Frommer's Review
Two blockbuster hotels of Negril occupy immediately adjacent plots of beachfront, beside the highway leading in from Montego Bay, east of Negril's town center. The smaller, older, and nominally more upscale of the two is Riu Tropical Bay, which opened in 2001 as the first Riu resort in Jamaica. Efforts were made by the Spain-based chain that owns both properties to render the mammoth size of this place a bit less obvious, to imbue it with some boutique-y features, and to place a bit less emphasis on children's activities than at its neighbor/sibling resort. As such, clients at Riu Tropical Bay get a bit more emphasis on romance and laid-back-ness than at the even bigger hotel (ClubHotel Riu) next door. ClubHotel Riu, built in 2003, has a larger physical plant (pedestrian traffic is encouraged, without charge, between the two resorts), greater numbers of children, and a more obvious mass-market tone than within its sibling. Both resorts occupy sprawling, low-rise premises whose labyrinthine buildings are each painted in Riu's trademark colors, a fiesta-like tone of orchid-inspired violet. Both focus exclusively on cost-conscious all-inclusive programs, and both offer nonstop rounds of communal activities, including dance classes. If you don't mind the occasional sense of anonymity, Riu poses serious competition for the other cost-conscious all-inclusive hotels of Negril.
Facilities (shared by both resorts): 8 restaurants; 12 bars; 2 pools; golf; 4 lit tennis courts; 2 fitness centers; spa; watersports; 2 centers for kids' activities; game room; car-rental kiosk; 2 gift shops; 2 salons; 24-hr. room service; laundry service; dry cleaning; evening entertainment; discos; Internet cafe; aqua-aerobics classes; small-scale casino (slot machines only); rooms for those w/limited mobility.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
