Winter Sun - Getting sick and overall final thoughts of the Riu Touareg

Feeling unwell while I’m on holiday seems inevitable for me, even though I had a face mask on all the way on the plane. It was no different while we were at the Riu Touareg. I brought some painkillers and basic supplies with us, but since both my OH and I were unwell at one point or another over the 4 weeks with sinus pain, sore throat and queasiness, these were quickly used up.

Where I would just take a short walk to the pharmacy back home, or pop into the nearest supermarket, things aren’t quite as simple when you are away. There is nothing around the hotel, as I have said before, and I really mean nothing. So when I started with my sore throat, I took a walk to the on-site shops thinking they would stock simple painkillers, or something for sinus pain or sore throats.

No, they don’t. One shop has mostly crisps and sweets. As if there isn’t enough food choice on offer in the restaurants! But these shops always seemed busy, one shop did have a small shelf of feminine hygiene products, and another shop has mostly pool inflatables and toys. I was about to settle on some Fisherman’s Friends, hoping they would clear my sinuses and help with the pain, but then realised the shop will only accept credit & debit cards on transactions over 15 euros, which I wasn’t even close to reaching. We hadn’t brought any cash, since we were all-inclusive and everything was arranged a bit last minute. Plus we had a travel credit card if we wanted any extras while here, or so I thought. There is an onsite doctor, but I felt like I would be wasting their time, and had been told it would be at least 60 euros for an appointment. I wouldn’t go to a doctor in the UK with what I had, so I just had to make do and hope it passed quickly. A few days later, I was mostly back to normal, so we continued enjoying our time away.

Later in the holiday, OH had a similar sort of thing, but he seemed much worse. He didn’t leave the hotel room for about three days and didn't manage to eat anything in that time. This was worse, but still we felt just some painkillers would help, but we didn’t have any left. I spoke to our in-resort Tui reps, and was told I would have to get a taxi into the town and back which we had already been told was 30 euros each way. I also asked the 24-hour support in the App, and they said the hotel could arrange for someone to pick some up and have a taxi just bring it to the hotel, meaning it would be 30 euros plus the cost of the tablets. This was fine, but we still didn’t have any cash to pay for the taxi etc….

My last ditch attempt was Facebook. I found a group for the hotel and put out a plea to anyone in the resort. We had some sterling with us, so could pay the person with that. I will say I got quite a few replies offering help from staff members of the hotel, and one of the taxi/tour groups for the next day, but a very kind lady said she had some there that I could collect straight away. So, as soon as I had finished my lessons for the day, I headed off to the pool to find her. She said she had been to the resort a few times before so know how hard it was to get hold of simple medication and had brought extra, she didn’t even want anything for them. She just asked me to pass on the good deed. There are still some amazing people out there, and a massive shout-out of thanks to her for her kindness. With the medication OH soon started to improve, and was able to enjoy the rest of the holiday. Note to self, bring some local currency if you can. Annoyingly, when I got home I found some leftover Euros in a draw that I could have brought. D'Oh!

TIP If you think you might need any medication while you are away, bring them with you. There are very few supplies on site and getting to the bigger city can be quite expensive.

So what do I think of the hotel after the time I spent there?

I really enjoyed the time there, but I think 4 weeks was enough since there really wasn't much to explore around the hotel. It did force us to slow down and relax, which was nice since we wouldn't have done at home because there are still a lot of things to organise. We were MUCH warmer than we would have been in the UK, which was the main reason for the holiday in the first place. Being able to walk around in shorts and a t-shirt and sit out at night, rather than having to put on the many layers that we would have to wear to go out back home in the UK, was amazing. The staff in all areas of the hotel were all really helpful and friendly, yes we had a few minor issues, but the good outweighed the bad ten times over. Would I say it is a five-star hotel? When I think of what a 5-star hotel is, I think of places like The Savoy or The Dorchester in London. I wouldn't say the Riu Touareg is quite in their league, but I would rate it as a four-star hotel. The hotel has really tried to make sure everything you need for a week or two is there for you if you want it, and obviously, some people have been back many times already.

Another good thing about this trip was that we used it as a trial run for the relocation to Barbados. I could fully test my working remotely, which all worked great, so I now have more confidence in being able to teach my great regular students when we move without any problems.

We were able to try our warm-weather wardrobe, and how much (or little) we would need to take with us. Since the trip, OH has decided he can cut back even more, and I think I can let a few more items go as well. We only really want to have a bag each, plus one for Luna so if it isn't worth its weight and space, it definitely isn't coming with us.

Even though I'm now back in the UK, and it is dark, cold and wet here, I don't feel as I would normally if I hadn't had some winter sun. It was well worth the money we spent just for the slightly better mental health from the vitamin D.

My last tip for you from this location

Tip -Before coming to the hotel I had seen the option to join the Riu membership programme via their app. This is a free membership called Riu Class, that gives you some benefits in the resort. I liked it because it gives you access to Wi-Fi in more areas, and up to 4 devices connected at one time. You can purchase more if you need them. You do get other benefits from the membership, but this was the biggest one in the resort that I saw and I found it very useful, especially as it was free!