Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay at a glance
- Location
- Negril
- Guests
- All ages welcome
- The plan
- All-inclusive
- Setting
- Near the coast
- Guest rating
- 4.4 / 5 on Google3,520 reviews
- Photos
- Palmprint
- 8.2 / 10
- Best months
- Nov · Dec · Jan · Feb · Mar · Apr
- Pools
- 3 pools
- Airport transfer
- MBJAbout 90 minutes
- Dining
- 5 restaurants
- Drinks
- 4 bars
Rooms & prices
Named-room seasonal samples are not available yet. Check current availability with the resort.
Taxes and fees vary by channel, so compare the final screen, not the first one.
Watch this resort
Leave an email and we'll flag the moment rates land, then any real drop after that.
Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
Things to know
before you go
Family Palace on Bloody Bay, 452 rooms, 24-hour AI.
RiuLand 4–12.
About 6 km from Negril town, 90 minutes from MBJ.
Wristband required.
Hidden tips
Higher-floor sea-view rooms for sunset; some garden rooms look at trees.
Steakhouse fills early.
Strengths from our research
Bloody Bay beach
Spacious junior suites
Friendly staff
24-hour room service
Other considerations from our research
Buildings dating from early 2000s need refresh in places
Not walkable to West End
À la carte reservation friction
What guests say
Most loved
- Bloody Bay beach400 mentions
- Staff280 mentions
- Room size140 mentions
Most complained about
- Dated décor in some rooms110 mentions
- À la carte waits50 mentions
From Reddit
Negril threads pair Tropical Bay with Riu Negril as the two Bloody Bay Rius; Palace is the slightly quieter, more suite-heavy sibling.
What’s included
Included
- Premium & à la carte diningIncluded
- Room serviceIncluded
24-hour room service
- Wi-FiIncluded
- In-room minibarIncluded
- Non-motorized water sportsIncluded
- Kids' clubIncluded
RiuLand 4–7 and 8–12
- Tipping & gratuitiesTips included
Not included
- Motorized water sportsCosts extra
- Spa treatmentsCosts extra
- Off-site excursionsCosts extra
- Airport transfersCosts extra
Included with limits
- Top-shelf liquorPartly included
Local and imported drinks plus in-room liquor dispenser; specialty wines extra
Policies & availability
- Resort creditsNo credit program
No. Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay doesn't run vacation-club or timeshare presentations. No timeshare pitch pattern found.
Inclusions can vary by room category and season. Confirm your plan before booking. How we verify this
- Value
- 8.2 out of 10
- Service
- 8.3 out of 10
- Beach
- 9.0 out of 10
- Dining
- 7.8 out of 10
- Rooms
- 7.9 out of 10
- Pools & Spa
- 7.8 out of 10
Confidence is high across the board except romance and quiet, where the evidence is thinner.
Score breakdown, research & sources
How we scored Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
10 categories, scored from official sources and read against what guests actually report. Verified Sep 20, 2026 under Palmprint methodology 1.0.
The six that set the score
And 4 more we track
Confidence is high across the board except romance and quiet, where the evidence is thinner.
Open a category
Value8.2High confidence
- Price
- 8.2
Service8.3High confidence
- Staff
- 8.4
Beach9.0High confidence
- Calm
- 9.2
- Sand
- 9.1
Dining7.8High confidence
- Buffet
- 7.9
Rooms7.9High confidence
- Size
- 8.3
- Finish
- 7.4
Pools & Spa7.8High confidence
- Layout
- 7.8
Family8.0High confidence
- Riuland
- 8.0
Luxury7.4High confidence
- Palace Vs Age
- 7.4
Romance7.4Medium confidence
- Family Mix
- 7.2
Quiet7.0Medium confidence
- Animation
- 6.8
What it does best
- Bloody Bay beach
- Spacious junior suites
- Friendly staff
- 24-hour room service
Where it costs you
- Buildings dating from early 2000s need refresh in places
- Not walkable to West End
- À la carte reservation friction
Everything we read on Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
Restaurants & bars
Palmprint food score 7.8 / 10
- Places to eat
- 5
- A la carte
- 4
- Buffets
- 1
- Bars and lounges
- 4
- Swim-up bars
- 1
International · Japanese · Italian · Fusion · Steakhouse
Some restaurants take reservations; the rest are walk-in.
Bloody Bay Steakhouse
Steakhouse
Included in the plan
More about Bloody Bay Steakhouse
- Meals
- Dinner
- Service
- A la carte
Hakuchi
Japanese
Included in the plan
More about Hakuchi
- Meals
- Dinner
- Service
- A la carte
Krystal
Fusion
Included in the plan
More about Krystal
- Meals
- Dinner
- Service
- A la carte
Negril / Bloody Bay buffet
International
Included in the plan
More about Negril / Bloody Bay buffet
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
- Service
- Buffet
Rimini
Italian
Included in the plan
More about Rimini
- Meals
- Dinner
- Service
- A la carte
Venues, opening hours and plan inclusions can change by season. Confirm your choices when booking.
Rooms & suites
Seasonally sampled rooms are not available yet.
More room options (3)
| Suite | Occupancy | Bedrooms | Aspect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Junior Suite Garden View | Sleeps 4 | 1 bedroom | Garden |
| Junior Suite Sea View | Sleeps 4 | 1 bedroom | Sea |
| Suite | Sleeps 4 | 1 bedroom | Sea |
Occupancy limits and connecting-room requests should be confirmed for your party before booking.
Pools and the beach
Pools & waterplay
Sources vary between 2–4 pools including a kids pool; official site confirms outdoor pool with swim-up bar.
The beach itself
Prime Bloody Bay frontage; 3 km bay. Calm, shallow entry is the most-cited asset.
- Calm water, swimmable straight off the sand
- Gradual entry, shallow a long way out
- Caveat: Sargassum seaweed lands seasonally, raked daily
Counts come from the resort's own published information; the scores are ours, from the Palmprint file below.
Families & group stays
Bringing the kids to Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
What decides whether a resort works with children in tow, answered from what the resort publishes rather than from the brochure.
- Kids' club
- Supervised program, ages 4–12
- Drop-off care from
- Age 4, younger kids need babysitting
- Teen program
- Exists, but low-key; don't book around it
- Babysitting
- Available at extra cost
- Rooms that fit a family
- 3 categories, incl. Junior Suite Garden View, Junior Suite Sea View
- Beach for young swimmers
- Gradual, calm entry: toddler-friendly
- Dinner reservations
- Needed at some restaurants
- Can a family of 5 stay in one room at Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay?
- Not in a single standard room: the largest stated occupancy at Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay is 4. Families of five or more need two rooms, and connecting rooms are available (usually request-only, so confirm at booking).
- Does Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay have a kids' club, and from what age?
- Yes. Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay runs a supervised kids' club for ages 4–12. Drop-off starts at age 4; younger children need babysitting or a parent alongside. Hours and age bands shift seasonally, so confirm before booking.
Taking a group
What a block booking looks like here: how many of you fit, whether the rooms connect, and how late the place stays awake.
- Connecting rooms
- Available
- Nightlife
- Lively, bars running late
Tell us the trip, we'll tell you the resort
Tell us your dates, budget, and who's traveling, and we'll point you to the best-fit resorts. Free, no obligation.
Kids' club hours, teen programs and group availability all move with the season. Confirm the specifics with the resort for your dates.
When to go
Best months: Nov to Apr
Temperature barely moves here across the year, so rain is the whole decision: the wet months run Aug to Nov. Hurricane season is real here: about 1 in 7 Augusts sees one pass within 100 miles, most recently Melissa in 2025.
Jan
Best86°F / 30°C4 rain daysFeb
Best86°F / 30°C3 rain daysMar
Best88°F / 31°C3 rain daysApr
Best88°F / 31°C4 rain daysMay
Wet88°F / 31°C8 rain daysJun
Wet90°F / 32°C6 rain daysJul
Fine91°F / 33°C4 rain daysAug
Wet91°F / 33°C6 rain daysSep
Wet90°F / 32°C9 rain daysOct
Wet90°F / 32°C11 rain daysNov
Best88°F / 31°C7 rain daysDec
Best86°F / 30°C4 rain days
Average daily highs and monthly rain days. Seasonal averages, not a forecast.
Monthly climate data & hurricane history
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average daily high | 86 degrees Fahrenheit | 86 degrees Fahrenheit | 88 degrees Fahrenheit | 88 degrees Fahrenheit | 88 degrees Fahrenheit | 90 degrees Fahrenheit | 91 degrees Fahrenheit | 91 degrees Fahrenheit | 90 degrees Fahrenheit | 90 degrees Fahrenheit | 88 degrees Fahrenheit | 86 degrees Fahrenheit |
| Rain days | 4 days | 3 days | 3 days | 4 days | 8 days | 6 days | 4 days | 6 days | 9 days | 11 days | 7 days | 4 days |
| hurricane odds | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | 1 in 7 | 1 in 9 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 | under 1 in 10 |
| Verdict | Best | Best | Best | Best | Wet | Wet | Fine | Wet | Wet | Wet | Best | Best |
Odds count the complete years, 1980 to 2025, in which a hurricane passed within about 100 nautical miles of Jamaica, the nearest point in the NOAA and IBTrACS records to this resort. Two storms in one month still count that year once. How the hurricane belt works
Getting to Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay
- Nearest airport
- MBJ · Sangster International Airport
- Approximate transfer
- 90 minutes
- Transportation
- The resort lists transfers at extra cost. Your package may differ.
Your own driver. Possibly a lower price.
A personalized airport pickup could cost less than a taxi or shared shuttle. Compare private transfer prices before you decide.
Check my transfer price (opens in a new tab)We may earn a commission if you book through this link.
Destination essentials & trip planning
8MW8+4JV, Norman Manley Blvd, Negril, Jamaica · +1 876-957-5900
Jamaica
- Language
- English (plus Patois)
- Currency
- Jamaican dollar; USD widely accepted
- Power
- 110V, Type A/B plugs (same as the US)
- Driving
- On the left
- Main airport
- Montego Bay (MBJ)
- Flight time
- ~3–4h from the US East Coast
Who it suits
Three of the 10 categories we score in the Palmprint file for Hotel Riu Palace Tropical Bay; the full set is above.
What we'd book around it
Affiliate · commission at no cost to youFlights
Fly into MBJ, 90 minutes from the gate; round trips from about $451.
Search fares (opens in a new tab)Insurance
Storms move flights in season, and the cheapest rates are usually non-refundable.
Compare cover (opens in a new tab)Data
An eSIM for the flight and the beach; Wi-Fi is included on the resort but stops at the gate.
Get an eSIM (opens in a new tab)Days out
Off-site excursions cost extra here, so price the days out of Jamaica ahead.
See excursions (opens in a new tab)Kayaks & paddleboards is already in the rate. Don't pay for them twice.
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