we have stayed in lots of riu hotels and this one definitely comes bottom of the list,was advertised as 24 hour all inclusive but on 2 occasions when we came back from trips and asked at reception what restaurant was open we were told none between 5pm -6.30.the food was ok but because hotel was only half full was only 1 restaurant open.The entertainment was done by the riu staff that did the entertainment round the pool and although they did there best i would not call it entertainment.The rooms were nice but hotel very noisy ,there is a fridge that is restocked every 2 days but they only leave you 2 litre bottles of water to last the 2 days and we ran out every time we asked for more they said someone will bring some to your room as we dont have it at reception (this could thak them up to 5 hours )

CHECK IN
Typical Riu check in. Very quick and efficient, no fuss and with a welcoming drink. We were checked in and in our room within 10 minutes of getting off the coach (which was full).

ROOMS
Air conditioned, 2 double beds, sideboard, bedside tables, chairs and table, TV, radio alarm clock, mini bar and 4 optics (rum, brandy, gin & vodka), large wardrobe, twin sinks in bathroom, shower over a full sized bath, hairdrier. Rooms were spotless and cleaned every day. Towels etc changed daily but there were sometimes bits missing e.g. no face cloths or a missing bathmat.

POOL & GARDENS
Beautifully kept and always clean. 2 fair sized pools, 1 with pool bar and jacuzzi, the other where the games (water polo etc) were played and the poolside entertainment was held. Both next to each other

FOOD & DRINK
3 speciality restaurants - Sir Andrews which was full a la carte, Luigis which was Brazillian, and Shadows which was the steak house. Luigis was an Italian during the day and was the 24 hr bar/restaurant. The selection of food was not fantastic, but was quite adequate. Quality of the food was the usual Riu standard but was not always hot. Service was very good. Lunch was in the Shadows restaurant or Luigis (Italian). The Jerk Hut on the beach is superb serving chicken with either a jerk sauce or BBQ sauce with rice and beans. There are several bars on the complex - pool bar, beach bar, lobby bar, plaza bar and, in the evenings, a bar next to the entertainment area. You can also get drinks from the restaurants when open.

STAFF
Jamaicans are known for their friendliness and the staff here were no exception. From the cleaners right up to the manager, everyone was always willing to chat and were always happy, singing and dancing. The entertainment staff work hard to keep people happy and ensure everyone has a great time.

ENTERTAINMENT
Daytime entertainment was great. The morning entertainment took place on the beach (aerobics in the sea, volleyball, etc) and moved up to the pool area for the afternoon (water polo, daft games, competitions etc). Beach parties and pool parties on a regular basis during the day with live bands, food and drink etc.
The evening shows were on the whole quite good, especially when they had live bands on. Some shows were a bit lame but you can't please everyone all the time. There is a big beach party once a week at night. The lobby bar has no official entertainment but the barman is a superb singer and often sang to entertain the customers as an alternative to the main entertainment. There is a nightclub on site which is open 6 nights a week from 11 pm to 2 am.

BEACH
The beach was trashed in the hurricane a few years ago and hasn't fully recovered yet. It is not the deep white sands that a lot of people expect but, after saying that, it IS good near the sea; it's only really at the top end of the beach where it's not all that good. Cleaned every day and plenty of sunbeds and shady areas under the trees if you want it. The beach gently shelves into the sea, which is very calm, and is very safe for kids. There is a small fish sanctuary at the very far end of the beach where swimming is not allowed but you can paddle in and see some tropical fish.

SURROUNDING AREA
There isn't much outside of the hotel on the road side so nowhere to walk to really. On the beach though, you can walk around the bay and there are local craft stalls in the trees. These people will obviously try to get you to buy something but even if you don't they are very polite and friendly and will just stand chatting. There are some real characters amongst them and we had some good laughs with them. There was a free bus on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 5pm from the hotel to the Margaritaville bar where there is entertainment (not sure if this is a permanent thing, or just a promotion). Tuesday was family night and Wednesday was Reggae night. The bus returned every hour on the hour between 7pm and 10pm. If you want a taxi it is only a few miles from the hotel so shouldn't be all that expensive. Negril is about 8 miles away and is a typical Jamaican town. Very laid back. To take a taxi and go shopping and then on to Rick's Bar (to see the cliff divers and the sunset) costs between 25 and 40 US dollars and the driver will stay with you all the time, taking you wherever you want. If you do this, go in the afternoon because watching the sunset from Rick's bar is awesome.

OVERALL
We had a fantastic holiday there. The only criticism I have is that there is no sports bar (which a lot of Riu hotels have) so anyone wanting to watch football etc has to go back to the room to do so. Would I go back to this hotel again? - yes, definitely.

From the reception through to the gardeners, the staff at the club Riu Negril were absolutely superb, friendly helpful people to whom nothing was too much trouble. The hotel itself was immaculately clean as was the room, the buffet restaurant had a varied choice of food at all times with several themed nights, the a-la-carte restaurant's, which had to be booked were also of excellent standard. The entertainment included a resident troupe of excellent dancers, and some professional acts that were adequate. Any problems with the room IE faulty air con were dealt with quickly with the minimum of fuss......mini fridge restocked every other day but more was available if requested...the gardens were beautiful but the beach had been ruined by the hurricane which hit a couple of weeks prior to our arrival, so no complaints at all......everyone was brilliant apart from the Thomsons rep who was about as useful as a chocolate firegaurd.

Just got back from jamaica where we stayed at Riu club hotel negril. Quite simply the whole holiday was brilliant. I have never seen so many nice members of staff. We were told that tipping is included in your cost of your holiday which it is and the staff dont except anything. But the service they give is brilliant so a couple of dollars here and there is nothing. Once i had given this barman the money every night he knew what we were drinking without asking and brought drinks over to our table all holiday. Anyone who goes must do the dolphin cove trip and do the full swim. It takes 2.5 hours to get there so you want the full 45 mins in the sea with them. We are going to book for xmas in the same hotel

Lovely hotel, much larger than I normally go for, it has 420 rooms in 4 blocks.

Room beautiful and spotless, large clean bathroom with double washbasins.

Complimentary soap, shampoo etc.

On a large sandy bay with many palm trees for shade, always plenty of sunbeds available. Poolbar always busy and too loud for me but loved the quieter end of the beach near the fish sanctuary, very peaceful.

Only ate buffet as we didn't bother to book a la carte, the food was excellent with a huge choice.

Didn't watch the entertainment but lots of people seemed to enjoy it, all in all a lovely hotel with very friendly staff.

I would recommend it.

We were supposed to go to Menorca for our 1st family abroad but due to some flight changes we ended up going to Jamaica (Negril). The holiday was fantastic.

The Riu Negril was a lovely clean hotel.

The food was excellent and 2 of my daughters would eat anything as they aren't fussy eaters but my other daughter who is very fussy spent 2 weeks eating pasta so the hotle caters for all. The dining areas were lovely and clean (apart from spotting 2 cockroaches) but so what we were in the Caribbean after all.

The hotel itself is wonderful, it is just over a year old. The rooms are spotless and cleaned every day.

The grounds are immaculate and constantly maintained. It is located on a beautiful stretch of sandy beach. When we arrived we hit the end of the Cancun hurricane which caused the weather to be grey and overcast and the sea very choppy. The beach was cleared of the seaweed washed up every day. There was no seaweed once the sea calmed down.

The hotel is a little distance from Negril ( a taxi ride) and there is not much within walking distance, but we did walk up to the next hotel the Riu Tropical where there is a duty free (only jewelry, perfume and table linen) it took about 20 mins. The taxi drivers who wait outside the hotels will pull up and offer you a ride but you just need to be polite smile and say no thanks and they leave you alone.

The food in the main restaurant was excellent, constantly changing with lots of choice every night (the Green Island). You could eat once per week in sir Andrews and Shadows for which you had to book a day ahead, get there early to book. Food in these places was very good. Pizza bar stayed open 24 hours, but some nights was lacking pizza.

The staff were all very friendly and helpful. If you make the effort to talk to them and get to know them the entertainment crew are wonderful. They are constantly trying to involve you in pool games, dancing lessons, darts, horseshoes on the beach etc- join in you win rum.

The pool bar is excellent and the barmen there make excellent cocktails and shots-try a few but make sure you've had lunch first. The staff are always singing and happy.

The aqua aerobics is wonderful, in the sea or the pool and ladies the view is GOOD!

The entertainment crew are as I said wonderful and do their best but some of the material they have to work with is not good. They also have beach party's and entertainers who come in, the fire man and the steel band are brilliant. oh mustn't forget the resident band who go round the site singing and will teach you a few rude versions for a dollar or two.

When we arrived we were a little reticent about going out alone( cos of what we'd heard) but we did and had no problems. We did a few trips, Dunns river Falls (brilliant but the waters cold), Bobs place ( which is way up in the hills but you must do it just to meet the tour guide Captain Crazy and hear his amazing laugh), the half moon bay catamaran (takes you to a beautiful little bay), the rhino boats ( the men enjoyed it but you just go down one little side river and then come out onto the sea and get a tour of the hotels, not what I wanted) and us girls went horse riding and in the sea with the horses which was a blast and we learnt a lot from the two guides who looked after us really well.

The taxis in the hotel reception seem quite expensive but we hired a diver called Jerome who took us shopping at times square and waited for us, then took us into Negril and again waited while we shopped before taking us up to Ricks place (a must to see the cliff diving and the colour of the water) before taking us to a cheaper bar where he showed us the smugglers caves and took us up to the point to see the lighthouse and picked fruit off the trees for us. On the way home our kids spotted the Burger king in Negril so he waited patiently again while we purchased. We would have hired him to take us further afield but it was the day before we came home.