My boyfriend and I stayed at the Riu Ocho Rios from 6/4-6/12 2008.

We are not the kind of people who cannot be pleased. We definitely do not expect perfection and we overlook a lot, but we have some things we consider priorities when staying at a resort. I couldn't help but compare the Riu to 2 other (different chains) all-inclusives that we had stayed at two years prior in Mexico and I think I prefer the all-inclusives in Mexico.

I'll start with the not-so-great parts and then end on a happier note!

THE "OK" to "NOT-SO-GREAT" PARTS:

FOOD
I was able to call around 9:00 am and reserve several nights at restaurants for that week. The food was ok. Breakfast buffets were good. Sir John: one time the lamb chops were good, another time they were almost all fat. The Mandalay & The Mamee Bay Steak House were pretty good. We did not like Tushima at all. :( Everyone has different tastes though.

FRONT DESK/ROOM:
I know they are busy and frequently handling complaints, but....it was a bit frustrating. When we checked in after 3:00 or so, we had to wait a couple of hours for our room. It was not ready.

Then, we had paid for an oceanview jr. suite. It was on the 2nd floor (1100's) and you could only see palm trees and the pool. Also there was no sofa bed (the main reason we wanted a suite). We politely asked for a room with a sofa bed and possibly on a higher floor, so we could see the ocean. They told us, "Come back tomorrow". We did. Then, "Come back this afternoon". We did.

Finally we switched rooms (3rd floor 1200's) only to get a room infested with MOSQUITOES!! HELP! We were bitten all night. We never left the door open for more than a second, so I'm not sure how they got in, the vents?? Hopefully this only happens when it rains and it rained a few times that week.

We didn't think it was worth trying to switch rooms again and had heard that there were quite a few other rooms with mosquitoes anyway. So, we had housekeeping spray every day and it got better, thank God. That was quite miserable the first night though.

The beds are pretty firm. Other than that, you deal with a musty smell. Good A/C...thankful for that. We locked our suitcases and used the safe, no problems!


THE GOOD/GREAT PARTS ABOUT THE RIU:

THE HOTEL GROUNDS:
It is a beautiful hotel! They keep it clean. There is gorgeous woodworking everywhere! The open air lobby is amazing!

THE BEACH
The beach was very nice! There were plenty of chairs and umbrellas. The sand and ocean were beautiful. Not much waves. The people selling things did not bother us. It seemed like you just had to say, "No thank you".

THE POOL
We stayed in a junior suite, so we used the Jr. Suite side pool. It was nice. Not too crowded. The bartenders served great drinks. We did bring the insulated mug, that was nice. A good tip, if you do not like the brown rum, ask for white rum. I also liked that this pool was not overwhelmed by the entertainment staff like at other resorts.

THE JERK HUT:
No exaggeration....it was GREAT!!! We ate there every day for
lunch!!!

ENTERTAINMENT:
You have to give them a hand....they seem to really put their hearts into it! The Michael Jackson show was fun.

EXCURSIONS:
The market place was a bit overwhelming, but if you are politely assertive, it seems to work.

Dunn's Falls was FUN! Bring water shoes and a water proof camera. It takes about an hour and it's a climb, so it helps to be in "decent" shape.

Dolphin Cove: On Mondays, there is a discount on the dolphin programs. We swam with the dolphins! It was amazing!! We literally held on to their fins, as they lay on their backs and gave us a ride! To me, it was worth the money.

We took Lee's tours to and from the airport. It costs a bit more, but it was shorter and pleasant. "Mr. Gary" was very nice and informative about the culture.

We did tip overall because people were nice and worked hard.

I am glad I experienced Jamaica, but I think I might choose another place next time.

So these boards were wonderful before I left so I figured I would give my review. Lets start from the beginning!
Airport- The airport took a little while, getting through customs and all. Be prepared to wait and fill out every line of the customs card....and put none if it does not apply.The bottom part is for the return flight home information.

Transportation-We used LEES TOURS!!! My friends were very concerned with this, but they were wonderful! They come highly recommended and I know why! Very Prompt and anything we wanted they were there to take care of us! The ride was not as bad as we thought it was going to be.

Hotel- The hotel was wonderful! The lobby was beautiful. we were greeted with a rum punch and we also were upgraded to a jr suite at no extra charge, we did tip the man who checked us in with $10. He was greatly appreciative. We walked our baggage ourselves and made it to our room just fine!
We tipped our maid the first day and left her a note asking for more diet coke and towels and she took good care of us!
Also had no problems with anything missing or broken into!

Food- We got a reservation for the japanese restaurant only. the other nights all the other resturants were booked. Needless to say the St Anns buffet had a wide variety of food to choose from. And it eneded up fitting our schedule better.

The Pool and Beach- and the suite side the pool was very calm, not many activities which suited us just fine! quiet with a wonderful bar, it was difficult to get a lounger by the mid afternoon, since we liked going to the beach early then goin to the pool afterward. very difficult. The jerk hut was far from where we were on the beach and by the other pool, so we only ate there one day!

I recommend making any excusions u are interested in before u get there. We used Lees Tours again to do this and we went to Dunns River and Bob Marley tour. We spent the day out and it was very comforting with our own driver.
Mosquitos-were a little bit of a problem but nothing a little bug spray couldn't fix and definately bring the sunblock!

This is long enough any questions, don't be afraid to ask, I will definately pass on the info!

We stayed at Riu Ocho Rios, in June for 5 nights. We loved this hotel. It's beautiful and clean. Kudos to the architect! You have ocean view from every room in the hotel. Plus, when you walk to or from your room you have a beautiful view of luscious vegetation and the green mountains of Jamaica.

We stayed in building 3, 4th floor. Not very close to anything, but we were happy about that because we needed some extra excercise to stay in good shape.

We always found something good to eat at the buffet (we didn't try the specialty restaurants). We ate lots of vegetables, fruits, fresh juice, bread, cheese, seafood, etc, etc. Every night I tried the seafood that is prepared outside the buffet by such nice guys and it was delicious!!

We tipped most people to thank their kindness. We hope they get a fair salary because they work really hard and many times they go over the 8 hours and don't get paid for that extra time.

The beach was beautiful, clean and the water was warm. I loved getting up @ 7 a.m., go to the beach to excercise and swim. Also, the pools have nice warm water.

We left the resort only to visit Dunn's River Falls. We were so glad we did that excursion because it was a beautiful place.

Everybody at the lobby was very kind and helpful. They called Air Jamaica for us for 2 days to check whether our luggage had made it or not (we got our suitcases 2 days after we arrived). That was the only bad thing about our trip, well... besides our long, long flight.

I would love to go back to Jamaica (if air fares ever go down) and stay again at Riu, Ocho Rios. It was a perfect vacation!!

Leandra

just returned on 1st july after a 2 week stay,our family of four and two friends.We booked with portland and overall we had a very good deal for what we got.The flight going was good the extra leg room this year made all the difference the entertainment system was great,for £5 you can upgrade and get 12 films etc to watch when ever you want,the kids loved it.The drive to the hotel is fine,the roads ok and the views are wonderful. When you get to the hotel it looks stunning,the lobby is beautiful with a great view right on to the beach.This is a big hotel but not too big that you cant get around it all,our room was lovely with a massive bigger than king size bed and a near double,plenty big enough for 4,with a great view of the gardens and sea. The grounds are very well kept and clean. The pools are huge one quieter than the other,we swopt to the quieter one half way through the holiday because the other one did get a bit overun with loud people.Ive got to say we did come across some rude people while we were there and a lot of greedy ones aswell ,plates piled high and insulated cups the size of barrells,come on people you can get as many drinks as you want but is there any need to take the p !!!! I saw a barman mix a whole blender just to fill one keg and its not only at the pool,some even took them out at night.There were also a few occasions we were woken up at three in the morning just because people seem to have to shout to the person walking at the side of them.There were alot of other things that I couldent believe,there were six of us but we only ever had 4 sunbeds,but on the last day I saved one behind us in the shade for the kids,it had two towells on it and the buggy next to it,my youngest wantet a nap,I got off my bed to help him on his only to see two towells on the floor and no bed!another day I was talking to my friend when a women just laid on one of our sunbeds right in the middle of us all because we were in the sun ,I couldent get my breath,how rude not to ask if it was anyones bed. This aside I did have a great holiday,it was my birthday while i was there,we had a meal in the Asian restaurant,with champagne and a cake we had a great night.The food in the hotel is really good,lots of seafood something for everyone ,it does get a bit much every day but the other eating places break it up.Saying this I think there should be a different way of booking its a pain trying to make a booking,but worth it. The staff are always happy,apart from the Micheal Jackson show the entertainment is poor,I expected to hear a lot of reggae,but there wasnt,if anyones going take them a cd for round the pool,they play the same one again and again. the beach is great apart from the cig buts,the seas warm but a bit rough and the jet skis smell. Reading back it sound like I didnt enjoy it but I did,the hotel is brilliant and we would go to a riu again,Jamaica is a beautiful country to which we would also visit again.