Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos Review – Los Cabos All-Inclusive Resorts

It had been years since I last landed in Los Cabos, located at the tip of the Baja California peninsula in Mexico. This part of the world is only less than two hours by plane from San Diego and a very beloved destination for Southern California residents. Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos was one of the many resorts battered by Hurricane Odile and I was thrilled to support its reopening during a stay in 2015. And, what a recovery they made.

See also: What It’s Like to Hang in the Los Cabos Airport VIP Lounge

Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos Location

First, let’s get the location straight. Los Cabos refers to both Cabo San Lucas and San Jose Del Cabo as well as the roughly 20-mile stretch of resort corridor between the two.

Cabo San Lucas is where one might go to party, drink tequila slammers, and stay up late. San Jose Del Cabo and its surrounding resort areas are where one might spend a family holiday or couples getaway amid white sand beaches and quiet evenings. Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos is located on the beach in an exclusive San Jose Del Cabo area. This is perhaps why some of the excesses I’ve seen at other all-inclusive resorts was notably absent during my peaceful stay at Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos. 

What Is Hyatt Ziva?

While I am familiar with many of the brands in the Hyatt portfolio, Hyatt Ziva was new to me. This is Hyatt’s portfolio of high-end, all-inclusive, family-friendly resorts currently in Mexico and the Caribbean. They strive to break the mold by elevating the all-inclusive experience—though couples, business, and other travelers will also find their groove here. I was by myself and had a fabulous time.

Hyatt Zilara is the brand of all-inclusive resorts for couples and singles… no kids allowed.

The Spacious Rooms

The luxury resort has 591 rooms and suites that feel brand new. It’s a big property, but I did not feel overwhelmed.

I had a standard room of almost 600 square feet with a seating area, lanai, sizable bathroom featuring a tub with a view and a rain shower, and quite a bit of storage space. The tile floors and combination of textures are reminiscent of Mexico.

I walked into a lovely fruit and sparkling wine amenity and ended the evenings with in-room treats. Everything in the mini bar is included, and I was pleasantly surprised by the Molton Brown toothbrush, nail file, razor, and extra bath amenities provided in the bathroom.

WiFi is included and at the time of our stay it was upgraded to a quick speed that I had no problems with around the resort. I’m a hard marker when it comes to hotel rooms but I was truly quite comfortable in mine.

If I could change one thing about it, quieter air conditioning would be my pick. It’s not loud though, more like a constant hum because it’s hot outside.

I would highly recommend a swim-up suite for families with kids that are old enough to swim safely. Basically, this means that your lanai will open up to a small pool area—including lounge chairs with legs in the water!

When you’re ready to get out of the sun (as often is the case with me) you can while everyone else is still in the water. Or, if you have a baby that naps, needing to go back to the room won’t put a damper on your own pool time. My daughter would go crazy for this arrangement.

Delicious Food

I did my best to sample as much food around the resort as possible between the poolside snacks, two buffet restaurants and six a la carte restaurants. The options represent cuisines from all over the world ranging from Italian to Asian teppanyaki. But, if you’re like me and love to indulge in Mexican food almost exclusively when south of the border, it’s possible to do so.

The food all around the resort is quite good. Thank goodness for the ocean view gym with televisions on the cardio equipment. I mean, there are things like bottomless churros and cupcakes. So many cupcakes.

Room service is available 24 hours plus a deli and coffee shop are also open 24 hours per day for when a jet lag snack or late-night munchies after a few margaritas are in order.

I did order a glass of wine at the end of the evening through room service and the attendant asked, “Are you sure? Why not take the rest of the bottle?” It’s all-inclusive so I could, if I wanted to. It is incredibly freeing to lose price sensitivity because you can order food and drinks without worrying about the final bill.

Did I mention that there’s a tequila bar with a tequila sommelier? Good times.

Five Swimming Pools

Guests will choose between five swimming pools, including a large main pool, a children’s pool area, and a pool just for adults. Drink and food service are available so go ahead and order a mango margarita to your chair. Or, swim up to the bar.

The Glorious Spa

My shoulders and neck are literally constantly in knots due to lifelong slouching (I’m still working on it) so any opportunity for a massage is welcome. I’m no stranger to massages and other spa treatments in luxury hotels around the world.

My massage at Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos was awesome. The therapist blended perfect pressure with rhythmic strokes designed to gracefully knead the pressure away. Next time, I’ll book a longer one.

The facilities are lovely and quite large, between the 16 treatment rooms, 3 palapa outdoor treatment rooms, wet area (above), steam room, indoor lounging area, swiss buckets and more. You can spend quite a bit of time here, that is for sure. Chlorophyll water, which is a trendy drink here in San Diego at the moment, is available to rehydrate and detoxify.

About the Beach

It is rare in the Cabo area to swim in the ocean directly in front of your hotel, as a strong undercurrent and pounding surf prevent it. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the ocean while visiting Los Cabos. Various snorkel tours, including SUP and kayaking, launch from a handful of spots that take guests past the surf into calmer water. And you’ll have to take a tour out to see the famous arches.

However, the sand in front of Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos is beautiful. Walks along the beach—especially at sunset and sunrise—are beyond scenic. Riding along the shoreline on horseback or even via camel (!!!) is possible.

Things to Do for Kids

The bottom line is that kids will love this resort. Because they, too, can order whatever they want (that parents give the go-ahead for). If a fish taco is a new concept, encourage them to go for it—you never know what they’ll like—and there’s no guilt about placing another order if it’s not up their alley.

While they could probably spend an entire day at the main pool with its basketball hoops, inner tubes, and other pool toys (available for purchase), in-pool loungers, and service, but there is also a water area with slides, bucket dumps, and other fun. Have young kids? Think about getting a ground-level room near the water play area. It looks like a win-win situation.

A teen game room offers pool, air hockey, video games, and other amenities for a fun break from the family. Kids ages 2-12 can spend the day at the kids’ club near the water park.

I’m going to investigate bringing my daughter back for a sea turtle release.

Excellent Service

Every hotel staff member I came into contact with was genuinely nice and helpful from check-in to check-out. For instance, I walked into Coco Loco, the poolside restaurant, to order a fish taco, and they hurried me out to say I could relax while the servers handled everything. Housekeeping and in-room dining beamed enthusiasm through the phone. It was a very warm and welcoming experience.

Good to Know

I visited during the first few weeks of reopening so while there were a few kinks to be worked out, the resort also was not at full occupancy. Expect restaurants and common areas to be busier than I experienced, especially during peak season. I think more people is a good thing when traveling with kids as they’re more likely to make friends at the pool and kids’ club.

Tipping isn’t expected, but was very much appreciated. I always advise bringing cash and tipping at all-inclusives for good service. It is easy to avoid the habit of tipping when signing checks in restaurants isn’t required. In fact, I can’t emphasize this enough.

Alaska Airlines flies direct from San Diego to San Jose Del Cabo, so booking in for a weekend break is possible. The hotel can arrange transportation to and from the airport, and you are advised to leave the resort 2.5 hours before your flight. I would say it took about 20 minutes to reach the resort from SJD airport.

Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos Reservations

Find the best price through our partner, Kayak.

I will definitely be back!

Have you stayed at Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos? Have a question? Let me know!

Going to Mexico soon? Check out how to take on the Teotihuacan Pyramids with your kids!

*This post was written in partnership with Hyatt Ziva and Hyatt Zilara. All opinions are my own, of course.
**The room photo is used courtesy of Hyatt Ziva Los Cabos but the rest of the photos are mine.