Riu Palace Tikida Agadir

Just spent a week here. Reception: Really friendly and helpful. We arrived before our room was ready so we were given a map, towel cards and information about the courtesy room. When our room was ready I received an email advising us. Room: We collected our bag ourselves. The room was large but had a slightly musty odour (not strong enough to do anything about though). The beds were comfy but the pillows were very hard. The sheets also had stains on them. The whole room seemed dark. There was nowhere after dark that was well lit in the room. We had a sitting area and a little table and chairs. We found the layout a little odd. The front of the room was split into the entrance and a walk in wardrobe effect (no doors though). From the walk in wardrobe there were double louvre doors to the bathroom and off the bathroom were double louvre doors to a toilet and bidet. It didn't give you an awful lot of privacy! The water pressure was good but we both found that the overhead shower was like needles hitting you so stuck to the normal shower head. All toiletries were provided in the bathroom if you wanted them. I found the hairdryer difficult to use but think if you were left handed this might not be such an issue due to its placement and length of cord. We also had large holes in some of our towels. Food: The main restaurant was good. Some days I struggled to find something I wanted but I admit to being a picky eater! The salad bar had a good selection. There was also a lot of fish served. It seemed that the laying of tables was a bit hit and miss as they sometimes didn't have a full set of cutlery. We tried the Crystal and the steak house. We didn't rate the Crystal very much! The service wasn't anywhere near to a Riu Palace standard. We were placed at the only table that didn't have starters laid up and had to wait ages for them. The main meal seemed a little lacking and we noticed some tables had fries but these were not offered to us. The plates were badly chipped, the wine glass had a grease smear on it and the place mats had food dried on them. We probably wouldn't return to this restaurant. The Steak house was much better. The serviced was prompt and and the food was nice however for some reason we got two rolls when all the other diners got 4! Again the quality of service was inconsistent. The food here was very nice. Pool: We managed to get sunbeds every day but we were not near the pool. The wooden sunbeds are cushioned and very comfortable. The pool area was immaculate and washed daily. Drink: Most of the drinks are premium brands. I found that my G&T was always served warm though. The prosecco was nice and cold though! The choice of alcohol free beer was a nice addition. Entertainment: Most nights there was something on but little variety. One dance show was on twice in under a week. The team were enthusiastic and very friendly. Overall: We have stayed at quite a few Riu Palace hotels and had expected the same standard here. Unfortunately this was not the case. The hotel lacks the polish that you normally get with a Riu Palace. Although the hotel was recently refurbished it was already looking a bit tired in areas particularly the bedroom. We didn't find a massive difference between here and Riu Tikida Dunas. That being said we would return as it was a lovely holiday just not quite what we have come to expect of a Riu Palace.

We're currently staying at the hotel after visiting last year, and we were really looking forward to coming back. The food is excellent, the pool area is lovely, and the staff are friendly and hardworking.

However, we're really disappointed with the sunbed situation this year. We came down at 8:00 am and around 95% of the sunbeds had towels on them, yet hardly anyone was actually using them. It's frustrating to see so many beds being reserved for hours while other guests can't find anywhere to sit.

This isn't what we'd expect from a 5-star hotel. The hotel really needs to enforce a sunbed policy more effectively, as at the moment it just seems to be allowed. It's a real shame because it takes away from what is otherwise a fantastic hote