booked not knowing what to expect...we heard mixed reviews about Punta Cana from friends...got there and took an interesting ride to the hotel...we were nervous...bad roads...the bus got hit (no problem, no stopping :) ) arrived at the gated hotel and it was like entering another country...a great property....easy check in...handed a much needed drink and guided to our room....the rest of the week was great...the room, food, service, beach and entertainment was all we hoped for....with this chain you have the run of most of the properties...spent very little money excapt a few tips for service above and beyond.....we will go back....big traffic jam on the way back to the airport and we saw island driving at its worst, so give yourself plenty of leeway

My wife, 8 month old daughter and I stayed at the Riu Taino March 5-12, 2008. We booked through Sunquest Vacations departing from Toronto, Ontario.

The flight down was fine, but don't expect legroom on Skyservice. The places are pretty old too. Coming home, our return flight was fully 5 hours late and we missed our connection in Toronto.

Upon arrival in the Dominican, we were efficiently guided to our bus that took us to the resort. The Sunquest staff were very friendly. It is only about a 25 minute drive to the hotel and on the air conditioned tour bus it went by very quickly.

At the hotel, we had to wait a couple of hours until our room was ready. Like most places, a friendly smile and politeness go along way when making a request of the staff.

Overall, the hotel was very good. Here's the summary of my highs and lows:

Highs:

1) The beach is wonderful white sand, although this isn't specific to this hotel I thought I'd mention it anyway

2) The pool. I think the best of the five Riu hotels in the complex because it has both sunny and shady spots

3) The food. People like to complain about the food at resorts and I think often these complaints are unfair. The food at the Riu Taino, although definitely not low fat, was excellent. I ate everything and didn't get sick once (note: I firmly believe that a lot of people who get sick at resorts and blame the food often actually have sunstroke)

4) The staff. Wonderful! All very nice! Dominican people definitely love babies! We always sat in the same area of the restaurant and had the same servers. Santa & Ramon were excellent!

5) Room cleanliness. The decor in the rooms was lacking (see below) but they were well cleaned daily.

Lows:

1) The beds. My only real major complaint. The beds in the rooms are two twin size beds pushed together to make a quasi-queen sized bed. However each bed was still made with it's own sheets. The beds themselves were old and tired. Very uncomfortable and in need of replacing. The sheets were also old and the pillows too thin. Bring your own pillow or ask for more. Also, the rooms need new curtains etc as they're looking pretty dated.

2) Crowding. In order to get a poolside chair, you'd need to go stake it out before 9am. After that, they're all gone. The adjacent Riu Naiboa hotel has guests who are allowed to use the Taino's facilities and I think that is part of the reason for the crowding. There was always chairs to be had on the beach though.

You may be trying to decide whether to go to the Riu Taino, the Riu Bambu, the Riu Palace Macao or the Riu Naiboa. They are all adjacent to one another and you can walk from one to the next along a paved path on the beachfront. The one adjacent to the Taino is the Macao, followed by the Bambu. The Naiboa is behind the Taino, off the beach.

For younger travellers you'd probably want to stick to the Taino, the Bambu or the Naiboa. The Taino and Bambu are similar in terms of size and price. The Bambu overall did appear a bit nicer but this was very minor. The Naiboa was a hotel style (the Bambu and Taino are Villa style) and a definite downgrade from the other hotels. I would only recommend the Riu Naiboa for those on a serious budget crunch. The Palace Macao was very nice but had a distinctly less "fun-loving" atmosphere. And no swim up bar either! The Macao I would recommend for couples who want a quieter vacation experience.

For anyone who may be curious (I was) as to which resort is immediately adjacent to the Riu Taino, it is the Iberostar.

I would recommend the Riu Taino and would happily return another year, especially if they buy new beds!

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.