Riu Costa Del Sol

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

8237 reviews

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  NOT RELAXING, LOUD, CHAOTIC AND STRESSFUL....

  Be careful if you want a rest or a relaxing time....we thought (unfortunately incorrectly) that because the hotel was situated in a quieter area of Torremolinos, that we would have a chilled time. Not. There are no quiet areas...we love the Spanish, the culture, the food and their wonderful zest for life, but this was another experience altogether. ...and not in a good way. Every day without let up crowds of Spanish families took over the social areas. Extremely loud. Shouting. Screaming in fact. This went on for hours throughout the day and evening. In the restaurants, we experienced the exact same situation. Tables full of Spanish people shouting across the tables to each other with no regard for other guests who perhaps might enjoy a quieter experience at dinner, lunch or breakfast It was the same loud and chaotic situation regardless, throughout the entire hotel.. We tried all of the restaurants, bars and social areas....the exact same scenario. Oftentimes we had to return to our room to attempt to relax and find a quieter place. However, the social area underneath our block of rooms was always extremely loud with huge Spanish families who seem to have no respect for other people's privacy or comfort. We can only conclude that they want to make their presence felt in a particularly nasty way. To ruin other peoples holiday with their behaviour is quite mean. Perhaps they actually really do hate tourists holidaying in Spain? Who knows? We actually did not feel welcomed at all, apart from a few nice staff. We have been Riu customers for many years. We have never experienced such disregard for clients comfort and enjoyment. There was no control whatsoever exercised in connection with the noise levels, screaming, shouting and high levels of verbal interaction between the Spanish families that were staying in the hotel while we were there. It was awful and very stressful. We will never return. Regrettably, we will look for a different chain of hotels that cater to all clients and not just those who for whatever reason, are allowed to take over the entire hotel with loud and aggressive and intimidating behaviour. If you are going to visit this hotel, be prepared...... We feel stressed at the end of our holiday when it should be the opposite.

  Dec 05, 2025
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  Honest Review from a Loyal Riu Guest

  This was my second visit to Riu Costa del Sol, and I want to start by saying that I genuinely enjoy visiting Riu-branded hotels. I’ve always found them to offer great standards, reliable service, and a certain level of comfort that keeps me coming back. Unfortunately, this particular hotel isn’t quite living up to the usual Riu experience. 👍 Pros Second time staying here and on both occasions I’ve enjoyed elements of the holiday. Rooms are clean and spacious, exactly what you want when you’re away. Staff are friendly and helpful, always smiling and trying their best. 👎 Cons The food is warm rather than hot, which gets a bit disappointing after a few days. Buffet utensils never seem to be wiped or changed, despite the huge number of guests constantly using them. I’ve fallen unwell with sickness on both visits. The hotel takes no responsibility, insisting their hygiene standards are high — but twice now? It certainly raises questions. No gloves available in the restaurants for guests who want to use them. Many guests don’t use hand sanitizer, and there’s no real encouragement or monitoring from staff. Overall There’s definitely potential here — the staff and rooms are lovely — but the recurring hygiene issues and lack of proper food safety measures have put me off returning again. After being sick twice, I can’t just write it off as bad luck. Would I return? Probably not. Would I recommend it? Only if the hotel starts taking guest health and food hygiene seriously.

  Dec 04, 2025
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  Impressed and enjoyed

  I stayed at this hotel for November. It is a large hotel - over 600 rooms but it never felt crowded. The atmosphere was vibrant and friendly. The hotel is kept very clean, rooms are spacious and attended to. Staff are excellent. Food is good - especially at the Italian restaurant which is a relaxing environment. Entertainment is a mixed bag. The professional acts (singers, musicians, magician) were all of a high standard. The in-house 'shows' were mimed, choreographed and dated. The vast majority of people staying at the hotel were respectful and courteous. A very small minority showed no respect. Smoked in inappropriate places and lacked basic hygiene in the restaurant. Thank you for a great holiday - I hope to return at some point.

  Dec 01, 2025
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  Disappointed

  Purely my opinion... Pros : staff,friendly and efficient Room Beer Cons : Food Spirits very weak Location - too far out Would not return

  Dec 01, 2025
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  Another great week's holiday!

  We've just returned from our 2nd stay at this hotel.This time we decided to use the free hotel transfer service.We arrived into Malaga airport at 8.50pm.Coming through customs/passport and baggage was actually super quick.However...there was no one to greet us at the other side.We ventured outside the airport entrance and waited....25mins later a man appeared,asked our names,and introduced himself.Great we thought,lets go! No...the man then informed us,we had to wait for other passengers.We assumed the other passengers were from our flight,so a couple of minutes more wait would'nt hurt.No....these passengers were from another flight.Waiting.....waiting.......the driver disappeared inside the airport....more waiting.We were starting to lose patience,went inside,found the driver.....still waiting for these other passengers.He assured us it would'nt be much longer.They eventually showed up.We all walked off towards a carpark....to then be told by this man,we had to then wait for the transport to turn up.More waiting......a people carrier type van appeared.We eventually got dropped off at our hotel at 10.30pm!!! Had we known it was going to take this long,we would of just jumped in a cab,and been at the hotel within 10 mins.So due to this transfer we missed our hotel's dinner. Luckily our holiday improved after this! Check in was fast,and our room was fab! Beautiful views of the ocean and hills.We used the hotel's free app for pretty much everything,from booking the hotel's restaurants-viewing activities on offer-drinks menu-housekeeping. Food was very nice,always found something we liked and enjoyed.Hotel is spotless. Please note....Smoking is in designated area's only now due to new laws introduced.Sadly,one of those area's is what we think one of the nicest area's out the front of the hotel facing the pool.Lovely flower beds etc,yet again though as non smokers we chose not to use it due to so many smokers (I'm Asthmatic)It also does'nt include your own room's balcony.Unfortunately our neighbours were smoking,so we had to come back inside,close the sliding door.Personally I'd like to see ALL area's of hotels smoke free. A male guest appeared drunk fairly early on in the evening,harrassing guests.He was quickly accosted by security and forced into the lift,and we assumed taken to his room.5 mins later he was back downstairs,which we knew would happen. I am going to mention personal hygiene here and food safety.As like last year,after reading reviews there seemed to be an apparent bout of sickness with some guests.Vomiting etc?After witnessing a few guests,I'm really not suprised tbh.I saw one male guest,trying to prize apart pizza slices with his BARE hands! Tongs were right infront of him.The next guest,would of taken and eaten those slices of pizza he touched.Ugh,disgusting.Please don't do this people.USE THE TONGS! If you're still struggling...ask a member of staff for assistance. My husband and I both used communal toilets whilst downstairs,and it never ceased to amaze us how many people DID NOT WASH THEIR HANDS after coming out of the toilet.Just to think those same people would of used serving spoons and tongs in the restaurants,might of even touched food on offer,put it back,and someone else would of consumed it.They also would of touched door handles/lift buttons...the list goes on.Former guests have blamed the hotel for sickness bugs.I'm beginning to wonder actually if fellow guests are causing those sickness bugs via their poor and disgusting personal hygiene habits. If anyone needs a Mercadona head out onto the beach road,turning right...follow this road,until you see Borio restaurant on the left hand side.Opposite this is a road on the left.Just a short walk up there (less than a minute)then turn left again.You'll find Mercadona on the right hand side. In all we had a really relaxing fab week.Would we stay again?Yes.

  Nov 29, 2025