My Brutally Honest Review of Hacienda Encantada Resort in Cabo San Lucas

We recently booked a 7 day all inclusive vacation in Cabo San Lucas Mexico, which is on the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula.

Since we had never been to Los Cabos before, I spent weeks researching which resort we should stay at – and Hacienda Encantada Resort consistently showed up with 5 star reviews, at a reasonable price.

This post contains affiliate links, meaning if you click through and make a purchase I may make a small commission. I only share information about things I know, love and trust!

Quick Summary of What I Loved About Hacienda Encantada Resort

Adult-only pool
Incredible breathtaking views of the ocean and the Cabo Arch in the distance
Access to use the sister resort at the Marina (free shuttle too)
Great food & nice selection of drinks by the pool
Spacious rooms
Feels like a luxury resort, without the luxury price tag!
A chill resort that’s perfect for a relaxing Cabo trip

*We found a great deal through Expedia – check here for rates & availability*

Complete Review of My Stay at Hacienda Encantada Resort & Residences

After staying at Hacienda Encantada Resort & Residences for one week, I have many opinions to share and things I wish I would have known before booking a vacation at this resort.

In this post I’m sharing my complete review (including the good and bad) and I’ll outline everything you can expect (including some tips) if you’ve been thinking about staying here.

Location & First Impressions

The Hacienda Encantada resort and residences is a 4 star hotel located 10 minutes from cabo san lucas and 30 minutes from the airport.

It’s a great location, perched above the rugged cliffs of the sea of Cortez, with views of the famous rock arches in the distance.

Upon arrival, I was really impressed and excited.

The traditional Mexican architecture was colorful and welcoming, and my initial impressions of the property grounds were spectacular – everything was very well manicured and lots of greenery among the desert landscape.

We entered through secure gates operated by security guards, so we felt very safe.

Since the resort is built up on the cliff, there are some stairs required to get around, but there are also golf carts readily available to take you anywhere around the property.

We only ever had to wait a few minutes or less for a golf cart.

Check-in Process

The check-in process was pretty standard and straightforward.

Note that when you pull up to this beautiful concierge area, your check-in counter is on the right hand side.

On the left is a much larger (and more beautiful) guest reception area which is for a separate resort called the Vista.

You will be asked if you want to upgrade to the “premium level” of All-Inclusive. It’s around an additional $150 USD per day per person.

We did not choose to upgrade, but from speaking with other guests who did, it didn’t seem worth it.

Tip: if you’re interested in doing the all-inclusive for only part of your stay, shop around at different staff members.

We met some guests who were quoted anywhere from $90 to $130 per day. Apparently it’s negotiable!

Rooms at the Hacienda Encantada Resort

The rooms were spacious with authentic decor.

There’s a small mini bar, coffee area and desk before walking into the main room.

We had a king bed, a seating area and an ocean view balcony, with sweeping views of the resort and the ocean.

I also appreciated the full length mirror and the bathroom was spacious.

There are also many suites that have full kitchens or kitchenettes.

Room tip: if you’re not traveling with kids, request a room by the adult-only pool.

We received housekeeping each day, but there is a small fee for this service.

At check-in you can choose to opt out of housekeeping and avoid the fee if you wish.

Pools

The pools are the best part about this resort!

There is a main pool with a swim up bar, a children’s splash park and an adult-only infinity pool.

The adult-only pool is split into two sections: a quiet side and a social side. The social side is attached to the large swim up bar.

While you can’t swim in the ocean, the view is incredible, especially from this pool.

From this spot there is a decent amount of beach space with well-padded loungers.

Oddly, there are these gorgeous 2-person cabanas and bali beds overlooking the water, but only timeshare members can use these.

And in 7 days, we only saw 1 person occupying them. Otherwise they sit empty.

There’s also a restaurant attached to each pool, and they will even serve you your food while you’re in the water.

Of course there’s shaded table seating as well, but we did appreciate a quick bite when needed.

And one night we were able to snag this table within the pool, where we were served dinner beneath the sunset.

There are no hot tubs here.

Food and Restaurants

Surprisingly, for an all-inclusive resort, the food is very good here.

O thought the breakfast buffet had a nice selection each morning, with a lovely outside dining area and view.

And the a la carte restaurants had a nice variety – we enjoyed Italian, gourmet Mexican, local Baja cuisine and seafood and il forno pizza.

For example, at the Italian restaurant, Barolo, we enjoyed a selection of prosciutto and melon appetizers, mediterranean carpaccio and calamari with a great selection of pastas and risotto.

At La Trajinera – for local Baja cuisine and seafood we tried the guacamole with pork rinds and fresh cheese, and other dishes like scallops with avocado mousse and ceviche tostada.

The tortilla soup was beautifully presented and tasted great. We also ate Mexican steak with a mole sauce, enchiladas with rice beans and poblano peppers, and tuna carnitas.

Moving onto Los Riscos, which serves Mexican specialties, we enjoyed fresh grilled fish and seafood, mesquite grilled steaks, pastas, soups and salads.

Some dishes we tried were the sea bass filet with tomato jam, gnocchi and veggies, and salmon with an almond, capers and crab crust.

We tried the clam chowder, which was good, but completely different from the clam chowder at the same restaurant a few nights earlier.

We also enjoyed dinner at Il forno, which is casual italian food served by the pool so of course we dined on pizza and salads.

And we also enjoyed lunch by the pool served from the El Patio snack bar, where we tried salads, BLTs, coconut shrimp, club sandwich, quesadillas, ceviche and the shrimp wrap.

I found the desserts were mild in taste and nowhere near as good as appetizers and entrees.

Drinks

We liked the drinks at this resort, and enjoyed the unique selection of frozen and blended cocktails.

I have a full video of some of our favorite drinks that we ordered at this resort.

Another plus was that they had canned beer instead of draft, and you were able to order a bucket with ice to keep it nice and cold.

Unfortunately, service to get drinks was always very slow due to having to sign a check after every drink.

However, our poolside servers treated us very well, and by the second day they had pretty much memorized our drink orders and made sure we never went thirsty!

Other Amenities

As far as other amenities here, there are pickleball and basketball courts, as well as beach volleyball and a small chipping and putting area.

There is a fitness center with a variety of gym equipment and it was actually very nice, it seemed brand new.

It’s air conditioned with massive windows and nice views.

There is also a Temazcal which is a traditional steam hut ceremony. It’s only offered on Fridays and there needs to be a minimum of 4 people to run it.

There’s also no traditional pool activities that you might expect at a normal all inclusive resort.

So you won’t find pool volleyball, water aerobics, Zumba or salsa lessons by the pool. There is a small kids pool though with some splash park features.

If you’re part of the all inclusive plan you can take a free shuttle to the Marina in Cabo San Lucas and you can also use the amenities (including pool, dining and drinks) at the sister resort, Marina Fiesta Resort & Spa.

Evening Entertainment & Nightlife

When it comes to nightlife all the restaurants close at 10pm, and there is only one lobby bar, which also closes at 10.

So In regards to nightlife, it’s basically nonexistent here.

There is live music a couple of times a week in the lobby bar, around 8pm.

If you want a quiet resort that lacks music blasting at night – you will love Hacienda Encantada Resort.

The All-Inclusive Plan at Hacienda Encantada?

My total for 1 breakfast buffet, one bottle of water, and one coffee and baileys was 791 pesos, or 47 dollars usd.

There are 2 levels of the all-inclusive plan: basic and premium.

We chose to do the basic all-inclusive plan, which included:

Unlimited food & drinks (alcoholic beverages, bottled water, all meals)

What is not included:

Room service

The premium level of the all-inclusive plan costs about $130 and includes all of the basic plan items, as well as access to top-shelf liquor and premium food like lobster, tomahawk steaks and some wine at certain restaurants.

The premium all-inclusive plan does not include room service either, but you do get a discount, I believe it’s around 30% off.

Is All-Inclusive Worth it at this Resort?

To us, the basic all-inclusive plan was definitely worth it.

We totaled up our receipts one day, and it came to over $450 usd for two people.

Keep in mind, this included a lot of alcohol!

Another important note is that when it’s all-inclusive, the servers tend to bring you new drinks before your old drinks are done (they get warm pretty fast in the heat).

So our receipts probably included more drinks than we actually needed if we were paying for them individually.

Prices of Drinks and Meals if You Don’t Choose All-Inclusive

I looked through our receipts from our stay at the resort, and here is what you can expect things to cost if you don’t choose all-inclusive:

Bottled water: 34 pesos
Frozen cocktails: 185 – 285 pesos
Coffee and baileys: 145 pesos
Beer: 65 pesos
Breakfast buffet: 500 pesos
Main entrees: 350 – 700+ pesos

Other Things to Know About This Resort

While there were a lot of things I enjoyed about Hacienda Encantada Resort, there were a few things that took away from the all-inclusive vacation experience for me.

I think if I had known these things in advance, it wouldn’t have been a big deal.

So here are a few things you should know about what your experience will be if you stay at this property.

Non-Swimmable Beach

As you can see in the photo, the beach at Hacienda Encantada Resort is not swimmable.

The resort is built up on a cliff, and you have to scramble down a rocky area to even get to the beach.

At the water, not only is it extremely rocky, the currents and very strong and dangerous.

Even though you can’t swim in the ocean here, the views from the resort’s infinity pools make up for it!

Timeshare Property

Upon check-in, it was immediately obvious that this is a timeshare property, of which this is nothing new for resorts nowadays – but all week we felt like lower class citizens at the resort because we weren’t timeshare members. I’ve never felt this way at any other resort.

There are many areas throughout the property that are reserved for “members,” which are the timeshare owners.

It also felt a little “cliquey” among guests at the property.

You could tell which patrons were timeshare owners – a little bit snobby, didn’t socialize, etc.

Not a Fully All-Inclusive Resort

Because this is a timeshare property, not every guest who stays here participates in the all-inclusive package.

Because of this, you won’t find as much available food and drink around the property like more popular resort chains.

There is no 24/7 snack bar or sports bar where you can access food at any time of day. And restaurant hours are limited.

Room service is not included with all inclusive – and it’s a $15 delivery fee.

You Must Sign for Everything

Even though you wear a wrist band, after every drink and food item you order, you have to sign a check. Even if you ask for one bottle of water.

The check is a detailed list of everything, including the cost.

To me, this completely took away from the unique experience of an all inclusive resort.

You’re supposed to feel like you can get anything you want at any time, and the resort exists to provide you with anything you could possibly need.

It’s supposed to feel like everything is free of charge even though you’ve already prepaid for everything.

My Overall Thoughts After My 1 Week Stay

Overall, I had a great vacation and a lovely stay at this resort – there are many things I enjoyed and I would stay there again.

I loved hanging out in the adult-only pool all day, and the views and drinks were top notch.

I thoroughly enjoyed all the food I ate at the buffets, a la carte restaurants, and poolside snacks.

The property itself is beautiful with gorgeous garden areas and a colorful and charming Mexican aesthetic.

The property is spread out, and I really enjoyed my walks around the resort.

I cannot stress enough how incredibly gorgeous the ocean views are at this resort!

It was also a lovely added bonus that we got to use the sister resort for free, so it was basically a “stay at one, play at two” deal.

And even if you don’t use the amenities at the sister resort, the free shuttle to downtown Cabo San Lucas was a nice touch.

I did miss some nightlife and would have liked a couple of nights to stay up later than 10pm!

It also would have been nice to have room service as an option and as someone who drinks a lot of water, it was a bit of a pain to track down water bottles on occasion.

Where to Book a Stay at Hacienda Encantada Resort

You can book through the hotel website, but I recommend watching prices on Expedia.

We found a great all-inclusive package through Expedia for around $450 per night.

Check prices on Expedia for your travel dates here