My Thoughts
The 3rd RIU was under construction when we were there.
4 1/2 stars
We really liked the set up of this resort with the little villas with only 4 rooms per villa floor. Our villa was the second row in from the beach and not very far from the main pool, bar, lobby area. There are lots of vegetation around the walkways and buildings so you had plenty of privicy when sitting out on the balcony.
The food at this resort was very good. We really liked the buffet for food, service and layout. The A LA Carte restuarants (only 2 when we were there) however were nothing special. We only ate at each once while there.
The beach was nice. Not the white sand of Punta Cana but nice. There was a seperate sport beach which meant no noisey boats around the swimming area - this was a nice touch. The water was a little rough and the bottom a little rocky but not bad. The beach was a nice size but not overly long for walking.
The best part of this resort for us was the layout. Everything seemed close at hand (form our villa anyway). The buffet was not far from the lobby which was only a few steps from the La Plaza Bar, which was only a few steps from the pool which was only a few steps from our room, which was only a few steps from the beach. Can you see a pattren here!
All in all we would recommend this resort for a top resort on the North Coast Puerto Plata area. We would rate it 8 out of 10. The food was very good, the service excellent, and the resort very well maintained and clean. The room and the a la carte set up were the main down sides for us.
