We just returned from our first trip to Punta Cana. We have nothing to compare the Taino to but we have nothing but good things to say about it.

We arrived at 4 a.m. Check in took all of five minutes and within another five minutes of arrving in our room, our baggage was delivered. We were very pleased with the room. This hotel is older and not as fancy as the Macao and the Palace but it is absolutely fine! It was just as good as our hotel in Paris last summer. We found the quality of the housekeeping to be excellent. I agree, however, with other reviews about the sheets being a little small and there were no mattress covers so each morning, the bed was quite a mess. I found the beds comfortable and, yes, the pillows were small but in the scheme of things, that is not an issue. the only issue we had with the room was regarding the air conditioning which did not work one day (we had left a window open and it will not work until it is closed) and within 5 minutes of calling, someone arrived. We were impressed!

We had some built in concern about the buffet, based on reviews we had read, however, we were most impressed. Yes, you see much the same thing each day, but there is so much variety that it is impossible to get bored.Staff was friendly and attentive.

We spent most of our time by the pool. It is incredibly close to the beach so we would move back and forth. Yes, you need to get down quickly in the morning to reserve you chair, but we found we wanted to be down there early anyway. That is when it is most quiet. By mid-morning, the beach gets quite congested and we enjoyed the peacefulness the early morning provided. There was always lots of activity around the pool and although we were rather lazy, we enjoyed watching the water fitness, dance classes, etc.

It was a great holiday. There seems to be a great deal of disagreement on this resort. I think there are newer and older rooms. If you get a room in the newer sector, it seems to be fine. We talked to another couple who were not pleased, and they were moved immediately. They were pleased with the reception they received to their request.

I would not hesitate to recommend this hotel. If you are looking for fancy, you might want to look beyond the TAino, we were very happy with our experience.

Ok after spending the last month before we left reading some reviews on here we were a little hesitant about what we were in for at the Riu Taino.We just got back from spending a week there yesterday. And what we found ourselves doing alot last week was looking at each other in astonishment and saying "How could you not enjoy everything about this place !!!!"

ROOMS: Yes the rooms are kinda small but if the only reason you head south is stay in your room then stay home. The maids did an amazing job as our room was completely spotless each and every day. We left the maid 2 bucks a day and a small gift at the end of the week and thats all.Trust me we spent every single day on the beach so we tracked alot of sand into our room and she got every grain of it cleaned each day.Fridge was stocked regularily and the liqour dispenser was used at the end of everyday....God I loved that thing.

FOOD: Had no problems finding something different to eat everyday and it was all good. Particularily enjoyed the Italian ala carte. Went to it twice and both great meals. Staff at all restaurants and buffets friendly and always right there to top up your wine glass.

SERVICE: Incredible service. The La Bamba bar is great and the bar staff is nothing short of amazing !!!! Great people very funny and always kept you laughing. They live to see you drinking and having fun and you can tell they really enjoy their jobs.

BEACH: One word....SPECTACULAR...enough said.

ENTERTAINMENT: Considering they are all amateurs they do an incredible job. Had a good laugh at every show we went to. I wish I had an ounce of Charlie Lopez's energy.

OVERALL: Two thumbs up for the Riu Taino and its staff. To anyone that comes here that is heading there for a vacation be rest assured you will have as much fun as you allow yourself to as only you can make your visit there unenjoyable. Enjoy it you will love it and say hi to Luis and the boys at La Bamba.

Feel free to contact me for more info anytime.

Jan 4-10/08
When we arrived at our room, our door was open which we found a little odd. BUT when you got in you knew why! It was so musty and moldy smelling it was hard to breathe. The beds were terrible, they sagged in the middle, the sheets were like sand paper, they smelled of mold, B.O. and urine. We took pictures of the mold on the beds. There was also mold on the backs of the curtains and in the shower. The drain in the sink was rusty. The shower head sprayed water every where. Taps dripped water all the time.
When we arrived they should of had someone there to welcome you and show you the which restaurants you could eat at. There was hostess all dressed up in Domincan attire and she said we needed reservations to eat in the main restaurant. Went to main desk and asked they said we could eat there anytime with out reservations. The food was good that night ate and drank lots. We arrived there on Jan 4 there didn't seem to be too many vacationers there so the service was great. By Saturday night the food was all starting to taste the same, could not stomach anymore of it.
It seemed all the restaurants served the same food even the ones you had to make reservations for all buffet style. Some of the drinks had liquor in them and then the next drink came with no liquor it seemed you had to tip every drink.
We did not appreciate the peddlars that came to the hotel to sell their goods, very pushy and snobby when you were not interested. Coming from Saskatchewan the beach was beautiful, the heat, the sun and the climate was great. It was our first beach holiday,we booked through Sunquest and complained to them about the terrible room and they were not receptive to it at all. We enjoyed our time away from home but will never stay there again. The room ruined our entire holiday.
Steve and Teresa

This was my 5th time to Punta Cana and I can honestly say that, although I love Punta Cana, this was by far the worst resort that I have ever stayed at. My fiance and I booked this trip last minute and was advised that the RIU Taino was an amazing place to stay at - well we beg to differ. This resort is graded as a 5 star but I would say it is more like a 3 star.

Let me start off by saying that we are not picky travelers and we travel to various distintaions every year (sometimes twice a year). So by us typing this negative review, there must have been some issues.

ROOMS - The rooms are very small and the beds are two single beds so if you are larger people they are not very comfortable. They provide you with one small pillow and the beds are like sleeping on the floor (rock hard). However, they will bring you another pillow upon request. The washrooms are okay but the showers are small. The bar was well stocked and the liquor dispensers were always full (not that we used it since we had plenty of alcohol throughout the day). The maids came in daily and did a nice job on the rooms and would even leave a towel decoration with flowers in your room which was nice. We usually tipped them 2-3 dollars a day.

STAFF/FOOD - I didn't find the staff as friendly at that this resort as I did at the Allegro, Grand Palladium, Occidental Grand Flemenco. The grounds staff, maids and reception staff were usually friendly but the bar and restaurant staff didn't appear to be that happy. It was also hard to get some sort of service in the buffet restarurants (and we are good tippers). The buffet restaurant was always packed and there was no such thing as waiting in line for your turn to the selections. Many people would bud and even try to take your toast when it came out of the toaster. We enjoyed the remainder of our meals at the sister resort RIU Bamboo which I enjoyed very much. People were friendlier over there and the selection of food was better over there. The RIU Taino food was not all that great, including the specialty restaurants.

POOL - All I can say is that the pool at the sister resorts are better. We spent most of our time at the Bamboo resort's pool. Happier people over there and party galour. If you are interested in oil paintings - buy your painting around the Bamboo swim up pool bar (Johnny is very nice and does amazing work)

BEACH - The beaches are amazing in Punta Cana no matter what resort you stay at but beach chairs we scarce on our resort since people would head down to the beach in the early morning and save them. We would just walk down the beach until we came across some vacant ones (no big deal).

I would recommend that if you are going to stay at a RIU resort in Punta Cana you book the Bamboo, Palace Macao or the RIU Palace (which is breathtaking - we walked through it).

I would not return to the RIU Taino resort again for numerous reasons no matter how cheap it was.