Hotel Riu Palace Aruba - All Inclusive

I will start with everything that was great about this hotel. We stayed 6 nights for spring break as family with a 10 yo and 7 yo. They gave us a fantastic room with a wonderful ocean view from the 6th floor. Obviously the longer you stay, the better view you get. There was a cot in the room that we had not requested but certainly needed. That was a nice touch. Turndown service each day was prompt and perfect. We only ate at the all inclusive buffet for breakfast and dinner. The food was fantastic and the service from Hector at dinner each night was wonderful. There are theme restaurants you can try but skipped them. The lunch food at the pool each day was great as well. Service at the pool was great, giving guests the choice of just going to the bar for a beverage or waiter stopping by your chair. Now to the drawbacks. For the price you pay, this hotel is inching closer to needing a renovation. I did see crews fixing some cosmetic infrastructure issues, but little things like electrical outlets not working in the room was frustrating. To my point, there was cracked tile in the elevator flooring that I tripped on a few times, I was shocked that existed. Getting a chair near the pool or in the shade on the beach is a huge game. People put towels out at 8am and hog chairs all day even when they are not using them for hours at a time. I found that very annoying. That's on the hotel to monitor such behavior and have a better policy. One final tip, if you want to stay in one place and relax, do the all inclusive here. If venturing off the resort and trying other restaurants, then book a different hotel or you are wasting money. Venturing off the hotel grounds in Aruba was totally safe.