Riu Paraiso Lanzarote

Just got back from our second visit to this amazing hotel. We had a fantastic holiday yet again! The food & drinks are very good, plenty of choice for everyone. We will be back again next year 😊

We returned to the Riu Paraiso for the 4th time. We arrived early and although we had a small wait we were pleased to have our room ready early.

We always book a sea view room and as gold members have always had a nice front line room overlooking the beach . This time we were totally disappointed! From our room 337, you could just about see the sea, it was more a pool view with a lack of privacy and no view over the beach. We also requested morning sun and got the opposite. I feel that our gold membership counted for nothing, unlike in other Riu hotels where it was both recognised and rewarded.

The room however was very clean and comfortable. The large bathroom has all amenities, a hairdryer and a large and powerful shower. The bed and pillows are comfortable and the app is very useful for ordering more pillows.. There is a safe included and plenty of storage, hanging and drawer space.

There are 2 pool areas and although the sun beds are a bit crowded there are always spare beds and pool towels provided.

The food was a mixed bag. We have always been impressed by the standard of buffet food in the Riu hotels and the Paraiso was no exception. However this year we felt it wasn’t quite as good. Lunch and dinner were both very nice and I enjoyed the specials as well as fish, asparagus and canarian potatoes. We also liked the risotto , salads and gazpacho. Breakfast however was a challenge. The usually nice pastries were without filling and sometimes dry and hard, the omelettes were cooked then kept under heat so they were dry. The bacon was so hard it was inedible and the sausages awful. The fresh juices tasted like they were from a plastic bottle not a fruit.

We ate in the Asian twice and were very impressed. The sushi was very good and the vegetable coconut curry very tasty indeed.

The downstairs bar is where the action is, the hotel lays on a lot of entertainment and the bar staff are amazing at keeping a queue moving with such efficiency and fun. It’s a shame the smoking area is right outside and smoke wafts into the bar area making it a no go area for non smokers. Please Riu move the smoking area away from the food (Pepes) and inside bar areas.

Our favourite place to be was the quieter upstairs bar. Unfortunately on this visit it was uncomfortably hot and the management refused to open the doors. Then at the end of our trip the hotel decided to fit air con above the reception desk near the bar, with builders using an angle grinder sending sparks everywhere. All while we were drinking, staff are working and still checking guests in, a total disregard to your guests enjoyment and safety.

That said I would love to pay compliment to all the staff and in particular the hard working, friendly and efficient bar staff. Thank you to Gabriel, Francis, Deniz, Olando, Patricia , Leon and Patricia for all of your hospitality and special Baileys. Despite the temperatures behind the bar you are all absolute professionals! Thank you.