Los Cabos: Far From Ordinary

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Los Cabos (affectionately known as Cabo), is continually raising the bar when it comes to luxury travel. Look no further than the spate of celebrities that return year after year to the sun-soaked destination on the tip of the southern Baja California Peninsula.

Los Cabos

But it’s not just A-list jetsetters who have discovered Los Cabos’ charm. Top-tier hotels and resorts, excellent Mexican cuisine, spas that take stress-busting to a whole new level and curated experiences that allow for a deeper connection with the land and sea are just a few draws beckoning travellers.

Comprised primarily of two towns, San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, Los Cabos offers luxury wrapped in a choose-your-own-adventure package.

Follow an epic surf session with a farm-to-table meal, or spend a day browsing art galleries in historic San José del Cabo before a soothing spa treatment inspired by age-old Mexican traditions.

Award-winning luxury hotels

At what feels like every turn, new luxury brands are setting up shop in Los Cabos. Resting your head here means doing it in a way that offers comfort with a significant helping of chic.

Take for example Las Ventanas al Paraíso, a Rosewood Resort, with in-suite telescopes for stargazing, butler service, luxury car rentals and private movie screenings under the stars on the beach.

In-suite telescope at Las Ventanas al Paraiso

The Cape is the first foray into Mexico for Thompson Hotels and by location alone, they nailed it. The Sea of Cortez and El Arco, a made-for-Instagram rock formation at the very tip of the Baja Peninsula, are visible from every part of the resort.

Outdoor Cabanas at The Cape

At The Resort at Pedregal, guests enter via Mexico’s only privately owned tunnel for an exclusive start to an ultra-luxe stay that includes private plunge pools in every room, personal concierges and fresh guacamole delivered daily to your room.

Newly opened luxury property, Montage Los Cabos, is no stranger to glamour. The hotel is set within the Twin Dolphin master-planned community, so named for the former iconic Hotel Twin Dolphin, where Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren and Lucille Ball once frequented.

Montage is also located on 39 acres of swimmable beachfront, a rarity in Cabo where beaches often experience rough waters not suitable for taking a dip.

Unique finds

While the usual tourist tat and kitschy souvenirs are always available, unique finds from local artisans are more in line with what you’ll find in Cabo.

Los Cabos art

San José del Cabo’s Art District is a great place to start. Every Thursday evening between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., from November through June, you can take part in the district’s Art Walk to browse galleries, meet artists and sip a glass of wine as you explore.

Or, shop handmade copper artwork at La Xoma; handblown glass pieces at Vitrofusión y Arte Glass Factory; and organic, locally sourced, hand-poured soaps and avocado massage oil at Santo Cabo.

At La Coyota, each room is organized by theme and you can shop an expertly curated selection of locally made pieces.

Always fresh

Cabo has long been known as a pioneer of farm-to-table cuisine, offering hungry travellers that chance to tuck into a meal made from ingredients grown mere metres from their tables.

Flora Farms Los Cabos

At Flora’s Field Kitchen, the open-air dining room is set among the working fields of the restaurant’s organic farm. Start your visit with a seasonal cocktail made from fruits and vegetables grown on-site. At Flora’s you’ll also find Flora Grocery, offering items like preserves, honeys and sauces made with ingredients grown on or near the farm.

Huerta Los Tamarindos is another organic farm and restaurant offering farm-to-table dining, as well as immersive cooking classes with farm-grown goods.

Culinary masters

In addition to a focus on farm-to-table cuisine, Cabo is also known for the acclaimed chefs staking their culinary claim on the destination.

Canadian chef Tadd Chapman fell in love with Los Cabos after visiting in 1998 and moved there a month later. He currently has three restaurants in Cabo: Habanero’s Gastro Grill and Tequila Bar, Local Uno and Don Sanchez, each highlighting Mexican ingredients in a different way.

Over at the One & Only Palmilla Resort, the property’s newest restaurant, Seared, comes from Michelin-starred chef Jean-George Vongerichten.

And one of Mexico’s best-known chefs, Enrique Olvera, opened Manta in 2015, the signature restaurant inside The Cape, a Thompson Hotel.

Olvera’s Pujol Restaurant in Mexico City was named among the world’s 50 best restaurants in 2017.

Tradition-based wellness

The opportunity for going beyond standard spa treatments is something else Los Cabos is known for.

Several spas offer guests the chance to experience a temazcal, or a traditional Mexican steam bath. Originally used in pre-Hispanic times, the ancient practice brings together the elements of earth, fire, wind and water to balance the mind and spirit, and detoxify the body via a steam bath with medicinal herbs.

Playa Grande Resort & Grand Spa, ME Cabo, Hacienda Encantada Resort & Spa and Pueblo Bonito Pacifica Golf & Spa Resort all offer a temazcal ritual.

At Luna y Mar Spa at Cabo’s Resort at Pedregal, signature treatments revolve around lunar phase, the sea and traditional Mexican folk healing. Four treatments here harness the varying energies of each lunar phase including the Awaking Moon, Nourishing Moon, Calming Moon and Restoring Moon. In addition, the spa offers Mexican folk healing, known as “curandismo,” using rituals, herbs and ingredients indigenous to Mexico.

Curated Cabo experiences

Most of the luxury hotels in Cabo offer curated local experiences, such as epic swims with whale sharks, diving and snorkelling the crystalline waters, guided tequila and mezcal tastings, cooking classes, and even desert safaris.

In addition, Solaz Resort goes deeper into the region’s traditions with their Magic Night in the Desert experience, featuring a contemporary representation of the Day of the Dead ceremony, complete with music, fire dancing and acrobatics.

No matter what you’re looking for, be it romance, adventure or total relaxation, Cabo not only has it but elevates the experience to luxe new heights.