"Grand Velas Los Cabos is so close to being an ideal boutique resort, but issues with consistency of the food, difficulty getting maintenance help, and a whopping price knock it off that five star pinnacle. I wish I could give it 4.5 stars.
The weather in May was gorgeous, and the location offered expansive views. The lack of biting insects and humidity was a big plus over the Cancun area or Puerto Vallarta. Days didn't exceed 85 degrees Fahrenheit and nights were quite comfortable with the onshore breeze.
Occupancy was low for most of our eight day stay. There was a wedding while we were there that did fill up the place for a couple of days, but the hotel and staff handled the influx so well that they were able to maintain the excellent service and hospitality.
The property itself was immaculately kept. The garden area felt organic, not overly landscaped. The common areas were in good repair, generally with wide walkways. As is often the case at resorts, there were stone or concrete walkways that were overly polished. The smallest amount of water turns them into a slip-and-slide.
Being a relatively new property (we were told two years), the rooms were in great shape and well-appointed, though we did find things like the control for the drapes to be confusing and unnecessary. I certainly don't mind manually opening and closing them rather than stabbing buttons on a remote in hopes of getting both the drapes and the sheers open, but this was a minor detail.
Despite it being a new property, there were issues with the water. First, we noticed a panel in the hallway out of place that had concealed the piping. Second, a loud thrumming noise started up at 3AM one night that I thought at first to be our AC, but continued after I turned it off. I called the front desk and was told that a maintenance person would come to our room, but an hour later no one had shown up.
I went to the front desk because the noise was so loud that I couldn't sleep, which is when the maintenance issue became a customer service issue. The front desk person, whom I was pretty sure I'd spoken too, had no recollection nor record of my call. Furthermore, he didn't have much English.
I do wish I had more than very simple tourist Spanish, so I was part of the communication issue. However, everything at this resort was in English and all the customer-facing staff had fair to good English. The place is designed to appeal to Americans and Canadians. Having one person with solid English on staff overnight doesn't seem like a big ask.
Eventually, another employee became involved but he had even less English. We went back to the room and the maintenance man arrived. He had no English, but I didn't expect him to. The noise had stopped because he'd been the source of it! The guy was working on the pipes in the middle of the night, unaware that he was working right above a guest room.
We had no hot water for a while the next day, and other guests commented on having the same experience. In and of itself, the lack of hot water wasn't a big deal, but the 3AM maintenance and the inability to even get anyone to come address our issue without going to the front desk and demanding attention was off-putting.
Housekeeping did an excellent job ensuring that everything was properly stocked and even saw to small details like organizing our toiletries for us. Things like that made us feel cared for and welcome, so I have to commend the housekeeping staff for their invisible but crucial role.
The pool and bar service were excellent. The staff were warm and friendly. They made us feel like family, which is something my wife and I value. We like to be approachable and to banter a little, and we met some wonderful servers who were playful yet professional. The people are always the soul of a property, in my opinion, and they matter more to us than the amenities and the quality of the food and drink.
As far as dining goes, there is only one restaurant open for dinner at the resort. There is a neighboring family-friendly resort owned by the same company that we had full access to and was only a stroll or a golf cart ride away. In this one way, the adults-only aspect of Grand Velas Los Cabos falls short because five of the six available restaurants are at this other larger property. We'd at least three experiences with toddlers in full meltdown because their parents took them to dinner at eight, rather than put them to bed.
Most of the food we had was excellent. In fact, Frida presented me with one of the best meals I've ever had... at least the first time we went.
On our second go, the food was much worse. The red snapper that had been delectable, wasn't flaky, tasted fishy, and had so much sauce on it that it had formed a puddle on top of the fish. The churro bites, which had been heavenly the first time, were rock hard. I'd never had a churro so overdone.
There were some other inconsistencies/quality issues in the food, as well, like duck that didn't have the fat rendered, no crispy skin, but was somehow still overcooked.
Overall, though, we did enjoy most of our meals. Lunchtime fare from Roca was remarkably good, served poolside if you preferred (and we definitely preferred), and managed to avoid the inconsistency of some of the restaurants. Breakfast at Del Mar was another standout with both a small but well-stocked buffet and some gourmet menu options.
There's no nightlife at the boutique adults-only hotel we stayed in, which wasn't a big deal to us, but should be noted.
There was a nightclub at the larger, family-friendly property, as well as a piano bar. The piano bar was a little odd because it was just a guy playing familiar songs with a backing track, not a traditional piano bar where guests would make requests and people would sing along. The place was empty most nights, so my wife and I made use of the open area by the piano to dance and sing along. Some nights other guests would join us. Sometimes I really like being in my 50's and not caring much what other people think.
I wanted to mention some of the staff who made our stay better by making us feel at home and taken care of:
Roberto Colin was our server on our first visit to Frida. He was knowledgeable about the menu, gave us real opinions, and he gave us a greater sense of the climate and quality of life in the Cabo area. We felt like more than just customers, and he was more than just a server.
Ricardo Castro popped up at the pool all the time with a smile. He always remembered what we were drinking and shared, in a heartfelt and approachable way, a little bit about his family and his life. Juan Contreras and Berzain Guzman were two other names we jotted down because they were friendly, funny, and saw to our needs as consummate professionals. There was a whole team whom I'm not mentioning simply because we were so busy enjoying ourselves that we didn't get all their names.
Irma, whose last name I didn't get, was always kind and caring at breakfast at Del Mar. She made us feel so welcome and ensured that we had a pleasant start to our day.
Lastly, there was Gaby Urtiz, our concierge. Gaby was personable and kept in touch with us, seeing to our dinner reservations and ensuring that we were having a great time. My wife and I are rather low-maintenance, which Gaby picked up on. She met us where we were rather than throwing lots of ideas at us or trying to get us to book excursions, which to me is a sign of great hospitality.
Aside from the inconsistency of the food and the 3AM maintenance issue (and the lack of hot water the next morning), the biggest issue we had with the Grand Velas Los Cabos boutique hotel was the price. It was easily 50% more expensive than other resorts we've stayed at. While it was lovely, we couldn't identify anything unique about it.
Other less expensive resorts have excellent food (some even better). The two pools and the hot tubs were beautiful and comfortable, but not any more so than other places we've stayed. The room was clean, nice, and, excepting for the maintenance issue, quiet, but other resorts that cost far less have that too. The staff was excellent, but we find outstanding hospitality at resorts all over Mexico. Even looking at the included liquors, I couldn't come up with anything that I couldn't get at a resort that was thousands of dollars less.
Though my wife and I had a great time at Grand Velas Los Cabos, the high price point makes it unlikely we'd return because there wasn't anything, at least for us, that was unique and couldn't be had for far less elsewhere."
A Tripadvisor traveler review
May 27, 2026
