Warning: this is a time-share resort. On the first day, they will keep you in a 3 1/2 hour presentation trying to sell you a time-share for $40,000 (they tell you it is only a 75 minute "tour of the resort"). You can tell them from the beginning that you don't want to buy it, but they still take you on the tour. Suggestion: just don't go in the first place, although I am not sure if they will keep calling you to go on it.
After the sales pitch, the rest of the stay was kinda nice. The beach/sea was nice (strong undercurrent, but manageable); the pools were nice and heated (we went in december). There are people on the beach trying to sell you necklaces, blankets, etc. They normally leave you alone if you simply tell them "no," but some are more pushy than others. Also, the salespeople stay on the beach and do not go onto the resort grounds (although they get as close as humanly possible). Our room was ok, but it smelled of sewage. We were on the third floor of a four-floor building and on the fourth floor was a restaurant. The restaurant itself was good, but we constantly heard chairs and tables moving above us when we were in the room.
If you were looking for anything other than lying on the beach and swimming in the pools, DO NOT GO HERE! You are literally surrounded by desert and ocean; the only sign of civilization is downtown Cabos San Lucas which, for all intents and purposes, is nothing more than a tourist trap. If you want any semblance of culture, you have to go to San Jose. We did not go because there was no shuttle there and it would have been a $60 cab ride. Moreover, we were not impressed with the description from the front desk on what to find there.
Bottom line: if you want to lie on the beach all day, go here, but stay at the hotel and not Hacienda del Mar. If you like experiencing culture, visiting the surrounding area, or generally prefer not feelng like you are confined to one small area of the region, do not go here.

We stayed here for five days in mid December using RCI to exchange our condo. We were pleasantly surprised by the immaculate grounds. When we first arrived we requested a room with a view and not the rooms by the garage---we were given a first floor room in building 36--the garage building, when we requested a different room, we were given a room in building 10, on the fourth floor corner. Building 10 is a great location near the pools and restaurants.

The property is older, but well maintained. The room was a one bedroom unit with a partial kitchen, separate small Jacuzzi in the bedroom area, separate bathroom and nice balcony.

We ate at 4 of the restaurants on the property and our favorite restaurant was Pitahayas. This restaurant was fantastic---exquisitely prepared food, incredible service, a real bargain. The sushi bar was good, with some interesting rolls, Tomatoes was okay. The beach was very nice and some people were actually swimming here, with caution. The resort has two Jack Nicklaus golf courses, that were outstanding. The work out facility and spa was great. New machines, good atmosphere.

There were several pools in strategic locations. Noticed a kids playground, but not a lot of kids at this resort. Buildings were arranged so that noise was minimized. No traffic noise off the freeway a half mile away. Staff was great. Always treated everyone with respect. This resort was way better than Casa Dorado Dreams, were we just finished our second week of this trip. We were charged with a daily internet fee, if we wanted to use more than a free 30 min offering. This was not great, but tolerable. Would definitely recommend this property.

This is a huge property and the grounds are beautifully landscaped. We stayed in a one bedroom unit that had 2 full baths, a jacuzzi in the master bedroom, A/C and a kitchen. Rooms have satellite TV with 40+ channels. We did not rent a car so we stayed at the property every day except the one day we took the shuttle ($10 per person RT) to town. We ate room service, Girasoles, Sirenas and Tomatos..all of which I have posted reviews. The resort offers WIFI for a free 30 minutes daily or you can pay $13 for 24 hour access. I found the WIFI connection to be challenging and opted for the free daily 30 minutes in the hospitality suite to check emails, etc. The hospitality suite offers comfortable surroundings with a TV and showers, in case you have checked out (check out is 10am) and have extra time before your flight leaves. There is a airport shuttle for $32 a person RT but it makes several stops. I decided to book a private car with cabo transfers for $125 RT and added a 1 hour shopping stop for groceries for $40. If you do this, when you arrive at the airport and walk out of baggage claim...SPEAK TO NO ONE!...They are all time share salesman, they wear badges so you assume they work for the airport. They told me they were the company I booked with and they will have the driver pull up for me. I almost fell into the trap. Once you walk out the doors to outside my driver was standing with a sign. Thank goodness someone walked out the doors and I was able to see my driver holding a sign with my name on it. Mexico corruption at it's finest. The driver took us to Walmart which was quite expensive, $9 for a case of Arrowhead bottled water. I was told Mega supermarket is cheaper. There is also a Costco and Sams Club not far from the resort. Upon check in they assign you to a "concierge" which offers discounts and resort credits if you attend a time share presentation, which we did not do. The pools are beautiful and overlook the private beach, the staff are very accommodating. If you need an umbrella (free) or extra chair, just ask at the towel kiosk. They are more than happy to make your stay comfortable. There are people that put towels on the chairs to reserve them and never show up, but you get that at any resort. They offer 2 for 1 daily drink specials at Sirenas near the pool. I requested a bucket with ice to keep my beverages cold and it was not a problem. There are vendors that walk the beach selling things, but they do not harass you, and they do not come onto the property. There were people drinking/eating in the pool, enjoying bottles of wine at their pool chairs and one lady had her dog on her lap sitting on the pool steps. I believe that the staff is afraid to confront the guests and tell them no, since they aim to please. This property offers a children's play area and pool. There are bbq's with private gazebo's in the courtyards for use, just let the front desk know as they are locked. Hallways near the rooms have an ice machine and elevator. They offer a laundry facility and sell the detergent and softener in the convenience store located on the property. The property can be a challenge to walk, as there are stairs, inclines, uneven surfaces and it can be a bit of a distance from one area to the next. I did notice handicap ramps near the rooms. The bell desk staff also will give you a ride in their golf cart if needed. The vacation villas share their property with the Sheraton resort so if you are a SPG member you will get points for your purchases. The front desk asked for my SPG number upon check out and said they would send it with my folio to the Sheraton hotel so I would get credit. That did not happen and I had to contact SPG member services and fax them my folio to get the credit. There is a golf course next to the property, we do not golf so I cannot comment on that. There is daily maid service and dish detergent, shampoo, conditioner, soap and lotion is provided. Rooms have a coffee maker in the kitchen but no coffee provided, so make sure you bring or buy some. The kitchen is fully stocked with anything you made need to cook, including a microwave and toaster oven. Each room has a patio with a great view and some rooms have a jacuzzi on the patio. This property is beautifully maintained and is very clean. If you want to be out of the hustle bustle..this is your place. Quiet, tranquil and a great way to just relax.

Our friends, my husband, and I stayed here the first week of December. For many years, we normally trade our timeshare for any Grand Mayan, but this time wanted something different. After reading the wonderful reviews here on TA, we decided to stay here. We had a two bedroom suite. We made this reservation back in April. We checked in about 1:00. We knew we couldn't get our room right away and were willing to wait. We asked for an ocean view and were told that when we checked in, we might get one. We were asked to come back at check in time, at 4:00 which we did. The room we were given was not an ocean view, but a view of the front of the lobby where the cars drop off guests. We were told that all the ocean view rooms were gone by guests that got their rooms before 4, huh?. Perhaps it was because we declined the time share presentation?? It was a rather irritating start, and hopefully next time we stay here, we will be granted a better view room. It turned out to be a much quieter location than we guessed.

The rooms were beautiful. Balcony was large and everything in tip top shape. A/C was perfect and so quiet you didn't even know it was going on and off. Gorgeous bathrooms. Great kitchen with a dishwasher and big fridge with ice and water in the door. A washer and a dryer. Beds were comfortable. Bedding very nice with down comforters. TV's were all flat screens in all bedrooms and living room. Great selection of channels. .All these amenities are not in any Grand Mayan we have stayed at.

The grounds are gorgeous and so well maintained. There is a variety of pools with comfortable lounges. Maria, the pool towel attendant, is one hard worker. Managing the towels, cleaning the bathrooms, helping with pool umbrellas, polishing the chrome, and all with a genuine smile. All the staff were very nice. The front desk staff weren't as friendly however.

The reason for the 4 stars was because their internet policy is extremely confusing and possibly deceiving. We have to work while we are vacation as we are self employed. It would be so wonderful if we didn't need to, but such is life in this economy. We are still confused by the way the internet works. It appeared that one computer in the room would get 30 minutes free internet every day. That is nice, but we had three. You can purchase an hour or 24 hours. 24 hours is roughly $13. It says on the screen where you sign up that you can use three computers on that 24 hours, but you can't. I can understand if you wanted to use all three computers at one time that that wouldn't work, but we wanted to use them one at a time. No go. When checking out, I had to fight to get some compensation for the deception, and finally got two days taken off. Maybe because there were many people in line waiting to check out? Not sure, but I was glad Oliver made some kind of gesture, but not happily, I might add. Honestly, internet should be FREE. There are lots and lots and lots of hotels that offer free internet.

We only had two meals while we were there. The Mexican restaurant was very good and has a great view. The one poolside restaurant was good, but extremely expensive for pool food.

The beach is very nice for Cabo. We snorkeled right off of the hotel often and were very lucky to see such a vast variety of fish. We mostly snorkeled on the right side of the rocks on the right side of the beach.

We really loved it here and will definitely return next time we are in Cabo.