We just got back from Cabo last night (11-13-07). We had a wonderful time. All of the reviews that I read before we left talked about all of the time share haggling that went on. We did not have one person ask us about time share! Now, they are in the airport but we never looked at them. My suggestion is to just keep walking. They will act like they are trying to help you get a cab but just don't listen.

Once we arrived (about 30-45 min later) our rooms weren't ready so we just changed into our swimsuits and hit the pool until they were ready. The pool is nice. It is infinity so it looks like it is running into the ocean. It has a nice swim up bar which does need some maintenance done on it like some tile replacing. FYI: Every morning if you want a pool side lounger you must get up at 6 or 7 to get one!!!!!!!! We were able to get into our rooms in a couple of hours. The rooms are gorgeous. We had a room with 2 double beds and a lounge area with a couch and table with 2 chairs. The balcony looked over the ocean. We were on the 2nd floor. It does stay pretty noisy having your room right by the pool until 2-3 in the morning so if noise bothers you I suggest getting a room that isn't by the pool. Room service is good. We had one bad day that they forgot to clean our room but the maid was in there at like 11:00 at night doing it. The water pressure in the shower was good. It would knock you down if you didn’t watch it. Always had hot water which is a good thing.

The Explorers Club for kids is good. My 8 year old went one day. They do crafts and games. They have Nintendo and WII. They have a bungee jump on the beach and that was my son's favorite. The only thing is there are not that many kids there so they might be the only one there some days. But the staff is good and my son liked it.

The event staff put on theme nights that are nice. Casino, Karaoke, Club Crawl that goes into town one night. I didn't go but some people in my group went and it sounded like a hoot. You can't miss that!

You can not swim in the ocean here. You can't even put your big toe in the water. They have someone patrol the beach 24-7. That was kind of frustrating because I have 2 children that love to swim and snorkel. But we did find a beach: Chilleno Beach which was gorgeous for snorkeling and swimming. It is about 10- 15 min. away from Dreams. Now the taxi rides are expensive. We paid 25.00 for 8 people to go to the beach one way! So be ready for that. The hotel does have tours that go out for swimming and snorkeling but it was never on the right days for us. We also went on the beach walk that the event staff had, which I highly recommend doing (if you are in ok shape). It is about a 15 min walk up the beach to the Hilton where you can swim. My kids liked that. They could look for shells on the way up and back. Take your camera with you!

I highly recommend the ATV Tour. It was incredible! The company we went with was Cactus ATV Tours. www.cactusatvtours.com. You will get really dirty and tired but where they take you and what you get to see is unreal. You go thru the desert, mountains, canyons and the beach. They also let you go for it on your on for quite a while. You must wear helmets, goggles and bandanas. I went and bought OU and OSU bandanas for all of us to wear but went off and left them at home! But they do have some there and they are clean and smelled good. You could tell they had been washed which is a good thing. The service was great. Our guide was really good. I wasn't very experienced with the ATV but I learned really quickly and I didn't have a problem at all. I have an 8 and 12 year old. The 12 year old rode one by herself and the 8 year old rode with my husband.

We also did the Tropicat Catamaran sunset cruise which was out of this world. We sat up front right by the net. It was a blast. But caution you might get wet if you sit up there! They had anything you wanted to drink and snack to eat. The sunset was beautiful. You go right past the arch and sea lions. It was GREAT!!!!!! You might take a jacket.

You can't miss the Swim with the Dolphins experience. It was awesome. My husband and I sat out of this one and enjoyed watching the kids. They had 6 people in their group. The kids talked about this all day. They really had a hands on experience here. They weren't rushed at all. Everyone got a chance to do all the tricks with the dolphins. Each group had 2 dolphins. Don't miss it! But they won't let you take your camera in so you get to buy there pictures. We bought the disk and it was $72.00!
After the dolphins we stayed in town and got a water taxi with a glass bottom and went out to the famous arch and sea lions. They get you so close to everything. You have to do this too! We had him drop us off at Lover's beach which is right by the Arch. One part of the beach is on the Sea of Cortez and the other is on the Pacific Ocean. You can't swim on the Pacific side because it is too rough. We took our masks and snorkels and swam here. It was great. Don't forget your camera.

The only negative things I have to say about Dreams is the food is not good, there is no swimming in the ocean, and you have to leave the resort to do a lot because they don't have the beach services like swimming, snorkeling, jet skiing, parasailing....Oh and there are people selling things on the beach, so you are asked every time if you want to buy stuff if you go out on the beach.

So for an all inclusive resort it was good. You will have an incredible time!

The Oklahoma Crew

I just returned from a 9 Night stay at Dreams. We got married there and had 34 of our close friends and family join us. I have no regrets. This place was everything I was hoping it would be and our guests had the the time of their lives!

The only reason why I did not rate this hotel Excellent is because not every meal I had was up to my standards, but then again this is not the Ritz Carlton...but it's the closest thing to it in the "All-Inclusive World"! However, after being there for a long stay we had time to try many different restaurants at the hotel and try several dishes. Most of the food was absolutely delicious. Here are some tips on what to try-
Oceana Restuarant:
For Dinner-Very very good Clam Chowder Soup, Scallop appetizer, Salmon, and Jack Daniels Shrimp
For Lunch-Mushroom Soup, Tuna Salad Sandwich, Shrimp Stuffed alvacado and Chicken Fajitas.
Portifino's:
Amazingly good Cream of Spinach Soup, really good Chicken Parmasean, Lasagna, Caprese Salad & Beef Carpacio
Seaside Grill:
Corn Chowder and Onion Soup are very good and so is the Rib Eye Steak (ask for Baked Potato).
Room Service:
Mexian Breakfast is outstanding and so is the French Toast and a really fresh assortment of pasteries come with your breakfast and they are all very good.
This resort has the best guacamole I have ever had!
2 great drinks to order at the pool bar are the Dirty Monkey and the Rosa Maya.
Also I have to give props to the servers at these restuarants, they really know how to treat their customers! I live in Chicago and pay average $130 for a meal for two at a nice restaurant and get nowhere near the serviced and attention to detail that you get at Dreams every single day and night. So I'd like to thank the staff for all of their great service! I left every meal with a tip on the table for them because there is no way my conscience would allow me not to. They desrved it!

Major tip to follow-
When going to downtown Cabo from the Resort you are presented with two options: The shuttle $12 round trip, but limited times on when you can use it or a $25 one way cab ride. My husband and I opted for the City Bus. We simply walked across the highway and flagged down the bus. $1.50 each way or 15 Pesos. Can't beat it.! And it is so easy to do. Ask the conceirage, Mario, if you need help. He assisted us and we went downtown everyday after this great find!

If you like to pamper yourself this is good to know: You can have full access to the Spa for just $50 (this does not include services). This gives you access to it your entire week i.e. the steam room, sauna, hot tub and power showers and have a glass of Champagne in the process! Great to do after a good workout.

Almost all of our guests are already planning their return trip to Cabo for next year and want to stay at Dreams again! I was so pleased with how easy they made it for me to plan this wedding. Marianna is the one to contact if you are interested in having a wedding. She was great and I worked solely over email to organize this event with her.
If you want to eat away from the resort for a night, I highly recommend La Golondrina in downtown Cabo.

As you walk around the resort you will be in awe of it's beuty. So enjoy it because it ends too soon!!!

We booked this trip through Expedia with connecting flights from New York’s JFK to SLC with a 42-minuite layover. I was a little nervous about missing the connection so we exercised our option under the Expedia travel insurance to change the itinerary and flew to SLC on Saturday 11-3 utilizing Delta’s Crown Room in NY and stayed overnight in Salt Lake City near the airport. Our flight to SJD on Sunday went off perfectly, we were able to wait at the airport in the Delta Crown Room before the flight again and it was wonderful.

We arrived in Mexico on a 90+ degree sunny day at about 2:30 PM. Immigration and luggage was fast as we were the only flight that arrived at that time. We got the green light and proceeded through the time sharks to our waiting Grey Line Transportation rep. We loaded into a shuttle van and were the first to be dropped off. The driver even stopped so we could buy a cold Cervasa on the way.

Check in was a breeze with the customary cold towels presented to us even before our luggage was removed from the van. The front desk staff was great and knew from my e-mailed correspondence that we were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary and offered us champagne. There was a time share rep nearby that offered us a tour of the resort but we knew better and politely declined. Off we went to our Jr. Suite which was wonderful, we were assigned room 607 on the top floor with a fantastic view of the Sea of Cortez and near the elevator (I had e-mailed the resort prior and asked for a high floor). We had a nice fruit platter and bottle of champagne waiting for us as well as two Dreams bathrobes and slippers. This was part of the anniversary package we had arranged for.

We changed into pool clothes and headed down to find our friends who had arrived the day before (we were a group of 7-couples that decided to vacation together). We never got past the lobby; as they were hanging out, cocktails in hand enjoying the afternoon. We ended up sitting and chatting for a while then went for a walk to see the resort. For dinner we ate at the Oceana Seafood restaurant which was great. Everyone had a seafood dish and said it was great. I had “double turf, skip the surf” as I don’t eat seafood. The steaks were great. Decided to turn in as we were tired from traveling and we retired to our room for the night.

Monday 11-5

Woke up to a cloudless sky and sat on my outdoor deck and drank coffee to great the new day. We had breakfast in El Patio with another couple next to the main pool. Custom egg omelet’s or buffet items were offered and everything was great. We made our way over to the other side of the resort to the smaller “quiet” pool where we hung out for the day. This pool water is cooler than the main pool which I loved as the main pool felt like bathtub water to me. The quiet side still had a great swim up bar, and good service from the staff and did not get that noisy. For lunch we ate at Seaside Grill which for a buffet was good. For dinner we decided as a group to try the Italian Portofino which was great. They sat our group together with two round tables next to each other. Everything including the appetizer, soup, main course and desert were fantastic. After dinner we hung out near the lobby bar at the fire pit and enjoyed conversation.

Tuesday 11-6

I had another great morning sipping coffee on our deck catching some early morning Mexican sunshine. Has breakfast at Seaside Grill which was fantastic. Custom omelets and waffles were offered as well as the standard buffet of meats, fruits etc. We hung out in the sun by the quite pool for the morning. Has a quick lunch and met our group for a planned road trip to Los Cabos. Dreams provides a shuttle for $6.00 per person each way. The girls were supposed to go shopping and the guys were going to explore some of Los Cabos finer drinking establishments. We all walked around the marina together enjoying the boats, and sights until someone said, let’s stop for a cervasa. We all did of course and ended up visiting Cabo Wabo, The Giggling Marlin and a few other fine establishments. It was fun.

We got back to Dreams about 7 pm and eleven out of our group of fourteen dined in Seaside Grill which was good. We then sat at the fire pit enjoying conversation and after dinner cordials when another shuttle pulled up with our friends we had left behind. Needless to say, one of the spouses was not too happy but at the same time relieved they made it back safely.

Wednesday 11-7

We had another great day at the resort enjoying the Mexican sun and drinks. Again we stayed primarily at the quiet side pool which was relaxing and nice. For lunch we ate right there at the Oceana and enjoyed the food. For dinner we went to the Seaside Grill. They had a Pirate night and three people in our group were picked to go onstage. Fun was had by all.

Thursday 11-8

More sun and cold drinks by the quiet pool today. We ordered lunch which was delivered to our lounge chairs by the pool. In the afternoon, we went over to the other pool which was fairly crowded and spent the rest of the day people watching and enjoying the ocean sounds. Dinner as a group at Seaside Grill was great.

Friday 11-9

Had breakfast with some of our friends that were leaving and met everyone in the lobby to say good buy. Spent the rest of the morning at the quiet pool again and had lunch right at our chairs. In the afternoon we ventured over to the main pool and found seats down by the smaller bottom infinity pool. Some other guests were getting somewhat rambunctious and were jumping off the ledge in the main pool into the lower pool. Security finally appeared and were advised against doing this again. For dinner we had arranged our “romantic” dinner at Portofino. This is included with the anniversary package and you make the arrangements through the concierge. We enjoyed everything and called it a night to start packing for our planned departure the next day.

Saturday 11-10

Woke up early and ate breakfast. Our shuttle to the airport was not due until 11:30 so we spent the morning soaking up a final few Mexican rays. The shuttle was on time and we picked up two other couples on the way to the airport. The airport was very busy and we had to wait on line to check in. They hand search every checked bad here and your carry on bags are searched by hand prior to going through the metal detectors. Since we were flying international, we were able to shop at the duty free shops after getting through security and brought home some goodies. Prices were good on alcohol and cigarettes.

Our direct flight home was perfect arriving in NY 5-hours after take-off. Immigration and luggage retrieval went quickly and we were home about 10:30 PM.

A few comments about the trip.

I did go through about $100 in tips during our stay. These Mexican locals who work there deserve every penny. I left $3.00 per day for the maid and tipped the turndown maid $5.00 at the end of the week when we saw her one night. For the most part, we did get slightly better service from most employees’ who were tipped but not all. Some of our favorites were Jose at the quiet pool, Pablo and Pepe at the lobby bar. One night we sat as a group to watch one of the shows and our waiter asked for a tip which was wrong. I like to tip when service is exceptional, but in this case, the waiter forgot some drink orders, never brought coffee and did not even offer to clean up some spillage.

Food

The Italian restaurant was by far the best in my opinion. The only drawback was I had to wear long pants. Oceana was a close second. The rest were cruise ship quality. You could always find something to eat or drink.

Beverages

There was some top shelf liquor to be found at certain bars but it was inconsistent. My wife likes Amaretto De Sorona and when the lobby bar ran out the first day, we did not see it again for two days. Some bars also ran out of absolute vodka and some did not have it at all. The only beer was Corona and a dark beer both on tap with no bottles available at any bars. Your refrigerator in your room was stocked with soda, bottled water and mini bottles of Corona and the dark beer.

Overall

Both my wife and I loved the week and we had a great time at the resort. Towards the end of the week, there were some very large groups arriving and it got a little loud. I would rate Dreams 4.5 out of 5 stars and would go back. I might like to try a resort closer to town as there was so much we did not see in Los Cabos. The weather for the week could not have been any better with daytime highs in the low 90’s (dry) and nighttime temps in the 70’s. We only saw light clouds in the mornings which always burned off before 10:00 am.

Genman

We just had a relaxing vacation at Dreams. I thought I'd give you some pros and cons.

First: Honeymooners relax!!! Your wedding will be beautiful, and your family will love it! The staff seems to do a great job. We even saw flowers being set up, and they were beautiful. Our room overlooked a lot of the receptions. Us old married people, (23 years), danced to the music on our balcony and enjoyed the fireworks. Thanks, guys!

Now the cons:

When I book a room with an ocean view, I don't think to ask if I can actually swim in the ocean. Well, in Cabo, you should ask if the hotel has a "swimmable beach!" Many hotels do not have a beach you can actually SWIM in. (My husband was even stopped from dipping his toes in!) There are wonderful beaches close by (if you have a car), but don't expect to swim or snorkel at the hotel.

Sadly, the road is close to the hotel. My husband doesn't notice this, but I do. Ask for an oceanfront room if this bothers you.

The food is blah. Go into one of the two towns if you are craving Mexican flavor. (MI Casa in Cabo is wonderful.) We have stayed at many places in the Caribbean and Mexico, and have had better food at all-inclusives, but the rooms here are WAY nicer than theirs.

The pros:

The chilled wash cloths you are handed when you arrive.

The faint smell of incense that tells you to leave your cares behind.

The big rooms that had comfy beds and a sitting area that was perfect for my insommniac husband! (He has been known to read and fall asleep in hotel bathrooms.) There was an air conditioner and a fan. Places like Club Med like to say that you won't spend a lot of time in your room. Well, if you have plenty of space, a great view, a balcony, minibar, and room service you will.

The grounds are immaculate! There is always someone making everything look great. (But who butchered those palm trees by the main pool?)

Even though you can't swim at the beach, the surf sounds heavenly. We also had the privilege of carrying newly hatched sea turtles to the water. They were SO CUTE!!!

Drinks were great, especially if you ask for a brand name alcohol.


Finally:
The people, both in and away from the hotel are so nice!! They are warm, seem genuinely interested in making your visit to Cabo pleasant, and are proud of the local attractions. (I think a lot of people were practicing English with us.) The staff can set the tone at a hotel, and here the atmosphere was very positive. (I have not heard so many people burst spontaneously into song since visiting Italy.)

We rented a car for two days and visited swimming/snorkeling beaches and the beautiful town of Todos Santos. Very interesting drive through "cactus forests." It is wonderful to see such a natural, unspoiled landscape. Highly recommended!!