RIU Hotels & Resorts has opened its first property in Thailand, the 504-room Hotel Riu Palace Phuket on Mai Khao Beach. The five-star, all-inclusive resort officially began operations on September 7, 2026, adjacent to Sirinat National Park and roughly 16 kilometres from Phuket International Airport.
Key Facts At A Glance
- Property: Hotel Riu Palace Phuket, RIU’s first hotel in Thailand
- Location: Mai Khao Beach, northwest Phuket, next to Sirinat National Park
- Opening date: September 7, 2026
- Room count: 504 total, including 49 Elite Club by RIU rooms
- Distance: 16km from Phuket International Airport, about 40km from Phuket’s historic centre
- Dining and bars: six restaurants, seven bars
- Wellness and family: six swimming pools, Renova Spa, gym, steam bath, RiuLand kids’ club
- Sustainability features: solar panels on two service buildings, rainwater harvesting for landscape irrigation
RIU Hotels & Resorts, the Spanish hospitality group, has entered the Thai market with the opening of Hotel Riu Palace Phuket, a 504-room beachfront resort on Mai Khao Beach in northwest Phuket. The property officially opened on September 7, 2026, according to the company’s launch announcement, becoming RIU’s first hotel in Thailand and extending its 24-hour All-Inclusive model into one of Southeast Asia’s most established beach destinations.
The resort sits directly on Mai Khao Beach, bordered by Sirinat National Park, an area known for its undeveloped coastline and sea turtle nesting grounds. It is located approximately 16 kilometres from Phuket International Airport, positioning it closer to the airport than many established resort clusters further south, while its distance of roughly 40 kilometres from Phuket’s historic centre keeps it removed from the island’s busier southern nightlife districts such as Patong.
Hotel Riu Palace Phuket offers 504 guestrooms and suites, including 49 rooms under the Elite Club by RIU designation. Elite Club guests receive a separate reception, an exclusive restaurant and pool, and access to selected swim-up rooms with private pools, along with benefits such as late check-out and welcome amenities.
Dining and beverage facilities span six restaurants and seven bars. The main buffet restaurant, Chantra, is joined by the Thai specialty restaurant Ruen Siam, the Italian restaurant Il Gusto, a steakhouse, a grill concept called Pepe’s Food, and a restaurant reserved for Elite Club guests. Bar offerings include a lobby bar, lounge bar, sports bar, a swim-up bar, and a coffee and ice cream shop.
Wellness and recreation facilities include six swimming pools, one dedicated to children, along with a comprehensive Renova Spa, a fully equipped gym, a steam bath, and an outdoor palapa for massage services. A meditation and prayer area is positioned in front of the spa building. Families are served by the RiuLand kids’ club, which offers a daily programme of activities and two dedicated children’s pools.
The resort has incorporated sustainability measures into its construction, including solar panels installed on two buildings within the service area to generate clean energy, and a rainwater harvesting system that reuses collected water to irrigate gardens and green spaces on the property.
RIU chief executive Luis Riu personally visited the Phuket construction site during the final stages of development to review finishes ahead of the opening, according to the company. The Thailand debut follows a broader pattern of RIU international expansion, with the group also developing a new Riu Palace property in Zanzibar as part of its wider 2026 growth plans.
The scale of the investment, at just over 500 rooms with a comprehensive all-inclusive offering, positions RIU to compete directly with established international resort brands already operating on the island. Industry coverage of the opening has noted that Phuket’s all-inclusive segment remains comparatively underdeveloped relative to other Southeast Asian beach markets, a gap RIU’s entry is intended to address.