RIU Palace Maldivas

Really enjoying this place. The palace is a cut above Riu Atol and the other Dominican Republic type all inclusive’s. Rui atol is a nice location but makes you feel like it’s a ‘normal’ tropical all inclusive. If you book the palace, you get to visit both islands. Most of the activities, diving, water sports, big parties are all on the Atol, the palace is calm, chilled and great for couples. The differences are slight, i see some people say on here, there is no difference and if you just want to drink beer by the pool, then yes, Rui atol will sort. But the Palace is a little better, food is quite similar at both places, but the little extras are nice. The fact is smaller makes it more exclusive. The walk way to the beach apartments winds with over hanging palm trees (the Atol does not look so well kept). While we were here, occupancy hit 97%, but i couldn’t tell, (except for the staff who had to work all 7 days to keep up). Staff, i saw many reviews saying the staff are good, well they are, Edi, chef at the palm buffet, Sanju at the bar, Faiz in the restaurant and Mata, our block cleaner is truly wonderful. There are so many great staff, i could write for ages. Rui Palace is not a £10k per week ultra exclusive Maldivian get away, but it is a fabulous, relaxed all inclusive with great sea and sand, wonderful staff and makes you want to chill and rest all day. I would rather come here twice than pay for the ultra exclusive places. Ok,, tips, the west coast, sunset apartments (even numbers) have sun most of the day and great views, but the water is too shallow to do anything except snorkel and wade. The east coast is more shaded, less wind than the west side but has water you can swim in. (A bit deeper)The fact that they are only 40m apart means you can walk to the other side in 20-30 seconds. Water shoes, yes you will need them if you want to walk in the water, at least for the first few days until you feet get harder, the sand is lovely but there are broken shells and old coral that can be sharp to a softy foot. Thermal cup - if you like cold drinks and dont want to drink a glass per min, they are good, the drinks are in glass (expect in the pool) and the 30 degrees warms the the drinks fast. Towel clips,- it can be windy, so if you want to keep your towel on the sunbed…….. The two restaurants on the palace side are book by the app, the two on the Atol side are not bookable and you get a wifi waiting disc, The restaurants are air conditioned and have a better house wine (red or white rioja) than the buffet restaurant. Normal points - suntan cream, sun hats, lots of swim wear and cover ups for the restaurants. Small beach bag, snorkel kit if you have it (you can get some here, but your own may be better as you have to go to the atol side). Staff take $,£ and € plus local currency. We came by normal plane, not the Sea plane, times of flights are similar, you save about 1 hour arriving and 2 hours going back on the sea plane. You can wait a little for your room as check in is not guaranteed until 3pm if you arrived to Male for 9am the sea place arrives about 12:30 and the normal place plus boat trip gets here 13:20 ish Wifi is good and ok most time for streaming. You can pay more for better wines, a good white is $46 and the lovely taittinger champagne is $90, (moet $120). But we are here for the sea, sun, sand and fab staff, the premium wines can wait for home Wednesday is white night party on the Atol side, most people do dress up in while. Read less

Outstanding and Wow!! This is a truly amazing hotel with wonderful, friendly and so helpful team. The manager leads an amazing team who respect RUI. There are so many wows!! The food is beautiful, drinks throughout the day, beach service and our room was spotless everyday. Thank you for creating so many memories with savour forever.., Outstanding every minute of the day… Read less

We attended the RIU Palace Maldives as the second part of our holiday, twinning up our visit with Singapore. TRANSFERS are typical Maldives, regional jet from Malé into Dhaalu, bus for 2 minutes to the port and then a 15 minute boat trip over to the RIU - all of this was superbly organized, with RIU staff at each point from Malé, to Dhaalu and the resort itself pointing you in the right direction. CHECK IN was quick and easy, all done and dusted in under 10 minutes with a welcome drink and then the buggy to our room. THE ROOM was perfect - we had a water bungalow, Room 15 -- a huge, comfy bed, spotlessly clean, well stocked mini bar, hugely spacious bathroom (although the 'open' type with no door which personally I'm not a huge fan of), fantastic air con, small sofa area - then the headline - the view - wow - clear water, theraputic silence and just pure beauty. The decking had a bath (not a hot tub which was slightly weird), two sunbeds and a Bali Bed where we spent most afternoons. We had steps and went down into the sea most days, whilst the current is pretty strong, we still enjoyed it and we seen a couple of Rays and many other tropical fish. THE GROUNDS are immaculate and superbly kept other than a few loose paving stones on the 'bridge'. It takes around 20 minutes to walk from the tip of one island to the other, which we did daily. The beauty is just mind blowing, pure white sand, crystal clear water and luscious palms. FOOD was top notch. The buffet had plenty of selection, all of it fresh, plentiful and full of flavor. I particularly like the curry section with a differing selection each night with naans and rice, I have not seen this at an AI buffet before except on themed nights. We tried both on site restaurants, and really enjoyed Krystal, where I had tomato soup, Sri Lankan lobster curry and chocolate cake to finish - all of which were very nice. We also tried the Japanese, but, weren't as impressed. THE MAIN BAR was good, and we need to have a special shout out to Sandhu, who made a point of asking our names on night one, and calling us by them each night which was a nice touch. He is an absolute credit to the hotel and never stopped working, it was obvious he was very popular with other people there too. The bar is table service and they never let your glass run dry, whilst being very, very friendly. We attended the sports bar most nights as the Palace side bar shut down between 23.00-00.00, and was good with two pool tables, games such as dominoes and quizzes, plenty of TVs and music. However, again, the same 5 tracks played over and over, they need to get some variety in there. They also had fridges stocked with burgers which you can microwave, tuna sandwiches and a lot more when you need a late night snack. ENTERTAINMENT was of a decent standard, however by the last nights (we stayed 6 nights) it was becoming a bit repetitive and is the only criticism I have of the resort - the same 5/6 staff played each night but in different guises, whether it be a DJ on his own (who played the same set twice whilst we were there...), a lady singer who was superb, or the lady singer joining up with the rest to form a band playing a pretty much standard track list - whilst still of good standard, it was all a bit "the same". This was a little disappointing as being such a small island with not a great deal to do other than walk to and from either side, it started to feel like every evening was the same along with the days towards the end. We done the snorkeling and pedalos which were free on AI, and both enjoyable to pass an hour or so. THE GYM was very well equipped with free weights with fantastic views too! WEATHER IN MAY - thought this would be worth adding in as we had some anxiety wondering what the weather maybe like after rigorous Googling and couldn't see anything on here. We had a good percentage of sunshine every day, there was always the odd cloud hanging around but nothing too major apart from one day out of the six. The heat without the wind was intense. The downpours when they come, last around 15/20 minutes and are pretty brutal, but mainly come at night. The storms passed over as quick as they arrived. Don't be put off with all of the write ups on the weather in May, it was perfectly fine. OVERALL I'd highly recommend this hotel, especially as a starting point if it is your first time to the Maldives, but possibly anything more than a week you may end up clamoring for some variety, that said, this is the Maldives, and if you are here to relax and chill out then this is your spot! Read less

Are very clean hotel set in a stunning location. We had a beach villa with beach access. The villa was a good size, with a very large bed, sofa pull out bed. The bathroom was huge, double sinks and a shower that could fit 5!! The aircraft con was a must and we even had a ceiling fan too. There was a fridge that gets daily restocked with mixers/fizzy drinks and the local beer. Above is the tea and coffee facilities and on the wall optics with spirits!!slide open the patio doors to find 2 seats and then the beach, with the sea 10m away. Crystal clear water teeming with plenty of fish , the occasional ray and turtle and plenty of baby size reef sharks idling by, when the tide is out you can go 200m out and only be chest deep and in warm water. The snorkelling is excellent and you will see lots of fish The pool and bar area was tidy and clean. The service was great, they remember your names and chosen beverages after a couple of days and you don't even have to get up to get your drinks, table service The restaurants were excellent, the main food hall was exceptional for service choice and taste, it's the best we have found on our travels. Again the staff after a couple of days remember your chosen beverages and then bring it and replenish it. The staff were very polite and friendly You can circumnavigate the island in about 15 mins and usually see the baby sharks in the shallows swimming by We never bothered with the pool or spa, or the watersports which you can find on the Atol which is attached by the causeway which holds the reception and over water villas, as we spent our time snorkeling and soaking up the sun There is a paved walkway that's runs up the middle of the island, to access the villas and restaurants. Every 20 or so metres is an ice machine so you can get ice for your drinks in the villa. The golf buggies ferry you around if you want, or don't fancy walking, they usually are around about every 10 mins All of the staff were very polite and friendly and waited on yours needs and made the stay very relaxing and feeling as though you had been spoiled The Riu experience was exceptional from the moment you disembark at Male and they guide you through the airport and to the next flight towards their island and even on the return leg so that you get to the correct check in desk back at Male. They take care of you for the entirety of the time from when you land in Male to when you depart and everything in between. We would highly recommend these guys and their stunning Maldivian retreat Read less