Riu Republica

The rooms were clean, but the hotel is dirty, food is cold, they didn't clean the beach area, no security at beach and beach sellers overrun the hotel guest.

In 2017 I had a great two week vacation at this hotel. Now that it's twice as big it's really gone down hill. [Details]

When we first arrived in our room, there wasnt much lol Our room had a musty smell, like water was laying around, but seeing that we are surrounded by the ocean and pools we figured we'd let it slide. We sometimes didnt have water and we sometimes didnt have very hot water for showers, now i am a very picky person, but the room was not at all bad! We had free pop, water and liquor in our room, the staff refill it every 2 days. But when we'd see the guy id always ask for a coke or pepsi and he always gave us some. We spent most of our time out of the room. The lobby and other surrounding areas were great, always staff cleaning floors, washrooms, garbage etc. We only ate at the buffet. I once seen staff checking temperatures in the food, that pleased me. They really went all out to make sure the food was perfect and the buffet was clean and neat. I dont think the tables are overly clean, once one couple or group get up to leave, they dont clean the tables with spray and a cloth, they wipe stuff off by brushing their hand over it and place the next napkin and cutlery down lol [Details]

I was quite disappointed with my visit to the Riu Republica this time. I last went in Feb 2017 when it was practically brand. It's only been 7 years and the neglect is very obvious. I attached photos from our room.

The electrical plugs in the room (and I was told, throughout the resort) were horrible! I was lucky that the plug for my CPAP machine (used for sleeping) worked after fiddling and fiddling with it. I had called down to request assistance 3 times. When they didn't come (they thought I was calling about the ice machine!), I hung up. I also called for the bathroom plug which wouldn't hold a charge. Their resolution was to put an elastic band around the faceplate to hold the plug into the socket (see photo). It didn't work.

The bed and bathrooms had the barest of necessities. I had to ask for additional pillows which were practically the size of postage stamps! Despite requesting a sheet change in the manner the hotel requested (leave the sheet change card on the bed), our sheets were not changed. I had to ask that it be done by writing a note in Spanish. Also, there were no face cloths. I had to call down for them and when they were soiled and removed during cleaning the next day, new face cloths were not left. I, again, wrote a note to the room attendant in Spanish to leave face cloths but none were left. I had to call down to the desk. We were missing a floor/shower towel on one occasion and had to use one (of two) of our hand towels.

There was also missing furniture.

The food was very good; large selection, fresh produce, well prepared (most of the time). There was definitely something for everyone.

The ice-based cocktails were awful. It seemed that no matter what you ordered, it was made with one of three slushie mixes. Yuck! And, no two were the same.

The general cleanliness of the hotel has also declined.

The people/staff were, as always, very polite. I honestly think they're doing the best that they can with what they've been provided by corporate. [Details]

Check in was smooth, got the room we wanted. A few small issues with the room, but nothing significant. Food was good, service EXCELLENT, especially breakfast at Mangu where server Daniel always paid close attention to his guests with warmth and care. All restaurants were good, food could be hotter. Entertainment was good, drinks were good (real juice would be a nice addition to available mixes). We opted to not do excursions so all of our time was spent at resort. [Details]

My boyfriend and I had a fun time at Riu Republica BUT we were hoping to relax a little more than the resort allowed for. There was American music playing at the main party pool by the ocean all day long. The "quiet" pool beside it was therefore never quiet. The "Latin Music" pool with the Ola swim up pool bar did have nice Spanish music but it was often overshadowed by the loud American music coming from all the way across the resort. We had a good time but would not return. Our advice is to spend a bit more money and go to a better adults-only resort. This is really a place for single 18 year olds - not couples in their early 30s as we are.

Pros:
- Delicious food! Everything was so tasty and they provided a great variety of buffet options across all of the restaurants. It was also nice to not have to reserve the restaurants - they were first come first served (except the Quesqueya steakhouse)
- Water slides!!
- Beautiful swimming pools
- Incredible nightly resort entertainment including dance productions and a magic show
- Super fun daily Aquafit in the main pool with the best and funniest instructor!
- We lucked out and had incredible weather the entire trip so we were very lucky!
- The White Party was a BLAST! Great DJ and amazing decorations
- The resort, restaurants and the rooms were clean

Cons:
- The ocean was wavy the entire week and the beach was filled with washed up seaweed which the staff never cleaned up. Therefore, we didn't get to swim in the ocean at all because it was too dirty. The red caution flag was up the full week.
- This is known as a "Party Resort" yet you have to shuttle bus to the "Main Riu Resort area" to attend two of the three big weekly parties
- The rooms are not great quality - more of a 4 star than 5 star. Basic, simple rooms with two double beds
- Filthy swim up pool bars. You can tell people spend the whole day there and pee in the pools. As a result, the pools at the swim up bars are murky and you can barely see to the bottom. We avoided the swim up bars so we wouldn't get sick
- Some staff are very kind, but many of them acted bothered by the guests and it was often uncomfortable asking for anything when dining

Pro Tip
- Make sure to prioritize getting your towel first thing in the morning because they go fast and they do not replenish enough to serve the whole resort. So, if you're too late, you don't get a towel that day. [Details]

I've been to this resort 3 times pre Covid and it was so great, that's why I continued to come back. This was my first return there since Covid and it was nothing like how it was before. Beach towels are constantly gone so you have no towel to use if you don't get up at 8 am. The rooms cleaners barely clean or provide you with all the stuff you need. Our sheets and pillows were dirty when we arrived. Our toilet was actually broken (like the knob was hanging from a thread) and took a while to have them switch rooms for us, on that note getting in touch with front desk is nearly impossible. It's so busy they don't answer the phone so you're better off walking there which sucks if your room is far.

Food: subpar at best. Stick with omelettes and bacon for breakfast.

Cleanliness in the resort: not the greatest, the pools constantly have dirt floating in it. It's pretty nasty.

Service: amazing. The workers are great and really go above and beyond to make you feel good.

This is a full party resort now. There used to be a good blend but not anymore it's catered to young partiers so the luxury part is MIA. When I went in 2018, servers walked around pool side with a platter of fruit. This time. No

Drinks: liquid is watered down, juice is super sweet and gross

Wifi: great, never had connection problems.

Beach: very crowded. Get there early

Overall: 6/10 - won't be going back again. Only giving it a 6 because it was my first trip since Covid and it's a blessing to be able to travel but it's not luxury anymore and had I known this I would have spent my $1500 at CHIC and just spent the extra $200-300 there knowing it's higher quality. [Details]

The hotel was huge but really modern and very beautiful, at our arrival we were greeted warmly by the reception when they were told that my wife had a knee replacement surgery they upgraded our room to near the pool and beach and provided us with a wheel chair for all our stay.The food was very good and the choice was amazing , we would highly recommend this hotel . [Details]

This hotel is for the younger crowd that loves to party. The food was the only downside. Ate at the sit-down restaurants most nights to avoid the buffet. If you care more about having a good time partying all day rather than the quality of food, then this place is for you. [Details]

When you arrive at this Hotel anytime before 3 pm (local Time) be prepared to not have your room ready. The Check-in process took over an hour and then was asked to come back after 3 pm to get your room key. I would recommend that you have a change of clothes in a carry-on so that you are comfortable waiting around in the lobby. Guest service is friendly but we approach them 4 times on 3 different days for our A/C not cooling down the room and Maintenace always came up with a lame excuse that A/C will start to bring the temperature down by 1 degree every hour. Our room which was 3041 never got down to 25 degrees.

As for the restaurants, the food was average at most of the establishments. I definitely would not consider this restore to being 5 or even 4 stars. I would rank this hotel more like a 3.5 Star at best. The breakfast hot station was not very good. I was never able to get eggs done the way I prefer. When I ask they point me to eggs already sitting there I decide to just walk away.

The Bar staff was friendly but if you didn't tip it would take so much longer to get a drink. This hotel is very large and the entertainment was really awful. One of the worst I have been to in several hotels I stayed at Punta Cana

One of the best things this hotel has is the Beach and the Wi-Fi. One of the best Wi-Fi coverage I ever had was also free. [Details]

A few things to mention:
PROs:
* Very clean campus/site;
* Bars everywhere (and the alcohol is not watered down
* Service at bars is above average, and most batenders are fun;
* Pool animation is mainly reserved for the party pool (beside beach entrance);
* Plenty of "quieter" pools;
* Large site (also in my CONs);
* Excellent beach and plenty of chairs;
* Good towel system;

CONs:
* Large site - 8 minute walk to beach from farthest building;
* Restaurant service below minimum to low (quality);
* Avoid shopping trips...not worth it. Either too expensive, or filled with crooks (Punta Blanca, Blue Mall, etc);
* Food medium to below average;
* One restaurant was closed every night (cycled through all the restaurants available);
* Rooms need TLC (at least for #3 and #4 buildings);
* Workers don't seem to care about guests, as they were mowing the lawn in front of my room at 7am!;
* Average age of guests is 40 years old (so, yes, a patry crowd);

CONCLUSION:
The site itself is wonderful. The beach is one of the best I've been to, other than Cuba, but better in PuCa. The room I was in (#3 and #4 buildings) are not 5 stars. 3.5 at the most. They are really in dire need of renovations, but lack the "look" and layout of true 5-star exclusivity. I deplore that not all restaurants were opened (as stated, they cycled a closure every night). Chances of me returning to it is 3/5. [Details]

Hotel is very basic its not a 4.5 start more like a 3 star experience.
The food was also not AMAZING it was manageable for a 5 day stay.
Staff were friendly, and the hotel itself was clean. [Details]

Room exceptionally clean, pools great, nightly entertainment , beach very windy no huts for shade , no À la cart even though they say there is it is still pick up your own food except one spot and limited option there not fancy [Details]

The hotel itself is nothing special. It's massive, so we had to walk sooo much to get to our room that was on one side of the hotel, and the beach was on the complete opposite side.

Aside from that, our room was very average. The mirror was rusty and the sheets are very low quality. But the room itself is a comfortable size and the cleaning ladies clean it every day properly.

As I mentioned in the title, you should only go here for the fun. The entertainment is amazing, shows are alright but the parties are great. You will meet tons of new people if you go at the right times.

The food is VERY average. I mean every single food was low quality. Ketchup, salami, eggs, burgers, fries, salad, fruits, jusses, you name it, everything tastes like the cheapest quality they could get their hands on. And all you eat is buffets. No A la cartes even though they say there is, which was disappointing.

The service was alright. We asked for more towels to the room and never got it. Also, the window of the shower was leaking water, and when we asked them to come clean it, they took more than one hour and did a very poor and fast job.

Overall, go here to have fun but definitely don't expect luxury. [Details]

Great stay.

Some minor issues: beach flag was always red throughout our 8 days stay with very large waves, room card did stop working once - we got it replaced with no issues, masks not enforced in the gym and parties 24/7 - so a bit of music and drunk people passing by was frequent all night. [Details]

13/12/21-20/12/13
Overall an excellent hotel, with friendly staff who know what they are doing and always make sure guest are okay. Wonderful amenities at this resort! [Details]

Food was good lots of variety, could be hotter. All but two of the ala carts we're actually buffet. Three swim up bars but we didn't use the party pool one. Shout out to the two bartenders Tomas and Jonathon great service. We went to the sports bar every night shout out to Juan, great service. We were there for two weeks and really never watched the evening shows, watched sports instead. Shout out to Rosy and Stephanie who worked at the back of the buffet. Always had our coffee in the morning and wine in the afternoon waiting for us. We had Rafael as the main entertainment guy. He was amazingly friendly, funny and engaging. About the only bad thing I can say is that the resort was 50% Russian. Some we met were nice but too many were rude and demanding. They also rarely tipped. We met lots of friendly people from all over. [Details]

Staff was super friendly and helpful [Details]

The room was clean and well kept. Staff was always helpful and friendly [Details]

Had a wonderful vacation at the Riu. The hotel, grounds and staff were excellent. The food selection was awesome and so delicious! Totally enjoyed Taj Mahal, Olé, Kulinarium And the other buffets! The rooms were clean and the beds were comfortable! [Details]

Good entertainment: pink pool party, jungle party, evenings shows... Very good jerk chicken on the beach BBQ. Will go back for sure. [Details]

Large, clean hotel with many amenities. There are six swimming pools, a huge slide pool, two beach volleyball courts, a well equipped gym, numerous bars and about nine restaurants. The main buffet has the most extensive selection of food I have ever seen at a resort. The quality of food is excellent! Restaurants choices are: Asian, Italian, Indian and Steak House.
Beach area is crowded and water here is rough, however you will never have to reserve a seat at the beach or pool.
Our room had king bed, sofa, flat screen t.v., balcony, walk in shower, double sink, hair dryer, iron and ironing board, daily replenished fridge and bar and a safe. Bed was very comfortable.
Hotel attracts a younger crowd so it gets a bit noisy at times but with all the different areas, you can usually find a quiet area to relax. [Details]

Our stay at Riu Republica was fantastic! The food was delicious and each menu and buffett during the day and evening had a wide variety of food to choose from. The staff was friendly and very helpful, and when you needed something there was always someone around to gladly help. The rooms were cleaned very efficiently. The entertainment provided a fun atmosphere. The beach is beautiful with plenty of room and chairs to choose from. The only complaint we have is the food in the Sports Bar after hours; it wasn't replenished well and the food wasn't great. [Details]

Overall, my stay was very positive, the only exception being my room allocation. When booking, I had requested a king size bed and any floor other than ground level.

The first room assigned was, contrary to my request, on ground level and was not fully ready for occupancy (missing soap, towels, & room information such as phone numbers, had a broken mini-fridge, as well as empty liquor dispensers). Front Desk staff were reluctant to assign an alternate room and claimed they never received my input regarding floor preference. The Supervisor said I should have called the hotel directly to ensure my input was received. After a drawn out discussion, they finally agreed to assign a second room.

The second room, contrary to my request, had twin beds which I would have accepted, but water was flowing from the ceiling over the entire floor of the room. A long discussion with the Front Desk Supervisor followed and then a third room was assigned. The Bell Hop directed to move my luggage informed me that my second room was one of the worst in the hotel as it is next to the air condition units and was very noisy. He further indicated that an entire section of the hotel was being temporary closed as it was low season. It was clear that despite other empty rooms, I was being placed their due to hotel staff displeasure with my initial request.

My third room was was fine and subsequently everything went without a hitch. After this last move I made a point to thank the Front Desk Supervisor who's attitude changed from slightly combative to supportive. His staff were very cheerful and helpful for the remainder of my stay. [Details]

We Went to this resort in March 2019 and Dec 2019
Only complaint I have is when we visited in March we spend a majority of our time at the party pool which played amazing pop music in English ( we only speak and understand English at this time ) and the other pools had Latin and other music playing so we spent our time in the party pool area relaxing and enjoying music.
We had such a great time we decided to revisit the same place but the party pool only played Spanish music and the pool area was pretty vacant of people, no English music in any pool area which we were really disappointed this time , planning another trip but we are looking at other options this time. A mix of different music would of been nice also [Details]

I have been to Riu Republica twice, and have been to other resorts as well. In comparison, Riu is a solid, reliable choice: the food selection was varied, the beaches clean, lots of seating available at both the pools and beach and lots of choice around atmosphere. The rooms are equipped with four types of alcohol (gin, vodka, whiskey and rum) along with a mini fridge with bottled water and soft drinks.

If you like to party, there is a spot for you. If you like it quiet and relaxed, there is also a spot for you.

The rooms and public spaces were very clean; there was constant staff clearing dishes, cleaning the spaces and ensuring everything was neat, tidy and clean.

It is an adults only resort with a wide range of ages from 20-something to senior citizens.

The service could sometimes be indifferent and it was hit or miss if you got a person who would be truly interested in exceptional customer service. However, I was very impressed because when I arrived I asked for a specific type of room which they noted they couldn't accommodate in that moment but to check back the next day. They then followed up proactively with a phone call to confirm if I wanted to switch rooms. Any time I requested more water or soft drinks for my room, they were prompt in delivering them. The cleaning staff always ensured the room was clean and that there were sufficient towels and other amenities.

The mixed drinks were also mixed in their quality/quantity. One time I asked for a strawberry daiquiri and I'm pretty sure I received a non-alcoholic fruit punch. When I asked for a gin and tonic though, the quality was consistent.

Overall, I find the resort reliable, clean and consistent. The choices around seating, pools and restaurants make it a good choice for just about anyone. [Details]

Loved the hotel, the quantity of pools, swim up bars - you never had to wait for drinks. The beach was wonderful, no seaweed, lots of golden sand, plenty of shade if you did not want to be in the sun, lots of sunbeds on the beach and around the pools. [Details]

We were well greeted upon our arrival!
Front desk did change our room the next day as we situated by all the air conditioning machines outside which made it very noisy & unacceptable.
As an all adult exclusive Riu we were very disappointed the bars all closed at 11 pm except for the disco & sports bar. Service was slow & food availability was very small.
No breakfast coffee bar in am / again at sports bar. Staff looked tired.
All the cleaning was done in am . It should have been all done before tourists woke up to start the day.
They even ran out of beach towels after lunch our first day???
We were disappointed for a Riu .Other guests voiced the same. [Details]

We really didn't need to leave the resort as there was always something going on and the resort can keep you busy.

The rooms need a little updating and the beds and pillows are horrible. The fridges were always stocked well with water and drinks. The liquor wall unit always had a good supply. Not that you really needed it.

Bring your own alcohol if you are picky as the liquor, although free, is not really that good. Bring your own pillow as that might offset the bed.

All-in-all we would still go back. We will also check out other RIU locations. Our last stay was at RIU Naiboa, with our kids and it was a nice stay as well. But, a bit outdated. [Details]

The only good thing about this resort was its entertainment, other than that, this resort is trash. Don't waste your money. My bf and I just came back after a 7 day stay here and we couldn't wait to leave by the 4th day. All the rooms have cockroaches (we even changed rooms), the rooms and the furnitures were nasty af (even though there was daily room service), the buffet was nasty af and I got very sick from the food there. This resort is not a clean resort, the utensils and plates always had a strong odour and I even got startled by ants after picking up a spoon. The beach was not clean either there was way too much seaweeds Everywhere. Would not recommend [Details]

If youare an adult and want to party this is the resort. Having said that, the resort is big enough where you will find some quieter pools. [Details]