Hotel Riu Palace Tres Islas ★★★★ Corralejo

[admin]

At the beginning of the most attractive area of a long, white beach with fine sand-dunes, gently sloping towards the sea. Corralejo is 5 km. away.

The elegant Hotel Riu Palace Tres Islas is air-conditioned throughout and has been partially refurbished (communal rooms).

Our guests receive excellent service in the restaurant with no-smoking section, in the snack-bar/cafeteria, in the lounge-bar "Betancuria" and in the piano bar with its large open-air terrace. Furthermore, the Hotel Riu Palace Tres Islas has a shopping arcade with a souvenir shop, boutique and hairdresser's.

The gardens are especially pleasant, with two fresh water swimming pools, terrace and pool bar. Loungers, sun umbrellas and swimming towels are at the guests' disposal.

Daily live music and shows several nights a week. Piano recitals, 6 nights.



For more information or to reserve online click here

Please post your reviews and photos below.

[fik78]

I will not talk for a long time, everything is here:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g580322-d237063-r115879352-Riu_Palace_Tres_Islas-Corralejo_Fuerteventura_Canary_Islands.html

and here

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g580322-d237063-r133685418-Riu_Palace_Tres_Islas-Corralejo_Fuerteventura_Canary_Islands.html

GREAT, GREAT, GREAT!

[admin]

Thanks fik78 for your post.

Unfortunately it kind of defeats the purpose of this board. 

There are aspects of Tripadvisor we aren't too keen on and this board was set up as an alternative otherwise we could have just put a big link to T.A. at the top.

Thanks anyway.

[hairybiker]

Just got back.  I stay there twice a year (June and November) and have been doing so since 2003.

There have been some changes, mainly in the restaurant.  The menu now rotates over one week, whereas it used to be a two week rotation. 

The food is still excellent with a huge choice.  Some of my personal favorite dishes have been retired, but new ones have been introduced.  Unfortunately, the gazpacho only appears on one night a week, whereas before you could have this everynight. Also gone is the salsa for Pan Tomate at breakfast, but there is still cava every morning

You can no longer ask the restaurant staff to keep the remains of a bottle of wine "para manana", but there now is the option of a 20cl glass (around 6 euros) or 37.5 carafe (around 9.5 euros) of a selection of 10 or so wines. 

Drinks are not cheap.  300 cl beer 2.95 euros.  5.60 for an expresso and a 103 brandy

There is a charge for the room safe of 16 euros a week.

Pool towels are provided free of charge and can be changed regularly.

In general the staff are friendly and helpful, but if there is a problem they will fix the problem you tell them about, not necessarily the underlying problem.  I complained that the AC vent was whistling when the window was open. They stopped it whistling by covering the vent with masking tape.  Fine in November, not such a good idea in June.

The entertainment comes in 2 forms. There are "imported" acts (booked though Romantika) on 3 nights a week and a piano player/singer in the bar 6 nights.  But he should stick to playing and forget the singing. His repetoire is the same every night, just the order changes

The clientele is predominately German (80%), middle class and middle aged to elderly.  Probably why a doctor visits twice a day, Monday to Friday.  He spent 45 mins over 2 days fixing a badly broken toe nail (watch out for the rocks on the beach!!) and charged me 30 euros. Cheaper than the vet!

Single rooms are fine. A little smaller than the doubles (well the ones I ask for are) but they don't have a balcony and overlook the entrance to the hotel so they do suffer from some traffic noise and chatter.

The beds are universally HARD, but you can ask for a pad to soften it and, if there are any available, it partly solves the problem

But just try and find another 4 star hotel, 4 hours from the UK, with reliable weather year round, good food, on a clothing optional beach and which doesn't rip you off for single rooms.  If you do, please tell me about it

[hairybiker]

Just remembered.

Regular visitors might want to know that Bernardo, the head waiter, is retiring at the end of the year.

[hairybiker]

Just returned.  It was much as usual BUT there has been a huge influx to Brits to the hotel.

Whether it is poorly performing economies in Europe (primarily Germany) or just the strength of Sterling againts the Euro, I don't know, put the proportion of Brits has increased significantly. 

The Thomson rep told that their room allocation has been increased and that she 200 guests in the hotel.

Also drinks prices are up.  A 300cl beer was 2.95 in 2014, now 3.30

The good news is that the Supermercado Diana at the end of the road, which had become a bit forlorn and short of stock (following the move by the Oliva Beach to AI, rather than self catering) has now been taken over by Hyperdino.  Well stocked and, and as far as I could tell, the similar prices to the other Hyperdino Express stores around.

[hairybiker]

Update 
Drinks prices - up
Lunch prices - up
Number of British guests - up
Dress standards for dinner - down (apparently at the insistence of TUI for the benefit of their British clientele)

Minor refurbishment in the restaurant.( new chairs without arms and tables)
Changes to the menu in the Krystal a la carte ( not for the better)
Corridor carpets replaced

[hairybiker]

Further update -  Shorts are now tolerated in the restaurant at dinner.  This has been imposed by RIU management in Majorca.

HOWEVER, it is not popular with local management, nor with a majority of regular guests, and bear in mind that thjis hotel has a very high repeat customer rate

If you stay here and feel that this lowering of standards is "unfortunate", feel free to make a  comment on the customer satisfaction survey questionairres which are issued in the restaurant each week

[beachlife]

Further update -  Shorts are now tolerated in the restaurant at dinner.  This has been imposed by RIU management in Majorca.

HOWEVER, it is not popular with local management, nor with a majority of regular guests, and bear in mind that thjis hotel has a very high repeat customer rate

If you stay here and feel that this lowering of standards is "unfortunate", feel free to make a  comment on the customer satisfaction survey questionairres which are issued in the restaurant each week

Totally agree. I`m there once a week and speak regularly to repeat visitors, they are all upset about the drop in the dress code. Think this is a result of management reading trip advisor where younger clientele post negative comments about the entertainment and the dress code. Unfortunately the management seem to be reading Tripadvisor and making changing. Older people tend not to use trip advisor so comments are weighted against what was the status quo.

However the reason the regulars come is because of the previous dress code and the entertainment as it was. The regulars I saw used to have at least 2 or 3 trips annually, but tell me they are either now coming once a year or going somewhere else. THe management don`t realise they may be killing the golden goose, the posters on tripadvisor will probably have been on their first visit and will not come back whereas the regulars have been reliable visitors for a long time. I too tell them all to comment on the cards they receive before they leave with the comments suggesting what they are disappointed in on the visit.

Just in case regular visitors are reading one piece of good news is that Paloma are back but only on Thursday nights at the moment. Rest of week the entertainment is probably not to your liking if you were expecting the same type of thing on other evenings. However Paloma as usual are worth the visit alone as you will know.