Royal Hideaway vs. RIU Palace
 

So we're narrowing down our search, thanks to lots of great info from this board!
Just looking for some final opinions on these two properties. We're considering them both for our honeymoon in May '04. I've heard wonderful things about both, so it's starting to come down to the details. Beach quality, room quality, food quality, service. These are pretty major details! Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I was just planning our next trip for April and did a lot of research here. If you do a search for Royal Hideaway, you will find many comments. After reading everything, we decided on Royal Hideaway, but there is plenty of info here.

Hi..My fiance and I stayed at RH the last weekend of May.I LOVED the ocean there..it was great to hang out in the ocean all day.Very clear..beautiful.Overall the hotel was wonderful...service,food.We had a couples massage in the spa and it was fabulous.I am pretty picky about room quality and the rooms were good.Not fabulous like a FS but okay. While I have not stayed at the RIU,I have stayed at other Palace resorts in Cancun.RH ..HANDS DOWN.But,like I said, I have not visited RIU.RH is not a typical all inclusive..much better.I would go back in a heartbeat..have fun!

Riu Palace Mexico is NOT related in any way to the Palace Resorts in Cancun, completely separate company, much better too.

RH is better...Riu Palace is very nice. If money's not an object go to the RH.

I recommend RH for your honeymoon if you prefer a more intimate setting. Be careful when booking the RIU hotels as there are several and it can get confusing. I have heard of travel agents booking the wrong hotel and although they are all together, they are not all the same. My friend wanted us to take a peek at the RIU Palace so we took the tour. Also looked stunning especially the fountains running through the middle, but a longer walk to the beach. The pool is larger, but much more crowded. Also big section of beach is lined with trees. You can't see the beautiful blues of the ocean from the pool and I'm sure plenty of the rooms. RH is much more simple in design yet the private pools (definitely not for laps) are very romantic and secluded. I have posted a reply to a question titled Royal Hideaway Beach...check it out, I can't say enough about the food and my family has a catering business so I am well aware of food quality, taste and presentation. Enjoy.