Fun with a Porpoise
Dolphin Discovery, which has run a swim-with-dolphins facility in Cancún for 16 years, recently opened a US$800,000 outpost in Puerto Los Cabos.
dolphindiscovery.com.mxLocal Update
The 243-room Westin Resort & Spa, Los Cabos is in the process of renovating its deluxe guest rooms, scheduled to be complete in September. Last year, the hotel wrapped up renovations of the 52 Royal Beach Club rooms and upgrades to the Royal Beach Lounge, La Playa restaurant and La Cantina sports bar. The property offers more than 11,900 square feet of function space.
The 119-suite Grand Solmar Land's End Resort & Spa Cabo San Lucas opened its doors in February. Solmar's fifth property in the area is on the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula, where the Sea of Cortes and the Pacific Ocean meet among dramatic rock formations. The luxury resort has two oceanfront restaurants on-site, as well as a spa, salon and fitness center. Meeting and event space is available at Solmar's nearby 260-room Playa Grande Resort.
The Villa del Palmar Beach Resort and Spa at the Islands of Loreto opened in late May, on the eastern coast of Baja California Sur, about 300 miles north of Los Cabos. The 181-room luxury resort offers studios as well as one- , two-and three-bedroom villas. A Jacuzzi, a turtle-shaped pool and two restaurants are open now; tennis courts, an additional restaurant, and a 35,000-square-foot fitness center and spa were slated to open imminently. The resort faces Danzante Island and is the first property to open in the Villa Group's planned 1,800-acre development, known as Danzante Bay. Six more resort hotels, additional restaurants and a Rees Jones golf course are in the works.
Wyndham added the former Tesoro resort to its portfolio in January, renaming it the Wyndham Cabo San Lucas Resort. The 286-room property is in the midst of a US$10 million renovation that is scheduled to wrap up by early 2012. Adjacent to the Cabo San Lucas Marina, the downtown hotel offers 6,200 square feet of meeting and event space.
Ritz-Carlton inked an agreement to build the first Ritz-Carlton Reserve hotel in Mexico. The San José del Cabo property, slated to open in 2014, will offer 124 private, single-story, oceanfront villas in the Puerto Los Cabos development, along the Sea of Cortez.
The 114-room Delano Hotel, under construction in Cabo San Lucas, is set to open in 2013. Representing the Morgans Hotel Group's regional debut, the property also will include 23 residences.
New Arrival
The Sheraton Hacienda del Mar named a new executive chef last month, Manuel De Luca, who moved north from the Sheraton Buenos Aires. He oversees all of the resort's F&B, including the De Cortez Grill.
Meeting Hotels
The largest meeting properties in Cabo San Lucas include the 902-room RIU Santa Fe; 642-room RIU Palace Cabo San Lucas; 465-room Villa del Palmar Beach Resort & Spa, Los Cabos; 358-room Playa Grande Resort & Grand Spa; 326-room Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach Resort & Spa; 286-room Wyndham Cabo San Lucas Resort; 283-room Hotel Finisterra; 217-room Villa del Arco Beach Resort & Spa; 187-room Pueblo Bonito Rosé Resort & Spa; 186-room Casa Dorada Los Cabos, Resort & Spa; 186-room Solmar Suites; 156-room Villa La Estancia Beach Resort & Spa; 155-room Marina Fiesta Resort & Spa; 154-room Pueblo Bonito Pacifica Holistic Retreat & Spa, and 151-room ME Cabo.
Among meeting hotels in San José del Cabo are the 619-room Barceló Los Cabos Palace Deluxe, 390-room Presidente InterContinental Los Cabos Resort, 389-room Royal Solaris Los Cabos, 333-room Hola Grand Faro All-Inclusive Resort and 332-room Cabo Azul Resort.
Properties dotting the corridor between the two towns include the 375-room Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort; 308-room Dreams Los Cabos Suites Golf Resort & Spa; 305-room Meliá Cabo Real; 270-room Sheraton Hacienda del Mar Resort & Spa; 250-room Fiesta Americana Grand Los Cabos Golf & Spa Resort; 243-room Westin Resort & Spa Los Cabos; 237-room Marquis Los Cabos Beach, Golf, Spa & Casitas Resort; and 173-room One&Only Palmilla.
Entry/Exit Requirements
All U.S. citizens must carry passports for travel to and from Mexico. When entering Mexico, travelers receive a tourist visa (FMT), which they must present upon departure. Fines are imposed for lost visas.
Taxes
Room tax, 3%; sales tax, 11%; total tax on hotel rooms, 14%
Group Activities
The four-and-a-half-hour Outback & Camel Safari, organized by Cabo Adventures, takes participants on an in-depth tour of the Baja desert -- first in a Mercedes Benz Unimog four-wheel-drive vehicle, followed by a more leisurely beach stroll on the back of a camel. A guided nature walk and a visit to a sea turtle sanctuary also are on the agenda, as is a traditional Mexican comida and tequila tasting. (888) 526-2238
For an unusual banquet experience that borders on the surreal, consider the Black Dinner at the Sheraton Hacienda del Mar Resort & Spa. Up to 800 diners sit in a dark room, pitch black except for the table, which is bathed in an iridescent light, with spot lighting on each setting. Plates light up as each course is served, and the item description is projected on the table setting. Logos and messages also can be projected. (011) 52 624-145-8000
Contact
Los Cabos Convention & Vistors Bureau, (866) 567-2226