I just got back from the Finisterra (12/28-1/2). Overall I would recommend the hotel. After reading the reviews here I was a little nervous but booked a Palapa room ($287/night). Upon check-in we were put in room E-19. It was not a beach view as I expected but the room was gorgeous, brand new & had a cool marina view. I would equate it to a nicer Marriot level room. We soon figured out we were staying in a renovated old room. We stayed in that room for 3 nights. These rooms are the farthest away from the main hotel, but close to the Whale Watcher bar and quiet. On NYE at 8pm, I noticed the toilet was gushing water. At first the front desk and was not that responsive but I called back again with hysteria and they sent a bellman with a key to our 2nd room (B-31 - OLD room). It was quite bad. Dark, dingy, outdated furniture, awful bed, cramped balcony (with great ocean view). There was a king bed and a couch area. All the furniture was old. The tile on the floor was dingy, the bathroom had old style flourescent lights --- overall a significant downgrade from E wing. I would equate this room to a low quality Motel 6 or worse. Upon checking into B-31, I was pissed but the hotel was fully booked so we had to wait until 1/1 at 10am to move into a Palapa room --- at this point we went out for NYE. I slept terribly b/c of the bed and also b/c the noise. The sliding glass doors and front doors of these rooms SLAM VERY LOUDLY so every time someone went in or out it woke us up. I woke up at 930a, called the front desk spoke to Jorge the mgr and he sent a bellman and moved us into Palapa room 131. He also agreed to credit us the difference in price from a Palapa room to the B31 room (about $50). Room 131 was good/decent. It's hard to compare b/c the E room was so nice, but room 131 was what we'd originally expected - I would equate this to a Holiday Inn or Hampton Inn type room. It's a few years outdated but it was clean and bright. We had a side beach view and a frontal pool/garden view here.

Other notes:
Location: Amazing. The marina is really central to the town, and you are very close. There are great restaurants nearby and we walked to a lot of places. We had friends who stayed further out and needed to rent cars, take cabs everywhere. We also had friends who stayed at Medano beach - the beach is party-time but you are also not as close to most of the bars restaurants, besides we took a $4 water taxi to Medano Beach one day and walked another (20 mins) from the Finisterra. One note on the hotel's layout - there is a decent hill/hike to get on/off hotel property (there is a shuttle but we never took it). Also for any rooms other than the Palapa, you will have to take an elevator up to 7 then walk across a bridge to get to these rooms, there are flagstone paths leading to the other wings and it's built into the side of a cliff so you will have a steep walk to your room. If you have fitness issues then I would definitely stay in a Palapa room and take advantage of the shuttle to get you on and off hotel property.

Pool: 2 of the 3 pools were heated and that was fine. The middle pool is the liveliest. We hung at both the middle and lower pools, ordered from the waiters and had good service. Sometimes you had to call them over, but hey it's not your local TGIFridays. The bottom pool is old looking and needs to be resurfaced but the middle and upper are nice.

On site dining: we ate at grill night at the Whale Watcher restaurant. It was a fine meal in a cool setting, we would have eaten there again but didn't get around to it. We at a lot at the Pool restaurant and overall it was good casual food and drinks were good too. Room service - we ordered breakfast and overall it was fine and timely.

I also wanted to comment on a few things from other reviews:
1. we never saw a single cat, feral or otherwise
2. no you can't swim at the beach but it is beautiful/natural and the sand is grainier but that is Cabo's sand not the hotel's
3. construction - was going on next door when we were there but was not obtrusive. i heard a few things but our rooms were away from it but i don't think it would have bothered us if we were by it
4. overall the staff was very friendly and helpful. delta lost our luggage on the way there (a VERY common thing we found out) and Marisol at Concierge helped us a ton, Victor the activities guy was super nice, also Carlos a bellboy very nice, and I was satisifed with Jorge's solution to our inconvenience.

In summation - I think this hotel was a good deal. It's not a 5 star service type hotel so if you expect that you won't get it. The towels and bedding aren't plush and brand new, and you don't get a flat screen tv. Overall I thought of this hotel like a Holiday Inn or Sheraton Inn - fine, with most conveniences but not over the top with extras.

We stayed at the Finesterra in early December, 2007. It was our first trip to Cabo. There are some important things to note about the hotel and surrounding area. If you are looking for an MTV-type Cabo experience, the Finesterra is not your place. It is located on the Pacific side (non-swimming beach) in a very quiet area. It was absolutely perfect for sitting on the beach or by the pool without the distractions or hassle associated with the beaches in town. It does not have people actively trying to sell you timeshares or vendors attempting to sell fake silver. So the first thing to note is it is perfect for people looking for a quiet vacation but not necessarily those looking for a younger or more party atmosphere hotel.

Location: the hotel is located withing walking distance of the marina and downtown. It is however located atop a hill that can be difficult if you have any walking issues. They offer a shuttle up and down the hill but not a shuttle into town. Cabs are standing by for easy access as well. We found it easy to walk into town and back but we enjoy walking - overall it was about a 10 minute walk to the marina and 15 to where most of the main points of interest in downtown are.

Food: the hotel bar (whale watcher bar) and restaurant (blue marlin) are excellent. They are not cheap but are in line with costs at most food places in town. Room service was prompt and excellent, especially for breakfast.

Room: we had a studio suite with a full ocean view. We highly recommend staying in an ocean view room... it is worth any additional cost. The room is spacious with a small kitchenette. Clearly the rooms are a bit dated but they were very clean and maid service actually came by twice a day for cleaning and towel service.

One thing to note is that construction is going on next door. While we could not hear it in our room we could very clearly hear it while at the pool or beach. It appears as though they still have a few months left of construction so be aware of this aspect.

We stayed in the WHALE WATCHER SUITE and it was VERY luxurious. This suite is above the restaurant and no other rooms around. You have your own private area in the hotel. It was amazing. You have a beautiful stairway entrance. It's a huge place. It has two bedrooms each with a jacuzzi and one with a steam room. One room has a walk-in closet, the other still has ample closet. The bathrooms are huge!!!! AND their is a seperate guest bathroom by the entrance. (Total of 2 1/2 baths). The entire room has marble floors. The entire living room is glass that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. We could definitely live there. You have your own desk with a computer and free internet. Perfect for my busy husband who has to be connected to his email. I really cannot do it justice. If you can afford it, stay here at least one day. It's like staying in a big apartment with awesome view.
As for the hotel, it was great. The grounds are nice and I liked the shallow pool for the kids. Never got bothered by timeshare people. The only downside was that it was WAY too HOT in August. We were up early but had to head back to the room around noon because it was too hot for the kids. We just ordered room service (prices are reasonable) and went out by the pool after 4pm. Yes, there is a steep hill but there was always a shuttle to take us to the bottom or back up. No biggie. Staff is excellent. Cabo was not very pretty and not authentic enough. I will only come back to stay in this room and stay in the Finisterra property.
We swam with Dolphins but I was forced into it by my husband. I'm not a dolphin fan. It ended up being fun and I got some cool pictures.

I am definitely a Finisterra fan.

We stayed 6 nights in mid October and before we left we booked our January trip!

The rooms are spacious! I would definitely go the Palapa Beach resort route. The view of the Pacific behind the pools is beautiful.

There is construction going on. I am an early riser, so the noise in the morning didn't bother me too much. We even watched the workers while drinking morning coffee. It is amazing how they build the building without much of the technology we use here.

The pool area is great and a must-do. There is nothing more relaxing. The marina and town is a short walk. The restaurants are good and not very pricey.

We are not time share people. . .after a day or two in town, they realized we were "locals" and left us pretty much alone.