First, a quirky coincidence that is only partially relevant to the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabo Pedregal: The last two times my husband and I traveled together, once to NYC and once to Cabo, I booked a hotel that was either independent or part of a very small chain. In each case, after I booked the hotel, but before our travel dates, each hotel was purchased by Hilton. In NYC, it was a minor problem, because the hotel (before The London NYC, now a Conrad) was under major renovations while we were there. In Cabo, however, not only was the conversion (from The Resort at Pedregal to the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal) not a problem, we encountered nothing to indicate a recent change in ownership, other than the use of the Waldorf Astoria name (even though the renaming took place just 3 weeks prior to our arrival).
Our experience at the Waldorf was exceptional in nearly every respect. The staff is quite large, seemingly ever-present, and wonderfully friendly and helpful. From check-in, to poolside food and drink service, from room service, to the many workers at the breakfast restaurant, from the gym and spa staff, to the concierge, every staff member we encountered could not have been more warm, gracious, and helpful.
The property itself is somewhat large and truly beautiful. It is set on the coast aside the lower half of a mountain that separates the property from downtown Cabo San Lucas. Despite the mountain separating the resort and the town, the property is a mere 10-minute walk to the south side of Cabo San Lucas, because the hotel owns a private road that cuts through the bottom of the “skinny” mountain, connecting the hotel and the town. Despite the property seeming somewhat sprawling on the mountainside, there are only as best I recall about 100-120 rooms in total. The property has three attractive pools, a good-sized pool specifically for families with children, one good-sized pool for adults only (with a swim-up bar), and one small pool that is part of the hotel spa. For anyone inclined to stay away from resorts that welcome kids, which the Waldorf does, we noticed during our 5-day stay very few children -- as best I recall, 2 kids in each of 2 different families, and all were very well behaved. And while the annoying phenomenon of guests securing poolside chairs early in the morning to use much later in the day does occur at this hotel, there were so many chairs around the pools that on days that we failed to reserve any, we had no problem finding open chairs that were immediately adjacent to the pool.
One thing that helped to make our stay so memorable is the room upgrade we received upon check-in, an upgrade that I assume resulted from our booking through AmEx Fine Hotels & Resorts. We were upgraded to a Dos Mares Studio King Suite with Private Plunge Pool (Room 20), which suite was wonderfully clean, spacious and well-appointed. Our bathroom was huge, including two separate single-basin sinks, each with ample counter-space, a ton of clothing storage space, a large rain shower, a bathtub, and a toilet separated in its own doored room. The suite came with a gorgeous ocean view, and a very good-sized (100sf?) veranda, that is adjacent to the bedroom and to our private plunge pool. I'm not 100% sure of this, but I think I heard that every room at this hotel comes with a private plunge pool. True or not, the plunge pool with some or all of the non-suites is a bit on the small size, but ours was not. Also, on the reverse side of the room, there was a separate small outdoor space that included a hammock from which you can look up the side of the mountain. The bedroom was very large, and the bed was very comfortable.
For any LGBTQ travelers, we (a same-sex couple) were graciously welcomed by every single one of the many staff members we encountered during our stay. While that was not true of our experience with other guests, it was most definitely true of the Waldorf staff.
Two issues to be aware of:
First, although the property sits aside a beautiful soft-sanded beach, the hotel does not allow swimming at that beach due to the strong waves and no-doubt powerful undertow. This did not matter at all to us as we are much prefer a pool to an ocean beach, but if you want a swimmable beach, it is rather a long hike to the nearest accessible public beach.
Second, while the Waldorf is merely a 10-minute walk from the town of Cabo San Lucas, it is a $180 round-trip taxi ride to the other town that comprises Los Cabos, San Jose del Cabo. And I imagine that the private car that the Waldorf could arrange is even more than that. This issue, however, does not cut against staying at the Waldorf if you plan to visit both towns, because, even if you booked a resort situated halfway between the two towns, if you travel to each town from a midway point by taxi or by private car, you will spend roughly the same amount you would if based at the Waldorf and therefore in need of transport only to visit San Jose.
Finally, our only negative experience at the resort was our dinner at El Farallon. While El Farallon does offer a spectacular seaside view that may well be unmatched in the entire area, we found El Farallon to be priced well-beyond the quality of the food and drink. One part of the El Farallon experience is a stop off at champagne bar that is so expensive they sell champagne by the glass and by the half-glass. Our champagne bill for a total of two full glasses of mid-priced offerings exceeded $100. Further, while the 4-course dinner there included some food that was good, nothing was exceptional, we had several plates that were not very good, and one plate, a cake, that had the taste and consistency of cardboard. Finally, the restaurant provided during dinner a violin player who was accompanied by, but who had trouble keeping up with, a cheesy electronic karaoke machine.
Even with that dinner experience, the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal provided us with a wonderfully memorable experience, and we recommend it without hesitation.
