Hotel Riu Madeira - All Inclusive

First visit to Madeira. From day one you feel part of a family. The hotel is kept immaculate. Food is one of the best we have had. Varied always plenty of room in the restaurant. Evening shows have been very enjoyable. It’s been great fun to learn a little of the Portuguese language getting help from the staff who probably laugh at my efforts to learn. I lost my cap and on return from a day out the reception staff had found it. I was so grateful. Day trips have been very interesting the Maderian people are some of the friendliest people you can meet.
We have even booked to come back next year already.
We would recommend this hotel and Madeira to anyone.
Thank you to all staff reception , restaurant bars.

Beautiful seafront location. Spacious rooms Spotlessly clean throughout. Very good selection of food which was very tasty . All the staff were great. Reception staff very helpful and knowledgeable.
Mimi the hotel cat is adorable.

+friendly staff
+comfortable bed
+nice indoor pool
+nice view
+shuttle bus

-me and my husband spent four days in the room due to stomach bug. Not much to explore as we had only few days left for our Christmas holiday
-very poor entertainment in the evening
-average food and drinks quality

Super Lage, freundliches Personal, tolle Anlage.

Pobyt w Hotelu RIU Madeira był dla mnie bardzo udany i z przyjemnością mogę wystawić najwyższą ocenę. Hotel zachwyca pięknym i eleganckim wystrojem, dużą przestrzenią oraz doskonale zaprojektowanymi wnętrzami. Całość zapewnia wysoki komfort i wygodę podczas wypoczynku.

Pokoje są bardzo komfortowe, przestronne i urządzone z dbałością o detale, a dodatkowym atutem jest piękny widok na ocean, który umila każdy dzień pobytu.
Na szczególne wyróżnienie zasługuje oferta gastronomiczna. Posiłki były bardzo smaczne i urozmaicone – praktycznie od rana do godziny 21:30 można było coś zjeść. Śniadania na najwyższym poziomie, a lunch i kolacja oferowały szeroki wybór dań, w tym dużo ryb i owoców morza oraz świeże warzywa i owoce.

Hotel oferuje świetną infrastrukturę: basen zewnętrzny i wewnętrzny, pool bar, siłownię oraz strefę spa. Przy basenach dostępna była wystarczająca liczba leżaków, co pozwalało na komfortowy wypoczynek. Obsługa była bardzo miła, pomocna i profesjonalna, a w hotelu panowała przyjazna atmosfera.
Wieczorami organizowano program artystyczny w specjalnej sali koncertowej, a następnie muzykę i zabawę do północy, co stanowiło dodatkową atrakcję. Dużym plusem była także możliwość korzystania z posiłków i infrastruktury hotelu po wymeldowaniu z pokoju.
To był wspaniale spędzony czas z rodziną w dniach 6–9 lutego 2026 r. – wypoczęliśmy w bardzo komfortowych warunkach, ciesząc się piękną, ciepłą pogodą, możliwością opalania przy basenie osłoniętym od wiatru oraz kojącym szumem oceanu, który towarzyszył nam przez cały pobyt i zapewniał pełne odprężenie.
Całość oceniam na najwyższym poziomie i z pełnym przekonaniem polecam Hotel RIU Madeira na komfortowy i relaksujący pobyt.

Have visited this hotel on previous occasions, the last one we said we wouldn't return as just before the Easter holidays there were too many children running around, so we figured that being the middle of January it would be quieter ! This is not the type of holiday destination for children, there is nothing for them to do, there were however still some families there. We really just wanted a nice relaxing break and some sun which is what we had, I think we were lucky as the weather can be quite variable in Madeira. Many of the staff are still there as our previous visits, especially Monica and Jonny in the restaurant. We did a couple of trips to Funchal on the free bus, I'm not a fan of Funchal but wanted to go out on a dolphin boat, this we did but out for three hours we didn't see anything. The food is pretty much standard Riu fare there is always something to eat, I avoid the cocktails they are awful but cava is plentiful ! The evening entertainment is not very good and the layout of chairs in the theatre isn't very relaxing, hard dining room type chairs and hardly any tables. We enjoyed our winter break but it took a couple of days to warm up once we got home. The hotel is not far from the airport, we had a taxi to avoid queues ( 20 euro inc tip ), the airport is very busy and there are not enough places to sit.

Location /pool

Very nice hotel tidy and clean rooms were very good as quite large.Vwry helpful and friendly staff. No waiter service in bar areas except for glass collecting you do expect waiter service in a 4 star hotel .You had to que at the bar.Cocktails not the best very watery. Entertainment quite poor but maybe because winter season. A little way from town not walkable but great courtesy bus to funchal and a quick journey from airport.

This was the third time we have stayed in a RIU Hotel and again it did not disappoint! The hotel was extremely clean and all the staff very friendly, helpful and efficient. All meals in the main restaurant were very varied and delicious. The bars and lounges were comfortable. I would highly recommend a stay at the RIU Madeira.

This is our third time at the Riu Madeira - it never disappoints!

We had a junior suite between the three of us - lovely big room with direct sea views, and not overlooked at all.

The staff at the Riu, including the reception staff, cleaning staff, bar staff, catering staff and pool side staff are all lovely, and so helpful!

The hotel is kept spotlessly clean and is well maintained.

There are three pools, all heated, one of which is inside - that is great early in the morning.

The drinks on offer are great - some which you can self serve, which we like.

The evening entertainment is very mediocre - it's the same entertainers doing the same sets every time we go.

The food is great, and the dining room very well managed.

Just coming to the end of a week here with a friend. We were looking for a stress free, relaxing week which we have had. I agree with most of the positive comments and have very few negatives.
The food was excellent, although you learn that the choice of desserts gets less as the evening progresses! The choice, quality and variety were greater than my expectations and as mentioned before, the service in the dining room was first class and friendly. Unfortunately, although efficient, I found the bar staff less welcoming. They have a tough job I’m sure, but service with a smile is always welcomed!
The rooms are spacious and we had a great view from our 6th floor full sea view balcony, which we paid extra for. The sun only comes on it for one half of the day but there are plenty of places to sit outside.
Being January, the weather was quite windy at times and not safe to go on the rocky beach in front of the hotel but as I’m not a fan of the sea, not a problem; we managed to swim in the pool a couple of times as warm enough.
We used the shuttle bus twice but would advise booking a taxi back as the return times are not conducive to a half day visit.
We didn’t go to the evening entertainment apart from once but we didn’t particularly enjoy it.
I would have liked to have seen a greater selection of lighter dumbbells in the gym as it’s a well equipped gym otherwise.
However, all in all, I’d thoroughly recommend this hotel. Yes, it’s outside Funchal but much quieter and therefore more relaxing in my opinion. Organised tours pick up from the hotel so not an issue. As an added bonus very close to the airport without hearing any planes!
Thank you, RIU, you have recharged my batteries!

Amazing

I was on my own and when I arrived, the reception was very efficient and friendly and I was blown away by how beautiful the reception area was.

My bags were taken to my room separately and the room was amazing. I was given a free bottle of Madeira wine.

The food at the hotel was really good (and of an amazing variety) there was something for everybody and everything was hot.
The coffee was particularly good

The staff in the buffet couldn’t have been more helpful and I ate well the whole week

The lounge bar was very well stocked and I never had to wait very long to be served. In addition there were beer wine and coffee machines scattered about

Entertainment was provided every night

The pools were great and there was a towel service there.

The pool bar was open all day and there was a good array of food along with an efficient bar

There was a free bus three times a day to Funchal and I used it five times, it only takes 15/20 mins

I enjoyed the most chilled out and relaxing time and am booking the same week for next year tomorrow

Location
One of the reasons we chose this hotel was that it’s only about 20mins transfer away from the airport, perfect for my wife who just had a knee replacement.

Hats off to RIU Madeira as they offer a free shuttle bus to the capital Funchal, only 20mins away, bookable the day before with 3 outward journeys in the morning and 3 pickups in the afternoon. This we used to see different parts of Funchal on a few days, again making the hotel a great location.

Hotel Surroundings
The hotel is on the coast, and if you go out the back gate, end up on the promenade, lovely for short walks and stunning views. Not a lot else around the hotel to do or go, if you did venture it involved walking up steep paths/roads but not an issue for us as we came for a relaxing break.

Take the opportunity to go for a walk to the Christ statue, a 2hr round trip, uphill on the way there and downhill on the way back just to burn off a few calories.

Reception
The hotel reception is open, spacious and has a good view looking down to the sea.

Rooms
The rooms are spacious, clean with very comfortable beds and a large bathroom with good facilities/shower. The cleaning staff deserve a mention as they did a brilliant job but if you want a lie in leave the do not disturb sign on your door as they tend to make up your rooms before 9am.

Gym/Indoor
There is a gym & a steam room, which had missing tiles, broken tile fragment on the steam room floor & outside changing area gym & steam room, over a number of days so not being cleaned so reported to reception.

Entertainment
I really liked that RIU has a proper indoor stage for entertainment. At 21:15 they put on some act/performance which you could sit down and enjoy. People wanted to dance, have fun but the singers that came on at 19:30 performed to put you to sleep, they played slow uninspiring music. RIU do something about that so that people get up and feel alive. Having a DJ would have created a better atmosphere.

Food and Drink
There was plenty of food, with plenty of choice but by the end of the week could become repetitive. RIU you are missing the opportunity to showcase your chefs’ skills. Allocate an area and make this area a themed/speciality night every evening, “food from Morocco, Italy, Madeira” etc with big posters advertising such as you come into the dining room and around the themed area like it’s a celebration event.

Credit to your dining room staff all who were always very attentive, friendly, efficient and always ready to top up your drinks.

RIU, please do not water down your juices in the dining room to the point some days you could not taste what you were drinking. Also, during the day some drinks are probably made less strong but serving watery alcoholic drinks on the evening when you are relaxing in the bar makes the hotel feel cheap.

Summary
We went in January, even so the hotel was popular but could not comment on if there would be enough sunbeds or pool access in the busy season.

The hotel is not geared up for children so will recommend somewhere else if you have children.

This is a small-scale all-inclusive hotel, compared to others and was not hectic or crowded when we went with good view of the sea and I would stay here again for a relaxing holiday and close location to airport and Funchal.

I don’t really want to write a review as I’d like to keep this little gem of a hotel a secret . But in a nut shell, take on board all the positive reviews and totally ignore the negative. We came here Dec 2025 , loved it so much and have just booked again for November .
It’s faultless.