Mexico Los Cabos recommend a resort?

[Redlyne_jr]

Thinking of booking a trip down to mexico to escape winter for a week sometime in December. Settled on Los Cabos, who has been where? any resort recommendations? Looking for a 4.5+, good food, preferably a younger crowd..

:clap: :clap:

[colinxx235]

Riu in Cabo probably the nicest resort I've been to in Mexico.

As for young people, all resorts are hit or miss. At christmas can get lucky. But I found groups usally go more towards the cheaper resorts so a 4.5+ star doesn't help. Regardless, hard to regret going to the Riu.


edit: Oops I meant the Riu Palace in Cabo... gorgeous

[lasimmon]

There are a few RIU resorts in cabo.

I stayed at the RIU Santa Fe in may and it was a wonderful experience. Food was good and plentiful. Drinks were good.

There was 1 swim up "party pool". A main pool for family's and a more relaxed swim up pool. Lots of young people.

I'd definitely recommend this resort. And I would go back.

[Redlyne_jr]

Originally posted by colinxx235
Riu in Cabo probably the nicest resort I've been to in Mexico.

As for young people, all resorts are hit or miss. At christmas can get lucky. But I found groups usally go more towards the cheaper resorts so a 4.5+ star doesn't help. Regardless, hard to regret going to the Riu.

True but everywhere i read says you wanna stay in a 4.5+ unless you wanna eat shit quality food.. Considering food is kind of important im putting that on the top of the list..

Who do you guys book through? iv explored a couple different websites

exitnow.com
expedia.com
redflag.com

any others that i am missing..

[lasimmon]

I use Expedia or red tag.

My trip to cabo in may was ~$1000 on Expedia.

[Redlyne_jr]

Originally posted by lasimmon
I use Expedia or red tag.

My trip to cabo in may was ~$1000 on Expedia.

Edit the palace and santa fe are attached are they not? palace is right on the beach?

[lasimmon]

I believe if you stay at the palace you can go to the Santa Fe but not vice versa. And I'm pretty sure the palace has beach access. The santa Fe for sure.

Myself and 2 girls hopped the fence and went to the palace. But got kicks out like peasants haha.

There are stairs between the 2... Not sure why we hopped te fence.

[colinxx235]

Palace and sante fe are attached. Palace has higher end rooms, better food/restaurants, amenities etc.

You are 100% correct about the food comment. I was more stating that if your goal is to shoot for younger party crowds its tough unless you pick a time like spring break. Good thing about staying at palace is you get the nicer hotel but get a mix of crowds between the two. Sante fe can bring some good younger crowds. Makes the night life/day life better with beach activities or just drinking.


Check expedia, west jet vacations, red tag. sometimes you luck out and one site is just cheaper

[A790]

Went to the Riu Palace to visit. It was nice. I've stayed at other Riu's before and they're are certainly great resorts. I'd stay at any one of them without pause. :)

Stayed at the Barcelo Los Cabos for 7 nights. Loved it. Had a blast. Would go back there again. More adult in feel, great decor. Food/service was always good. 5 minute cab fare from San Jose del Cabo, 20 minutes from Cabo San Lucas. Definitely one of the best all inclusive's I've visited :)

Oh, and free internet access on your TV w/ keyboard and mouse. And it was decently fast too (we streamed South Park haha).

[jus_sum_guy]

Barcelo, any of the RIU and Melia are your best bets.

If you want a GUARANTEED young crowd party hotel, check out Desire....a little risque there tho :D

[Proyecto2000]

I stayed at Barcelo Los Cabos last winter and it was AWESOME! I recommend upgrading to the premium package

[dannie]

Stayed at the Riu Palace and I agree with the comments about the food. The thing that I didnt know before we got there, was that swimming at the beach at the hotel, is virtually none.

[Redlyne_jr]

Originally posted by dannie
Stayed at the Riu Palace and I agree with the comments about the food. The thing that I didnt know before we got there, was that swimming at the beach at the hotel, is virtually none.

Im confused both resorts don't have beach access? I was under the impression Palace had beach access and the Santa Fe was directly behind the palace and didnt have access?

[colinxx235]

Nah what he's referring to is that a lot of people don't swim at that resort.

Lots of the beaches in cabo are very rocky and have to be careful.

That resort specifically is where those two guys died surfing (3 years ago...?) My parents were actually at the resort that day.

[lasimmon]

Unsure about the palace, but the Santa Fe has direct beach access.

People don't swim there because of the big waves an massive undertow. Very easy to get sucked out and drown, even for strong swimmers. Most of the Cabo area is like this.

There is a swimming beach in town however.

[dannie]

Santa fe and palace are attached to each other. Santa fe is at the back of the property (so no views of the ocean) and the palace is at the beach front. Both have the same access to the beach, but the beach has a massive undertow. The week we were there, no one went swimming because you couldn't.

So, if swimming in the ocean at the hotel is a make or break, look elsewhere

[Hi-Psi]

We went to the Riu Sante Fe from May 6-13 for a stag with 18 guys.

We loved the resort and had an absolute blast in town almost every night!

We killed that resort, such a good time! The amount of women was absolutely ridiculous too!

[lasimmon]

Originally posted by Hi-Psi
We went to the Riu Sante Fe from May 6-13 for a stag with 18 guys.

We loved the resort and had an absolute blast in town almost every night!

We killed that resort, such a good time! The amount of women was absolutely ridiculous too!

Don't want to sound bad... But was the groom a big black guy?

[danno]

If you stay at the palace you will be closer to the beach, if you stay at the Santa Fe you may be far from the beach, 10 min walk. But you can upgrade your room so your room is around the party pool and closer to the beach , that's what we did. I wouldn't swim in the ocean as it drops off very fast. The pool is very nice though. I was there 4 years ago and the food was some of the best I've had on any all inclusive. In town is kinda like cancun. You can walk to town on the beach from he riu it was about a hour walk with not to much to see as far as I am concerned.

[Hi-Psi]

Originally posted by lasimmon


Don't want to sound bad... But was the groom a big black guy?

haha yeah he was, his name is Jeff.

Did you hang out with any of us?

[JordanAndrew]

Stayed the the Riu Palace and also in Riu Santa Fe this year last March for my friend's bachelor party. It's a great resort and if I had another chance, I'd go again in a heart beat.

It does have direct access to the beach, didn't really go swimming in the beach as we were always at the pools getting shit faced with the unlimited booze.

Food was pretty good, I suggest booking reservations at the restaurants in the Palace to get in without any hassle. You can also bribe the people working there to get you a table. All the food in inclusive and if you do stay in the Palace, you get access to both the Riu Santa Fe and Riu Palace's amenities.

Awesome place to party if that's what you're into and the cab ride downtown works out to be $3-$5 per person. You'd want to go downtown if you want to party late at night as all the popular bars are open until 3-4am at night. There are no covers for the bars but the drink prices are the comparable to a normal night out here in Calgary, so around $6/drink.

Tons of strippers around, some offer free drinks and free trial lap dances too. We went to a couple and these girls are all hands on. Just saying, haha! :D

If you stay in Riu, you have beach front view of the arches, I suggest going snorkling over there, it's beautiful!

[kdwebber]

The ocean in front of the Riu Palace in Cabo is tame. The beach where the Gulf of California meets the Pacific however is definitely more dangerous.

The Palace is a nice resort and you can always wander over to Santa Fe to party. Service and food were great, would definitely repeat.

[Darell_n]

My wife booked at the Royal Solarice last night. Not the most expensive, but all the Westjet reviews looked great.

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by Darell_n
My wife booked at the Royal Solarice last night. Not the most expensive, but all the Westjet reviews looked great.

Can I suggest a different hotel? We just got back from there at the end of September (22nd we flew back). There was nothing great about the hotel that really sticks in my mind, and the rooms are really, really dated as well. The food was only okay - the buffet may be all you can eat but they will close it down during the day around 11:30 to force you to the cafe outside the pools (there were also times that you had to wait in line to even get into the buffet). The evening entertainment was mediocre, you had to book the restaurant's the day of only (call right at 9am), and if you don't belong to the Solaris Club you must pay to get premium anything. Further our mattress in our room was awful, I think a piece of plywood would have been softer and we had to 'purchase' a lock for our safe. They can get away with saying they provide in room safes which is true, you just don't get a lock unless you pay for it. I believe it was $3/day. We had friends that met us down there as they flew in from Vancouver and even though we all were celebrating our anniversaries (Sept. 15th for them, Sept. 23rd for us) they got perks that we didn't, even after mentioning it to the front desk. Simple things like robes and slippers and a "thanks for staying here for your anniversary" gift.

All in all it's a cheap hotel on the cheap... I would spend the extra money to stay anywhere else.

[Darell_n]

Thanks for the insight. :thumbsup:

[Ntense_SpecV]

Oh and please, PLEASE don't swim in the ocean outside the hotel. I literally had to drag a drowning lady back in from the ocean who had shown up earlier that day and her and her adult son decided to go play in the ocean. They were from Philadelphia and couldn't swim very well. The son was rescued by a guy from Germany and I rescued her. It's no joke out there and she almost payed with her life.

They installed some new signs but just don't swim at all out there. It's really, really dangerous and the day we flew back someone drowned and the other person swiming with them had to be taken to the hospital. I was informed this by the guy from Germany as he emailed me a couple days later - amazing the kind of friendship that happens when you rescue people together.

[Darell_n]

Where are all the snorkelling and kayak tours then? Obviously not near the hotel. Are there any safe ocean swim areas nearby?

[colinxx235]

^

Yah my parents weren't happy to see the two dead guys during their vacation thats for sure

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by Darell_n
Where are all the snorkelling and kayak tours then? Obviously not near the hotel. Are there any safe ocean swim areas nearby?

The short answer is no. There are no safe ocean swim areas around there. Most of the tours are a boat ride from Cabo itself.

[saiyajin]

hmm maybe im blind but searching up Los Cabos on Expedia and Riu Place and Riu Sante Fe arent there... :dunno:

[kdwebber]

Originally posted by Ntense_SpecV
Oh and please, PLEASE don't swim in the ocean outside the hotel. I literally had to drag a drowning lady back in from the ocean who had shown up earlier that day and her and her adult son decided to go play in the ocean. They were from Philadelphia and couldn't swim very well. The son was rescued by a guy from Germany and I rescued her. It's no joke out there and she almost payed with her life.

They installed some new signs but just don't swim at all out there. It's really, really dangerous and the day we flew back someone drowned and the other person swiming with them had to be taken to the hospital. I was informed this by the guy from Germany as he emailed me a couple days later - amazing the kind of friendship that happens when you rescue people together.

so what you are saying is don't go into the ocean if you can't swim? maybe it was the time of the year I was there but I can't see anyone drowning in front of the Riu Palace

[lasimmon]

Originally posted by kdwebber


so what you are saying is don't go into the ocean if you can't swim? maybe it was the time of the year I was there but I can't see anyone drowning in front of the Riu Palace

There are danger signs everywhere. And I saw a girl drowning in front of the palace. She was saved though. Maybe the rip tide was not as strong. But it is very unpredictable and very dangerous.

[Darell_n]

So we cancelled our reservation in less than 24hrs, so no penalty. We are now looking at the Dominican.

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by kdwebber


so what you are saying is don't go into the ocean if you can't swim? maybe it was the time of the year I was there but I can't see anyone drowning in front of the Riu Palace


No. That's not what I'm saying. I can swim extremely well. I was a lifeguard during highschool, and the rip tides are crazy strong where the Pacific Ocean meets the Gulf of California. It's really easy to get far out but quite difficult to get back to shore. Couple that with all inclusive drinks, poor swimming skills, strong currents and that's how people end up drowning down there.

It's not that they get tired and drown way out, they drown fairly close to the shore line as the struggle and struggle to get back to the shore. Plus there is no consistency to how high the waves break at the shore. You could be standing right at the waters edge and have the water splash at your ankle. The very next wave could hit you mid butt. The wave after that might not make it to you. The wave after that hits mid knee... see the picture. There are many, many people that have drowned in and around Cabo. You must not be too familiar with the area. I've been down 3 times there and the ocean hasn't changed in 8 years. Still dangerous and not really a place for kids/families/older couples to go swimming. This isn't Cancun or Hawaii even.

Also, this wasn't in front of the Riu. You must not have read 2 post's before that. I said we got back in Sept. 22nd of this year, and we stayed at the Royal Solarice. There's a reason they post flags and signs all along the beach from the Estuary all the way past the Grand Mayan.

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by Darell_n
So we cancelled our reservation in less than 24hrs, so no penalty. We are now looking at the Dominican.

Good. I just didn't want you to have the same feeling that I did when I got back, in that the Vacation was fine but nothing really worthwhile. Maybe it was the hotel lacked the vibe as we went during the off season but it just seemed like it was going thru the motions (if that makes any sense) with no real atmosphere.

My wife and I went to Costa Rica for our honeymoon and had the best vacation ever so far. The only other vacation that stands out for me is when I went to Singapore/Malaysia/Indonesia with my parents as a teenager.

My boss went to D.R. this past year...he seemed to like it. When we were down in Costa Rica there was a British couple who said they would never go back to the D.R. and of course I'm not so inclined to go back to Mexico after this past trip so take everyone's opinion with a huge grain of salt. Their reason for not going back was "Guys with guns on the beach".

[kdwebber]

Originally posted by Ntense_SpecV


The short answer is no. There are no safe ocean swim areas around there. Most of the tours are a boat ride from Cabo itself.

I disagree. The ocean in front of the Palace is safe. I swam there last January many times and felt no strong tides or undertows. I'm not disagreeing that Cabo can be unsafe on average but in front of the palace it is not.


Originally posted by Redlyne_jr


Im confused both resorts don't have beach access? I was under the impression Palace had beach access and the Santa Fe was directly behind the palace and didnt have access?

The palace does have beach access. You can rent jet skis, find boat tours, and a few other activities right in front of the palace.

[Hi-Psi]

Originally posted by kdwebber


I disagree. The ocean in front of the Palace is safe. I swam there last January many times and felt no strong tides or undertows. I'm not disagreeing that Cabo can be unsafe on average but in front of the palace it is not.

You are very wrong my friend, trust me, the ocean can be very dangerous in front of both the Palace and the Sante Fe.

It changes on a monthly basis and even from day to day.

[Ntense_SpecV]

Originally posted by Hi-Psi


You are very wrong my friend, trust me, the ocean can be very dangerous in front of both the Palace and the Sante Fe.

It changes on a monthly basis and even from day to day.

Totally agree on the changes from day to day. One morning I could hear the surf smashing on the beach from inside our room because the waves were breaking so hard. The very next day the water seemed to really calm down and you couldn't hear the waves breaking at all, plus we went during their storm season.

[rx7boi]

Agreed with the above about the swimming.

It was my first time going to Mexico with a buddy. We stayed @ the Solaris and the food was decent, staff was friendly and it didn't take more than a couple bucks in tips for them to remember us, even though we continued to tip them everytime afterwards.

The water is so shit that you won't want to stay in there for more than 5 minutes.

Lots of undertow and I wouldn't recommend going out there, there's a reason why there's a bunch of people on the beach but no one in the water.

At least you didn't do what I did and run headstrong into the water Baywatch style :cry: that shit stung like hell from all the salt :rofl: