Riu Palace Tikida Agadir

I stayed here for one week from 23/9/19. The hotel reception is opulent and a great place for people watching, having a drink or just to relax. Our room on the ground floor overlooking the pool was spacious but smelt damp, as we arrived in the early hours we did not have the energy to go back to reception after checking in the complain about the room. We were unable to have the patio door open as for four days the weather was overcast, damp, foggy and very chilly. Once we could air the room it seemed to smell better. The food was amazing with plenty of choice for all tastes. The main restaurant was slightly too big In my opinion and a bit too dark during the day. The waiting staff in all the bars and restaurants were excellent. The pool water was very cold but the sun beds were comfortable and plentiful as we were slightly out of season. If you want a particular sunbed these were being reserved from 6am and staff do not do anything to stop this. The tiles around the pool area are in a poor condition in places and need attention/replacement. The hotel is well situated on a promenade and you could walk to the marina past shops and restaurants, we felt safe walking along here both during the day and night.

Can’t help but feel a little disappointed with this hotel. This is the 5th Riu Palace we’ve visited, the others have been in the Caribbean, and it doesn’t come close to any of them. To be fair, we did pay a lot more for the Caribbean, but this hotel is no where near a 5 star. The rooms are clean and spacious, but I found the bed very hard. I ended up asking for another quilt and using that as a mattress topper, which helped slightly. We did have to lock our door and put the do not disturb sign on otherwise around 5.30pm, a guy filling the mini bar would knock, then walk straight in. We found this totally unacceptable and I’m amazed he was unaware that people may have just got out of the shower. The pool area was clean and we never had problems finding a sunbed. Yes, people do reserve them, but we arrived at the pool around 9.30 every morning and there were plenty of beds free until around 11.30. The weather was terrible though, cloudy and overcast, sometimes chilly, for the majority of the 10 days we were here. It said on the TUI website and phone app it was sunny and warm at this time of year, it lied! Maybe, why there were so many free beds? The food was ok. We didn’t get ill or have an upset tummy, but it was repetitive. I don’t expect a great deal from AI buffets but don’t feel it was amazing as other reviewers have stated. Often there were empty dishes, or left overs that no one wanted, so were left there. Could not fault the waiter service though and never had problems getting a drink or plates cleared. A big issue for us was that men have to wear long trousers in all restaurants in the evening, not just the speciality ones. This changed 2 days into our holiday and we were not aware of it. Apparently come 1st October, it was winter season and this rule kicked in. I think Riu need to think about what they are trying to achieve with this. Most of the other Brits here were not aware of the rule. It was strictly enforced and resulted in people changing into jeans or tracksuit bottoms. Does this look better than a smart pair of dress shorts? In this day and age, it’s also very outdated. The drinks were a let down. Mostly local spirits. It wouldn’t be difficult for this hotel to teach its bar staff how to make a decent cocktail, instead they were over sweet or not properly made. I asked for an espresso martini and was served cold coffee and vodka. The bar staff are great though and very helpful. As were all of the staff. The evening entertainment is dire. There are two guys responsible for the inside entertainment. One singing, one on a organ type thing. While there is nothing wrong with their singing or musical ability; song choice caters exclusively for the older generation. Think Frank Sinatra and Elvis. The outside entertainment was very amateurish. All of the above may be down to my expectations of a Rui Palace, I expected a degree of consistency, regardless of the country. While it was clean, nice surroundings, it was lacking the little touches that make it a five star. More effort with the drinks and entertainment would be a great start.

A big and beautiful hotel with immaculate gardens/outside spaces. The wide variety of food at meal times was delicious and plentiful. All of the staff were friendly and always so busy but had time to make sure everyone was well looked after. The hotel was very clean and spacious. Amazing sunsets and only a short walk to the beach or shops.