Hotel Riu Touareg 5*

Just came back from a week at the Riu Touareg Boa Vista - Beautiful & very clean hotel but we have been really disappointed with the customer service at the main reception. When we arrived at the hotel we had to wait 40 mins at reception to be checked-in in 33 degrees heat with no air conditioning - nobody offered us a cold drink - Even though it is advertised as a 5 stars hotel and our room was a 10 mins walk & first floor from the reception (no lift|) , nobody offered us to deliver our luggage to our room - Also we only realised when arriving at the room that the receptionist forgot to give us our key card - when we called reception they refused to send a member of staff to bring it to us and it took them 3 hours to finally give us one when we went to reception & no apologies made and the staff made us feel it was our fault. Our room was absolutely beautiful and clean with full sea view & cleaned daily. Be aware they do not provide straws when serving cocktails. Bring your own. The liqueurs and the wine are very poor quality. Only the beer and soft drinks were quite nice. Food is average : good breakfast & dinner but was sometimes cold. Desserts were often very sweet with no flavours. The A La Carte restaurants were quite nice and especially Kulinarium where the food and the wine were tasty. We had torrential rain a couple days and the hotel is not equipped for it - some restaurant were flooded, the poor staff tried their best to sweep the water out - and some people rooms on the bottom floor were flooded. There are plenty of super clean swimming pools for every age with plenty of loungers with a fabulous entertainment team to keep everyone busy during the day. The beach is beautiful and pristine. There are plenty of loungers on the beach but no parasol & no side table to put our drinks or stuff down - Also it's a 10 mins walk on the hot sand & there is no beach bar, there is absolutely no service on the beach. The waiting and the cleaning staff as well as the gardeners are very polite & always smiling. Overall we had a lovely holiday but it was important for us to point out the issues we have encountered.

After arriving at Gatwick, check in with TUI was fast & the lady at the desk was a great help. It was early & foggy so it held all planes up. We took off a hour & a half late. Which had a knock on for returning customers. The TUI app will keep you informed about your flight, hotel, transfers & you can get Tui in England if you need to. The coach was number 3 in the left side of the bus park. It was full of Touareg customers as the hotel reopened after a huge make over. And the results are easy to see, every where was like new. Check in online customers head to the right of reception where you will be swiftly checked in. You have to pay 35 euros room tax for one week & you can only pay it with a card. Tui pay the arrival tax & you fill a form online 7 days before you arrive. If you’re told to pay it again Tui will reimburse at your hotel. Also there’s nothing else here apart from the hotel, so if you like to get out & about it’s not the hotel or island for you.We got the room we asked for overlooking the sea & pools in block 7. It was immaculate with plenty of storage, a double wardrobe with a free safe. A separate shower & a toilet with everything new. You place a card on the bed when you want your sheets changed & theres lots of clean towels. A fridge full of large bottles of water & a kettle with coffee, tea etc.plus we had. A Diamond customer beach bag & a diamond expanding drink bottle, which was a very nice touch & one of the reasons we use riu hotels when ever we can. Are cleaner was Jandira & she never rushed in cleaning the room & it was always left spotless. The free WiFi is very good bearing in mind the size of the grounds. All the blocks are three storeys high, with no lifts. In front of the first part of the swimming pool is the snack restaurant & it’s a stake restaurant at night time. There’s lots of specialty restaurants you book your spot via the riu app. You walk straight through the pool to the beach which is huge, but the sea is rough & it has a red flag every day. Global warming winds & storms have made it worse. To the right of the beach there’s several put up shops selling various items & they take euros. But the swimming pool area is massive with lots of sun beds & no need for the towels on the sun bed games. The entertainment crew keep all those who want to join in happy with out pushing others to join in, which is ideal. It is very humid in Cape Verde, we went to Sal 112 years ago & if anything it’s more humid come rain or shine. If you don’t like hot humid weather then give it a miss. The rooms have air con 24/7 & a fan to keep the rooms cool which is a added bonus. The cuisine in the main restaurant at all three meal times was very good with a huge selection on offer. It’s was all piping hot & I’ve told travellers before try something, if you don’t like it put it down & get something else until your happy, rather that leaving full plates of food. On the right hand side of the dining room is a ice cream parlour & it’s the best one I’ve ever been to all over the world. It’s does ice creams, milk shakes, proper coffee, pastries & the two young ladies who run it are a credit to the hotel. As are all the staff in this great hotel. The evening entertainment is in front of the main restaurant & it’s huge, so there’s no problem getting seats or drinks. They have a singer until nine & then the show begins, last night was a group & the night before was karaoke. So it’s varied as there’s lots of different nationalities to keep happy.And you can’t please all the travellers all of the time, but they try there best. You must remember it’s a week or two,s holiday for you, but a life time for them & there the lucky ones. So treat them how you expect to be treated & leave with a smile & great memories. I’ll be back.