Full breakdown & feedback for Hotel Riu Santa Fe
I went on a fun 5-day girls trip to Cabo San Lucas back in May of this year. We chose to stay at the Hotel Riu Santa Fe all-inclusive resort located on El Médano beach. Known for their Riu Pool Parties, this resort is a budget-friendly resort that offers amazing views, exciting daily and nightly activities, and has a great location near downtown Cabo. Read on for a full breakdown and honest feedback on our stay at this resort.
Accommodations
According to their website, this resort was renovated in 2022. We booked 2 Double Rooms with Garden View. Upon check-in, we received an upgrade to partial ocean view rooms which was an amazing bonus. Our rooms ended up being in one of the buildings closest to the beach and had close access to a few different pools, bars and food options. The walk from the lobby to our room was quite a trek. This resort is quite large and spread out. There are over 1,200 rooms, including some Riu Party Rooms, which give you close access to the Riu Party zone and a few other perks (i.e. access to a 'Privilege Bar' in the party zone, discount access to Cabo Madness nightclub, and a welcome gift including various party themed items like a tumbler and waterproof phone pouch). If you're looking for the party vibe in Cabo, I'd highly recommend these rooms as you'd be close to the nightlife action, and you get those added fun perks as well.
Our rooms had nice tile flooring, spacious walk-in showers, double sinks, fully stocked mini fridges with sodas, waters, and beers, and they have a liquor pouring section with full-sized bottles dispensing tequila, vodka, rum, and gin. They restocked the waters and fridges daily as needed. I don't believe they offer room service. We never tried to order, and their website does not mention them having room service. Our room was cleaned daily, and the cleaning was decent. I recently went to the Serenade Punta Cana resort in the Dominican and their cleaning was astounding and set such a high bar that in comparison I would have liked our rooms to be cleaner, but they were still good. The space was pretty much like an average hotel room and came with a small couch and table. I prefer more spacious rooms on longer trips, but these ones were still a decent size, especially for a shorter trip.
The rooms showed signs of the remodel and updates, but still also showed some signs of aging. The resort is very much amenity-focused, so you likely will find yourself spending little time in the room because of all the different activities offered. All in all, the rooms were pretty standard, cleaned well, and the liquor bottles were a fun little add-on. I'd give the rooms a 7/10.
Food & Drinks
Food
You'll find buffets throughout the resort. Some larger ones with various cuisine options, and some smaller snack-style buffets offering options like burgers, hot dogs, fries, nachos, and tacos. The smaller snack buffets weren't a huge hit with any of us, and we really only ate there if nothing else was open. The main buffets were great to me. They had a good selection of food, and their flavor and seasoning were pretty good. They have two buffets for breakfast and one main international buffet for dinner (they also offer an Asian and Italian buffet). The resort also has a la carte restaurants which we did not need reservations for, it's first come first serve. We usually went close to opening time for the restaurants, so we did not have much of a wait for any of them. They also offer to-go snacks in their sports bar with different sandwich options, fruits, nachos and hot dogs.
Overall, the food was not a highlight for us. Some things were great, like their breakfast buffet (would highly recommend their chorizo and eggs). Their a la carte restaurants were kind of a miss. The steakhouse restaurant was probably our least favorite (see 'rare' steak photo above). The American Country restaurant was good, but we were limited on how many dishes we were allowed to order (even if it was a side like fries) which I haven't experienced at other all-inclusive resorts before. The Mexican restaurant is both a la carte and has a buffet. The buffet offered some delicious choices, but we weren't really fans of the made to order food we received. The Italian restaurant was our favorite dinner, but it's a buffet, not a la carte (you can get made to order items like crepes which I would recommend for sure).
If you're someone who is not a huge fan of buffets and you look forward to the a la carte dinners at all-inclusive resorts, I wouldn't recommend this resort food-wise. The a la carte options are nothing to write home about. If you like buffets, I was personally a fan of all their buffets (except their snack-bar ones). Because a la carte restaurants are usually pretty important to people visiting all-inclusive resorts, I'd give the food for this resort a 5/10.
Drinks
I separated the food and drink ratings because while the food was not the best, the drinks were pretty good. We didn't have any kind of premium access to liquors so all the drinks we had were just the basic options they offered. Their cocktails were pretty good. We made it a mission to try out different drinks, so we requested a variety and enjoyed most of them. They weren't too light or too heavy on the liquor (at least not to me, my mom, who prefers little liquor, felt they were all heavy on the liquor). I would highly recommend the 'Banana Mama' if you're a fan of bananas, it tastes just like a banana smoothie. I would rate the drinks a 9/10. They were consistent, but nothing too fancy which keeps it from a 10.
Resort Staff
I've visited several resorts in Mexico, and a couple other resorts in Cabo San Lucas. Compared to those experiences, I would say that the staff here was not very friendly. Our worst experiences were at the 2 a la carte restaurants we went to. The wait staff were kind of rude and impatient even though we went when the restaurants were not that busy. The staff at the Italian buffet were the friendliest of the wait staff. Bartenders weren't rude, but it was difficult to get their attention sometimes. I didn't really interact with the housekeeping staff. Some of the staff working the lobby were friendly, but we had an unpleasant interaction with one worker who was in charge of checking our bags while we waited for our car when we were leaving the resort. Overall, I would say I am more accustomed to very friendly and helpful staff when visiting resorts in Mexico, so it was disappointing to see the service here didn't reflect that. I'd give a rating of 4/10 for staff friendliness and helpfulness.
Location & Beach
This resort is located on El Médano beach. It's 20 minutes away from the airport when there's no traffic, but for our return to the airport it took us 45min-1hour to get there due to traffic build up. However, the location is worth the drive. The sand and water were clean and beautiful. The resort has beautiful views of El Arco de Cabo San Lucas. The resort offers free lounge chairs on the beach. The umbrellas are included as well, but there weren't that many of them, so you would want to go early to get one. They didn't usually have them out in the mornings until we asked for a staff member to bring one out for us. The resort is located in between 2 other Riu resorts, the Riu Palace Baja California and the Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas. The guests in those resorts are allowed access to visit the Riu Santa Fe for the Riu Parties, but guests staying at the Riu Santa Fe are not allowed to visit the Palaces amenities.
If you are someone who loves the beach, and beautiful white sand, this resort is a great option. If you are someone who wants direct access to be able to go swim in the ocean, this resort is not for you. The water in front of the resort has strong currents and so swimming is discouraged in that area. You can walk about 15-20 minutes down the beach to some areas with calmer waters that you can swim in, but if you are hoping to be able to just walk straight from your room to the water outside for a swim, this is not the place for that. I personally love swimming in the water, so I do wish that would have been an easier option, but if you're up for the walk, or you don't really care about swimming the water, this resort is a great option. Because of the strong currents I would give the location and beach an 8/10.
Amenities/Activities
The grounds at this resort are quite large. they have many different pools, a water park, a smaller children's pool with slides, and an adults-only pool. It's easy to find the vibe you're looking for. The pools near the beachfront tended to be busier and the pools further back had more calm vibes. Bars are located all throughout near the pools. They offer daily pool and beach events such as volleyball and water polo.
The fitness center is open 7am-8pm and is on the smaller side but is well maintained and has a nice selection of machines and weights to choose from. Located in the same building is the spa. We didn't do any spa services but *pro tip: you can reserve access to one of their two hot tubs located in a serene secluded outdoor area of their spa for free. You have to call the spa to book a time, and you are allowed to stay for an hour. The area is lovely (pictured above) and when we arrived a group had just left from the other hot tub, so we had the whole area to ourselves. Definitely worth checking out. You can also reserve a steam room for free as well.
The hotel offers free Wi-Fi throughout the resort, and the service was decent. We would have some connectivity issues here and there but overall worked well. Located near the lobby you'll find a nice sports bar with different gaming activities like pool tables, arcade games, etc. for an extra charge. Also located near the lobby is the entertainment stage with nightly themed shows that we enjoyed (would recommend their Mexico themed show). They also have an onsite dance club (but we didn't visit it). Another major highlight of the resort is their Riu Party zone and activities (read more on this below).
The resort has a wide variety of activities, has a nice number of pools spread throughout and keeps their common areas well cleaned. I'd give their amenities/activities a 10/10.
Hotel Riu Party for Adults
I separated the RIU party amenity as it's deserving of its own category. Not all RIU resorts offer the RIU party zone & activities. This one not only offers it, but it's a main selling point for their hotel. You can even book rooms specifically tailored to enhance your party experience. The themes of the RIU parties are highlighted all day long throughout the resort.
Before going inside the party zone, they have an area where you can get free face painting, and an area to take photos with some of their professional dancers. The main action happens inside of a party pool zone. It's an adults-only area that is guarded by security. Inside you'll find two separate shallow pools. There's an exclusive bar on site for those booked in RIU party rooms, an eating area with snacks open to everyone and another main bar for everyone. You can also book a VIP table with premium drink offerings at an additional cost. A couple of stands with shots are on both sides of the pool and there's two sitting areas for those who don't wish to be in the pool. There's also a rooftop section that we didn't see. They have cubbies where you can place your items you don't wish to get wet, but I'd recommend not taking anything valuable with you if you plan to go in the water.
The parties happen both during the day and at night depending on the day. Both were full of people. They have different themes and match the music for those themes. We went to one day party which had Latin and party hits playing. They have a foam machine turning the pool parties into foam parties. There are professional dancers up on elevated platforms and on stage. The day party was my favorite as it was a busy and exciting atmosphere without getting too crazy. ***Please be sure to put on sunblock if you burn, many people were looking crispy when we went.
The nighttime parties were a whole different experience. Many reviews I looked at prior to visiting compared the RIU Parties to the pool parties and clubs found in Las Vegas. If you love a good party, they don't disappoint here at the RIU. The nighttime is much like the daytime in terms of what they offer but much more crowded and a lot more dancing and drinking. The dancers would walk around with water guns shooting shots of liquor into people's mouths. They had a great lighting and sound set up. It was the ultimate club experience. The only disappointing part was we went on a night that was 80s theme which dancing wise just wasn't our favorite, but later in the night they switched up to club hits.
If you're looking for a fun party zone, this is the resort to go to. If that's the opposite of what you want, you might not want to stay here. The music can be heard all throughout the resort even in buildings far away from the main party zone, so if you're looking for peace and quiet this is not the place for you. The daytime parties go from 2:30pm-7:00pm and the nighttime ones go from 6:30pm-11pm. Look up the different theme nights before you go if you wish to dress up to match the themes like their white party and pink party. Stay hydrated and get ready to have a great time. I'd rate the RIU parties a 10/10. I've never partied in Vegas, but the experience here was a blast and I would highly recommend for those into that scene.
Conclusion
All in all, the Hotel Riu Santa Fe may not be the perfect resort when it comes to food or staff, but we still found ourselves leaving with some amazing memorable experiences due to their outstanding amenities and RIU parties. If you're looking for a fun place to have a bachelor/bachelorette party, hang out with friends or just go crazy solo, this resort is an excellent choice. Even though they have some good waterslides, I wouldn't recommend this resort to families traveling with small children as I have stayed at others in Cabo that are more family friendly. Depending on the group, and depending on the vibe of the vacation, this resort could be a great option for those seeking to party it up in Cabo.
Overall Ranking: 7.5/10
Planning a trip to Cabo? Have a favorite go-to resort? Comment below which places you love staying at when visiting this beautiful city! Thank you so much for reading, and for your patience as I slowly but surely continue to create content that I hope is interesting and useful. If you'd like to stay updated on all future posts, sign up below for emails. Follow the blog on Pinterest or Facebook @mindonthepath. Happy reading!
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