Garza Blanca Resort & Spa Los Cabos ★★★★★

Seven Kitchens on a Rise Above the Sea of Cortes

The Los Cabos corridor is a string of resorts along a fast road, and Garza Blanca sits at km 17.5, on a rise above its own reach of the Sea of Cortes. What sets the rhythm here is the sheer quantity on site: seven places to eat, several pools at different levels, a large spa, a kids club and a residential wing of apartments with kitchens. A week can be planned rather than improvised. The architecture is contemporary and unfussy, marine motifs, private terraces on everything, the point being the view rather than the decoration. Sunrise arrives over the water on this side of the peninsula, which is why the terraces face the way they do.

Why It Works

We kept it for the range. Seven restaurants is a lot at this size, and they are genuinely different from one another: Bocados for steak, Hiroshi for Japanese with an omakase counter attached, Blanca Blue for the signature cooking, NOI, a rooftop bar, a snack counter and a food truck for the middle of the afternoon. That counts for something on a corridor where leaving the property means a car and a highway. The second reason is flexibility. The all inclusive plan is an option here rather than the house rule, so you can treat the place as a hotel and eat on your own terms, or hand the whole week over.

Why This Location

Km 17.5 puts you on the Sea of Cortes side, between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, with calmer water than the Pacific coast and the sunrise in front of you. Downtown Cabo and the marina are a short drive south west, the galleries of San Jose a similar run north east, and Los Cabos International Airport sits at the far end of the same highway. The resort keeps its own beach below the buildings. There is no village to walk to: this is an address for people who intend to settle in and take the car when they want town.

Fast Facts

• Price: Luxury

• Vibe: Contemporary, oceanfront, generous, family easy

• Rooms: Junior suites from around 667 square feet, one and two bedroom suites, three and four bedroom oceanfront residences, lofts and penthouses

• Best For: Families who use a kids club, groups taking a residence, travellers who want the all inclusive option without being locked into it

• Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: The omakase counter at Hiroshi, which is not what you expect to find on a Baja hillside

• Dining: Blanca Blue, Bocados Steak House, Hiroshi and Omakase by Hiroshi, NOI, The Snack, a food truck, and The Rooftop bar

• Amenities: Spa Imagine with hydrotherapy and private cabins, several pools, private beach, fitness centre, Little Luxuries kids club, butler service, gourmet kitchens in the residences

• Attractions: Chileno Bay and Santa Maria Bay snorkelling a few minutes along the corridor, Cabo San Lucas marina and El Arco to the south west, the San Jose del Cabo art district to the north east

Suites That Turn Into Apartments

The ladder here is worth understanding before you book. A junior suite is a generous room with a terrace, around 667 square feet. A one bedroom suite roughly doubles that, a two bedroom takes six people, and above them sit oceanfront residences of three and four bedrooms, with lofts and penthouses at the top. The residences come with full kitchens and butler service, which is what makes them work for a family staying a fortnight or for two couples splitting a floor. Everything faces the water, and every category has its own terrace.

Spa Imagine, and the Shape of an Afternoon

Spa Imagine is the wellness anchor, built around a hydrotherapy circuit with private cabins and a treatment list that runs from the traditional to the technological, HydraFacial included. Around it sit the pool levels, a fitness centre and a programme of activities that changes through the week. It is a resort that will fill your day if you let it, and leave you alone if you would rather it did not.

Travelling With Children Here

The Little Luxuries club is the practical difference for a family. Between it, the pool levels and the suite categories that sleep four to six, the property is set up for the age range that struggles at an adults only address. Check in is from 16:00. Pets are not accepted, which is worth knowing before you plan the drive down.