This was our third trip to the Dom. Rep. and our fourth stay at a RIU hotel all the others were great, but the RIU Palace Macao was by far the best. Excellente as they would say.
Everything you need for a perfect holiday.
The staff were very friendly and helpful even though we don't speak Spanish.
The food was plentiful and with such a lot of choices that no-one need go hungry.
The drinks were free flowing from morning to night, we even took a bottle of champagne to our room a couple of times so we could sit on the balcony in our rocking chairs and just enjoy the view.
There are plenty of sunloungers by the pool and on the beach, we never had a problem getting one and we were not up at the crack of dawn as some folks suggest you need to be. They even carried mattresses down to the beach for your sunloungers if you wanted them.
There was waiter service on the beach as well as round the pool
and we never had to wait too long for our drinks, as one previous review has said.
We didn't try any speciality restaurants, but always had our lunch at the Caribe Grill overlooking the ocean, where the service was excellent.
If you have booked a holiday here rest assured that you will have a great time.
We can't wait to go back next year and are already planning our return visit to the RIU Palace Macao.

I wrote a review, but when I reviewed it, it was deleted. Ergo, this will be brief. This was the best vacation we've ever had--we've been to the Caribbean 15 times (twice to Puerto Plata, numerous times to Jamaica--Super Clubs, Couples, etc--and once to Sandals in Antigua) and this place beat them all. The food was sensational (except for over-done salmon in the Japanese restuarant). Mimosas every morning for breakfast and, once, they even had caviar on the boiled eggs at breakfast! They also had bowls of red and black caviar on the buffet several times at dinner. The Mediterranean restaurant was our favorite--skewered beef and seafood was excellent. We went to all of the a la carte restaurants, but, as many have said, the buffet is so magnificent, you don't really have to. And, making reservations at them was never a problem, as it has been at other RIUs we've been to.
My only complaints--and they are miniscule--were that the bath tub was too skinny (shower curtain constantly rubbed against you) and no swimp-up pool bar, which would have been nice.
I loved having a bidet in the bathroom (after asking a gal exactly how to use it). What a great European invention!
The pool was smallish, but very nice--there is always an attendant to get you a lounger and mat. And the beach goes forever! It is aqua and wonderful.
We went on no excursions, so I cannot speak for them.
The service is beyond reproach. We, as Americans, tip. But, I don't think it would have mattered; everyone was wonderful.
We truly cannot wait to return.
If anyone has any specific questions, don't hesitate to e-mail me--just put RIU as the subject so I don't delete it as spam. My e-mail is fkt7667@aol.com
Enjoy your trip, you'll have a fantastic time.
Fran

This was my wife and I's first trip to the DR.
The hotel itself was very nice and clean for the most part. Breakfast and dinner was great. There was so much to choose from and everything tasted great. Lunch was OK, not bad, not good. The service was good most of the time. It depends on who you got.
I had some issues with the fact you could only get Presidente (beer) at night in the casino or disco. The alterntive was some so-so, warm draft beer. Also, it took a while to get drinks most of the time. Not to be snotty, but hey I'm on vacation and I want it now.
The beach was very nice, and the pool area always had something fun going on. The gym was terrible, but there where a lot of little shops to visit all with-in the resport.
Over all we had a good time, not a great time. The DR was nice and if we went back we would not stay at the RIU's.

On a side note: Most of the guests were unfrienly and seemed to lack common courtesy. Not to generalize, but most of them seemed to be from a place that sounds like "Your Rope". There is smoking everywhere except at the meals, which was awful. When we went to Aurba every one was friendly and we made several friends which made things more fun.

I'm not a big fan of all-inclusive resorts, but in this instance was outvoted by my fellow travelers. The Riu Palace Macao deserves it's high ratings.........not 5 stars, but 4 1/2 for sure. As some people pointed out, some of the rooms were musty (at least our 2), but that might have been due to their curious decision to decorate in "stodgy New England", rather than "tropical". That's my ONLY complaint about the rooms. Check-in, seamless.......
Weather was 84 degrees, sunny and breezy; if you know of better beach weather, please get back to me. Yeah, you had to get up at the crack of dawn to secure a prime pool or beach chair, but again, where don't you? Heading down to the beach with the
post lunch crowd works, or like some other adventurers, pay for your lack of ambition with a few $$. As for the beach, soft sand and turquoise water as far as the eye could see. My spouse and I consider ourselves to be decent cooks, and for a buffet to be all things to all people is really a test of a good resort; I found it hard to get by the salad bar, there were so many choices.Visitors who found the buffet lacking, I'd be curious to know what and where they usually eat. The fresh fruits were a delight in themselves, mimosas passed at breakfast, great service, lovely setting.....we were more than happy. If you dig American fast food as your cuisine of choice, perhaps this is not the place for you. People complained that the drinks were not cruise quality; the last drink I purchased on a cruise was not cruise quality, and cost me $7.95.
Surely, people at an all inclusive don't expect single malt scotch, and designer vodka; the liquor was decent, and the tropical drinks were delicious. There was a very nice piano bar with live music, before or after dinner.....we never checked out the shows, deciding to hit the casino instead. The staff was just great.............we tried to tip the people who we thought were paid the least, but overall they were efficient, good humored, and ready to merengue at a second's notice. The only thing I would avoid is an extended tour; even to a beautiful place like Sanoa island; it's just too big of a chunk of a day to spend travelling on crappy roads! The 1/2 day Caribbean festival was a fun time, but for the intrepid snorkler or diver, you will be disappointed, the reefs are somewhat beat up. The bottom line is for a person who generally does not like all inclusives, and loves to complain when things are not up to snuff, I had a great time! Don't forget to brush your teeth with the bottled water from the fridge, your tummy will thank you.