We went to Royal Isabela last night to enjoy the sunset, have a cocktail and then dinner at La Casa. The experience was a mixed bag. Good cocktails and then an hour wait for our appetizer. Then we proceeded to our table for dinner. We waited 20 minutes for water, then had to remind the waiter for our wine we had ordered (a 30 minute wait) and then to top that off, our main course arrived an hour later. There was absolutely nothing special about this experience. No one on the staff tried to make up for any of this. We will not likely return. What a disappointment. read more

6/10 stars . Positives : Let's start with our room- we had the presidential suite: number 20. It's the largest and has a walk out balcony that ends cliff side and has lounge chairs with a view of the beach below. The walk in showers are fantastic. The oversized private hot tub is great . The grounds are nothing short of phenomenal. By far the nicest in all of Isabella. Sunsets galore and ocean views that go on for miles. In summary : If you want to come here and not interact with anyone, order room service and hang out at your 1000 sq ft suite, take dips in your private hot tub and then wash off with open doors to the nature under a rain head shower .....then this place is phenomenal. I would come again, but only under these circumstances. Let's first note that I read all the reviews on the property before I booked here. I chalked the negative ones up to just "temperamental guests"..... Unfortunately, I was proven wrong. During our stay I tried to continue to tell myself that this is island life", "things here are on island time" ...."they probably have a hard time with retaining of employees" (among other excuses). ---- But then I came to realize, I'm still paying 1000$ usd a night to stay here plus meals...That being the case - it's not acceptable at any level. I'm tired of making excuses for bad service in the service industry and continually lowering my expectations so as not to ever get upset. Negatives: 1.) Child friendly!?!: (why ? .... this is a golf resort and has no childcare or child amenity's). We couldn't seem to get away from crying babies at dinner every night. This isn't acceptable when we paid over 100$-250$ for two people at each sitting to eat. Yet Management just accepts this !?!? Night 1: we had to watch a father change a dirty diaper on the golf course in front of our ocean view at dinner! Yumm! Night 2: we had to move tables to escape the same crying infant. Take your crying baby back to the room! Annoying ! Night 3: we had to ask for another table to make sure not to sit next to the same baby at diner (again crying). And yet again... the father proceeded to change the diaper again on a communal sofa right behind us at the restaurant ( Situations like this are not stellar experiences while eating lobster and steaks by the ocean.) 2.) Dining: Each meal takes at least 2 hours from start to finish even if you order your entire meal the minute you sit down. That being said, the food is amazing. Each dish was expertly prepared. Some of the waitstaff was great (Jessica) but most were not. Some even had AirPods in their ear while serving us. Their pizza oven was broken for our entire stay due to a bad part. (Disappointed to say the least since as their website boasts about their amazing pizzas). Sometimes we went to the golf shop restaurant... (to escape the 1.5 hour or more sit down experience at the main dining restaurant) and then more problems... ultimately, we were forced to order what we got the last time we came to eat at the pro shop (since none of the employees could find the menu ....---Not acceptable for paying 1000$ per night !--- 3.) Our arrival : we were told our driver would take us to our room and show us the property and explain how everything worked. ---- He said nothing! And didn't show us the property. We were left to decipher how the resort worked, ---just a bad start. Not acceptable for 1000$ per night! 4). Cleaning : if you call the maids, they will take all day to come. They will enter and replace towels but not clean or make the bed. Then, You will have to call at least twice more for them to actually show up and change the sheets and clean. I've had better housekeeping at a Holiday Inn. 5). Room service: The one time we ordered they brought the wrong food. 6). Management: Basically, You will be told different things by different people. Nothing is consistent.- why did you not sit down with us and go over everything? Especially since you asked if we were first time guests? Let me teach you how to manage the new guests : mention how to book massages, where the fitness room was, how there was an Easter brunch on Sunday, how there was live music for our entertainment on Weekends ....and so on and so on... :( but we got none of this. --not acceptable for 1000$ per night- 7.) Upon leaving: the manager had to ask us our casa number to check us out. (crazy since she was the same person who checked us in) -really made you feel not special. Also, she was basically just a human credit card machine reader. She didn't ask us anything about our stay or how we liked it.... It just makes you feel great....like you want to come again. (especially considering you just spent what most Americans spend on a car to stay there for 7 days)! Can you Please fix this resort!!! It is amazingly beautiful and it's a shame to leave your guests so underwhelmed by the way it's run. read more

The Royal Isabela is a gorgeous property. I have stayed here many times. The front desk woman who is a long time employee is jaded, not friendly and I find her very nonchalant. The best employee are those who are connected to the place and care about the experience you have. I can overlook the worn out furniture. But, the way people make you feel is a lasting impression. After a drive 2 hours to get here, I arrived at 1:00. I was told that if I wanted an early check in I would have to pay 100.00 extra. I have never heard such a thing. The room was ready and I have to pay to be let in. Unbelievable. No smile, no welcome drink. I was due to stay for 4 days; I'm leaving this place because of the unfriendly staff. Yesterday I called the front desk 3 times!! No one answered. It feels like the place has a dry personality. I just came from a hotel that was super friendly, helpful, accommodating and made you feel welcomed. A famous quote says. People will often forget what you said. But, will remember how you made them feel. That woman needs to learn how to smile and be friendly. You can easily renovate a place. Is it possible to create buena vibra? I've been here before the place got sold and honestly the vibe was different. It feels sad now. Goodbye Royal Isabela and good luck to the new owners. read more

The views were great, but this was one of the most over priced courses I have played. Every single green had patches of sand and missing grass, no beverage cart on the course, and our cart died on the 4th hole.. For $300 a round you would think they had it together. They need some help for sure. It's a 1 and done at that course. So many other courses on the island that are better and cheaper. read more

This property is a hidden gem on the west side of the island! Jota restaurant on the grounds has some of the most delicious food. This place is a must see and stay!! Each of the villas come with their own plunge pool and stunning view of the ocean. Definitely recommend this hotel for a romantic getaway! The best. read more

This place has so much potential, it is a real shame that you can't even order a martini at a "4 star" hotel. Air conditioning broke, shower broke, pool broke, restaurant is awful and doesn't have top shelf liquor (at least the grocery store down the street does). Do NOT judge this place off of the photos, your expectations will come nowhere close to the reality. This place has clearly been ravaged by hurricanes and covid and will likely never fully recover. Management is clearly content to sit back and collect nearly $1k/night while providing terrible service. Not worth the money in the slightest. read more

When contemplating a stay at the Royal Isabela my only hesitation was the strong focus on the resort's golf course. Neither of us golf and have never vacationed at a hotel with a prominent golf focus. After four nights here I can confidently recommend this gorgeous resort to non-golfers. The rooms are spacious, freestanding villas. They're well appointed and each comes with its own veranda and plunge pool plus a separate hot tub. If you're looking for a serious escape, this peaceful Puerto Rican paradise is it. An easy drive from San Juan, the Royal Isabela is perched above the Atlantic Ocean on the northwest coast of the island with sweeping views of the sea. You're virtually guaranteed to have the beach pretty much to yourself, though it's a bit of a walk to get down to it. The restaurant's pretty fantastic. We liked it so much we even took a cooking lesson with Chef Jose Carles. He showed us the farm where much of the produce is grown and we made squid ink pasta by hand which we later enjoyed as our lunch. It was definitely a highlight of our stay at the Royal Isabela. (Especially when we saw our dish appear on the menu that evening!) If you're into especially attentive staff or lots of activities, you may be less happy here (sometimes it felt like we were the only ones there, and the yoga room is a bit of a joke). But if you can manage capably on your own and really want to get away from it all, I can scarcely think of a better place. And if you like to swim, the lap pool is top notch. One little luxury that I love at a resort is a washing machine. How nice is it to be able to wash a load when you've been on a vacation for awhile, right? I'm happy to report that Royal Isabela has a self serve laundry room (read: no coins needed) near the salt water pool. It's a major shame that there are no direct flights to Puerto Rico from the San Francisco Bay Area. If there were, I think you'd find me escaping to this Caribbean island - and the Royal Isabela - on a much more regular basis. read more

Absolutely gorgeous views ! Privacy and just epic rooms ! Your room is a private casita 1,5k sq ft of beauty ! The views are to die for ! It is a golf course as well so if you play bring your clubs ! We don't golf but we didn't really see any golfers since the course is so well placed and spread out through the property ! As non golfers we really enjoyed every perk they had ! Stunning but difficult walk to a private beach ! No don't swim there it's super rough and no lifeguards ! Private pool/jacuzzi on every casita ! Plus a bigger pool that each guest can use .. we spent three days here after our 10 day cruise and we were so happy with everything ! Room service was quick and professional! The food was amazing for breakfast highly recommend the French toast and coconut sorbet ! The fruit smoothie was bomb too ! You bet we will be back ! It was amazing ! Thank you royal Isabella staff and management for making our stay so memorable! Y'all rock ! Thank you fellow yelpies for reading my reviews ! Honest and transparent is how I yelp ! Check out the massage ! Serenity spa is absolutely amazing and they came straight to our casita ... absolutely amazing ! We are so happy we had them come ! read more

Royal Isabela - When you walk in this is what you see ! Stunning ! - Hotels Near Me - Isabela, Puerto Rico

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This was a strange experience. Firstly, arriving and being told where the place was by a less than friendly guard, led to quite a bit of confusion and it took us a while to find the place. When we did, there was no host or staff in site and I had to go find someone inside to figure out if we could be seated. Fine - we were seated. About 8-10 minutes before we get a menu, even longer before we get water. Waiter forgets one of my items (orange juice). Staff runs around slamming doors, seeming incredibly stressed even though there weren't that many people there. Whenever a server asks us something or we ask them something, everything is very stressed, fast and they almost seem annoyed. Food isn't bad but comes sort of a little bit there and a little bit here. No checkup on us after the food arrives. The orange juice I didn't get is on the check. Waiter asks if I want it to go - pretty clear it's because he isn't in the mood to actually remove it from the check - but I ask him to anyway. Strange experience. Not horrible - but certainly nothing that makes me want to return or recommend this place to anyone. read more

Omg this spot is excellent for an "after five". The bartender was very accommodating and made a 24 carat upon request even though it was not on the drink menu. Two thumbs up read more

The resort is beautiful. But that's about it. There is maybe 3 people working on actual food service. You will wait for your meals 45-1hour even while sitting at the restaurant. There are no service amenities at all. No spa other than in room by outside people. No bar service at the pool. It's as if they only want you to come here and golf for one day. If you are in AA and love to golf, this is the place for you. If you enjoy a drink on vacation, this is not the place for you. As I said, the resort is beautiful but it is not a guest friendly hotel. This is not worth $800 a night. Please save yourself some money go to a place with actual service. read more

This was the perfect place to celebrate my anniversary. Customer service provided by the waiter Nelson and the GM Angel was impeccable and the timing was just right. I honestly have no cons to write about. The view from this place during the day is amazing and during the night even more. There is so little light pollution that you can see so many stars on the sky. I absolutely LOVED IT. read more

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We only stopped for brunch on our way from a much cheaper hotel we were staying at in Isabela. Looks like a really nice place to stay, perched up on a big hill overlooking the ocean. La casa is a house built around a giant tower, very cool looking. We ordered a smoothie to start, which was too sweet for my wife but okay for me as it was just honey as a sweetner. She had the french toast, which was long fluffy and lightly toasted strips you could dip in the syrup. The pancakes were pretty good but the fact they came with a light hash and fresh greens make it a solid breakfast. Reservations recommended as they have to buzz your car through a gate if you're not staying at the hotel. read more

Royal Isabela - Great French toast - Hotels Near Me - Isabela, Puerto Rico

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Spectacular land/nature luxury setting on the ocean. Individual bungalows with private plunge pools. Amazing restaurant. Cute town.

Great food, beautiful place. Food menu is fresh, it changes every day. Prices are high but considering everything, is your money's worth.

Our experience here was very unfortunate. Service at the front desk was poor, none of my requests detailed in my 3 night reservation made months in advance were taken into consideration. No manager was available to escalate this as it was her day off, seriously?! On top of everything our casita was unclean with food leftovers on the sink, after 5 minutes a cockroach appeared in one of the drawers. After reporting this we left the property within an hour of having arrived. No apologies or options were offered to us. In addition, the room and facilities are in very poor condition. Funiture and sofas stained and worned out. Patio furniture in very bad shape and almost unusable. Not worth the money or inconveniences! Avoid it as there are many other great options in the island and certainly much less expensive. read more

Heaven on Earth. If you want to get away from it all, not meet people in a hall walking to you room, like to enjoy uncovered views of the Caribbean Sea right from your shower...this is the place for you. And there is so much to do as well, if you decide you want to leave your room. Tennis, golf putting green, driving range AND award winning golf course, walking paths and hikes, Olympic sized pool, and an award-winning restaurant, with the best pizzas on the West Coast. read more

Reservation for lunch on the 28th of October and they seemed surprise to have lunch guest. Upon locating a wait staff and got seated the menu was limited. We were told the fresh was thawing and was not ready. That would make it frozen fish not fresh. This limited the menu options as the fresh catch had not thawed out as of yet. So so disappointed read more

Crazy course, good price. So many blind shots! I counted 11 before i stooped counting. This is a balls out tough course making a good recovery from Maria, the devastating hurricane of 2017. I paid 85 bucks midweek. An amazing deal. read more

THE BEST!!! We like to pride ourselves in knowing the nice spots of Puerto Rico.... but how have we missed this gem until now?! The ultimate in it all... The Scenery. This spot is breathtaking! They took a gamble and put their golf course along the coast which makes for 18 holes that you will not find anywhere else! This also means that the casitas are set in places that you won't find at most island resorts. Yes, I like the beach right there, yes I like being steps from the ocean but, not to sound snobbish, I have had that at many other places. Oceanfront is not that uncommon when it comes to resorts. What is uncommon are private villas set in the lush hills looking down upon the sea. What is uncommon is the sound of the waves below and water running down the hillside streams nearby. What is uncommon is greenery and a breeze. What is uncommon is a ocean front stairway, perfectly situated to take you to a private beach that is an attraction is above itself. Isabella is unlike anywhere else, it uncommon. It is special! The casitas. These take the cake! (Like, if I had a cake right here, right now...I would give it to them!!) The amenities are second to none! The bed, onlooking a view that is not found anywhere else. The living room accommodating to some inside relaxing on one of the two (count them...and they don't have the annoying hotel TV set up..) flat screen tv's. But lets be honest...the casita is broken down to two stars, the bathroom (three shower heads in addition to a rain showered in a shower "room!" that opens up to the open air ocean view..... And the patio. Can you call a place that has it's own salt water plunge pool a patio? Can you call a place that is so private that clothes are not a requirement while still having a view of it all, a patio? Can you call a place where you can read on the lounge chairs or eat pizza and drink a couple of their all inclusive Medella beers in the sitting area, a patio? I don't know. Maybe we should just call it the "perfect patio". The restaurant. The food here was something I was hoping for but really wasn't expecting. I knew the setting would be gorgeous, but I didn't know the food would be this good! Forward thinking, fresh and innovative, the restaurant made us never need to leave the property. We literally didn't even think about it. Last but not least, the People. William. Forget a patio, what can be said of a "William"?? If every business had one of him they would all be as successful as the Royal Isabella. But just like the view, or the casita, or the golf course, or the food... William is uncommon, William is special. As much as I miss it all, I am happy that all of the uncommonness and the specialness of The Royal Isabela is right were it's at, just waiting for our return. We will be there! read more

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The best place Ever! The best hotel in PR and even Caribbean. Once you visit this place nothing surpassed to this place! read more

Beautiful location, gorgeous architecture, amazing landscaping, food was good, service is courteous but untrained. If you are presenting yourself as five star than BE five star and train your staff. read more

Perfect Getaway! Very secluded and private. You almost feel like the only ones on the property. Great farm to table restaraunt; most of the produce is farmed on site and everything is made to order. Private plunge pools in every casita, beautiful views, beach access (my husband and I were the only ones there when we went), and friendly staff. If you are looking to really take some time away from everything this is the place. read more

At Royal Isabela you will be treated like royalty. The place has a lovely sunset, great food, great accommodations and all the privacy you need to enjoy your stay or a visit at the bar. read more

FRAUDS!!! this was my second time coming back to resort and was treated poorly on my birthday I had to leave a day early due to family emgerceny and they told me It was fine . has I did my check out my total was 1,006.26 and I say the charge fine in my bank out of no where I start looking at my purse and noticed when we were in the airport that they kept and practically stoled from me when checked again my bank account. I was charged with another 377$ which is an extra date when I wasn't even there or staying there anymore !!! THEY KEPT MY CARD AND MY ID AND HAD MY PERSONAL NUMBER WHICH THEY DID NOT CALL ME OR ANYTHING TO RETURN I WILL BE DOING A POLICE REPORT BEWARE AND GO STAY IN San Juan 5 STARS ONLY THIS PEOPLE STEAL FROM ME ! read more

Very peaceful and relax place to enjoy nature. The food at the restaurant was excellent from breakfast to dinner. Looking forward to our next visit. read more

Royal Isabela I love you ! We had an amazing time, your service was impeccable and very accommodating! The rooms were beautiful, and very clean! I honestly had just the most amazing views of the mountains and sea. My only gripe would be the bed! It was not as comfortable as I would have liked. That's The only reason I gave four stars. The food was fantastic, and anyone who golfs would love your course. Sunsets in your little casita was like having A piece of paradise in your own backyard. The shower could probably fit about five people comfortably, not that you would do that, but it was amazing! A total of three shower heads, A rain shower in the middle, the standard detachable shower head, and also a regular shower. The tub is huge and deep and it's also divided from shower. We were able to get fresh towels when needed, and you wind up using a lot! The staff was great and recommend some great places to go, things to see and bars that were local. The neighborhood looked a little poor when we drove around. Jobos Beach was close and had some great places to eat. All in all I loved my stay, and would definitely recommend it! Can't wait to do it again! read more

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