack bar with burgers,hotdogs,pizza etc is at rear of bar but only till 5.30pm.breakfast and diner you can sit anywhere,evening meal you are allocated a table for your stay.kasbah centre about 5mins walk,yumbo centre about 10min walk.i believe they had a terrible february weather but we had 32 deg C in march.there is a free coach outside the hotel to the beach and back or about 15 min stroll.the staff are very helpfull and most speak english.would highly recommend this hotel ;)