We travelled to the HE May 24 - May 31st and had an amazing stay ! The reviews truly are correct - this is an amazing 5 star+ immaculate resort just a little north of Cabo (which was a definite plus for us), with one of the most amazing views.(we had a 4th floor room 4160 - well known to be the best floor b/c of the views. i'll post some pictures as well)
We were timeshare owners, not at the HE, and traded with II with no problem at all....despite what a couple previous reviewers wrote. However, b/c of what they wrote, I called three different days the week prior to our trip just to have II confirm our trip AND I also called the HE's 800# to confirm that they had us on the roster for a May 24 checkin. The HE couldn't confirm until the Wed. prior to our trip, which yes, made me nervous, but oh well - by Wed, they were able to confirm and we were well on our way!

Yes - the sales tactics from the welcoming committee took the initial fun/relaxing feeling out of what a welcome should feel like, but it turned out great after we sat for the 90 min. preview the next morning and left with a week full of free excersions. (The sales lady we had was not pushy and for being a timeshare saleswomen, she was a gem ! we've seen the flip side and it isn't pretty) Our half day (6 hrs) of deep sea fishing was paid for, our snorkeling free as well and we also received $50 cash and a bottle of tequila to boot! No complaints here! (not everyone received the same items, we first got an offer at the airport (basically told them what all we planned to do, and the HE was forced to match it to get us to agree to sit for their sales presentation instead of the other resort's)

I only have positive things to say about the rooms, the resort grounds, the friendly staff, the cleanliness of everything (streets/wrought iron fences, lamp posts - there was constantly a crew out dusting and cleaning things I wouldn't even think to clean)

It was easy to rent a car from the HE's concierge any day you wanted it - $45/day as we weren't owners (owners get a discount) just reserve a day or two in advance. Getting to and from the Resort the day of our flights went smoothly as well. I did research thanks to TripAdvisor, and determined that Transcabo was the way to go to get to the HE on the 24th, and then we took a group taxi back to the airport on our departure date. $35 on the 24th and $35 back to the airport on the 31st - not too bad! The only thing I think the HE could improve on, is treating all visitors the same. This may be a little redundant, b/c other review writers mentioned this as well, but maybe the more complaints they get, they will change policy. The shuttle to and from Cabo really should be free for everyone, not just ownders. We only took it once (b/c the other days we had a rental car) but it would have been a nice perk had it been free to us like it was for owners. ($6 per person roundtrip)

Las Maria's was very good - we had lunch as well as dinner there (they cooked the grouper we had caught deep sea fishing) and both meals were terrific! Service of course, 5 star! The Pool Bar also had good food. Yum - the best Pica de Gallo!

We like to adventure outside of resorts when we travel, and our favorite place was to Cabo Pulmo. The Marine Reserve. Turqoise waters, a live reef to snorkle or scuba, and some really good fishing! It was well off the beaten path, print a map from the internet before going. Santa maria Bay was also a nice quiet beach!

I'll end here - if you go to the HE, you will not be dissappointed! Say Hi to Alfredo - he makes a mean margarita and perfectly chills the shots of tequila - all with the warmest most contagious smile you've ever seen! When you see him, you'll know what i'm talking about! Safe Travels!

ps - although very tempting to sleep with the amazing wall sized doors to the balcony open, beware of mosquitos. We didn't put the ceiling fan on (thus there was very still air in our room at night) and I received over 100 bites (my husband didn't have a 1 on his body!) This is in no way HE"s fault - it is my own fault - I should know better. Just sleep with them closed and then early in the morning, around 6 am when the sun begins to come up, sleepily walk over and open them, and then climbed back in bed for a few more hours of snooze. :)

I read all the reviews and I have to agree that Hacienda Encantada is a beautiful place with an incredible view.
Yes, it is not finished and lacks a spa and work out room (please, when has this ruined a vacation). And, the shuttle controvery is the only "black mark" on this wonderful resort.
The shuttle is not 'free" to non-owners and it really should be. The five dollar charge can add up if you have a family and wish to try the many wonderful restaurants (Marias on the property is good, not great) downtown. As far as being "overbooked" we never had the problem. They just added a taxi. The staff was wonderful, from the desk to the pool and yes we took advantage of the mini-kitchen and stocked up at Walmart. No one said a word about our store bought drinks or snacks.
We traded for the Hacienda on Interval and they too were "perfect" in their description and their assistance. All our "paperwork" was in order, and again, we were treated as owners even though we were not (and did not buy).
Great place for a romantic get-a-way and upon completion will have more for children.
I highly recommend.

DR, NB/TX

We just returned from a week at the Hacienda Encantada, and it was a terrific experience. This was our first time to Baja California, and we had a great time.

Quick summary: this resort is 5-star all the way. All of the furnishings were stone, tile, and hardwood. The walls have concrete cores, and we didn't hear a peep from our neighbors. The ceiling was ~15-20 feet high. Even the studios have whirlpool tubs, although the water is a little yellowish, owing apparently to sandy sediments in the source. Free wireless internet, but I think it's only in the lobby for now.

We booked this week through an Interval exchange, and had no problems. Because of the issues reported in a previous review, I called to confirm our reservation the week before we arrived. When I called, they confirmed successfully, and also asked me whether I'd prefer a king or two queen beds, and whether I'd prefer a high or low floor. This was a nice touch, and both of our requests were honored.

Check-in was easy. One note - they offered (and we accepted) a "tip plan" where 7 dollars is charged to the room each day, to cover all tips except for food/drink service (i.e. bell service, valet, maid). This seems fine, but the hotel staff has no way of knowing who accepted this plan and who did not, and so I found myself having to tip anyway to avoid feeling like a cheapskate. This was okay - better to overtip than undertip - but keep this in mind. You may prefer to tip (generously) a la carte.

In the resort's current Phase I state, the lobby and main restaurant areas are 50-100 feet up a hill from the lodging and pool areas, connected by winding paths with nice fountains that are shared by pedestrians and complementary carts. We usually walked since we found it pleasant, but some may need the carts, as it's quite hot and the paths are somewhat steep.

As noted above, the quality of the room itself was exceptional. The floors were tile, the appliances were steel, the countertops were granite, the furniture was hardwood, and the balcony was an amazing luxury. All of the Phase I rooms have ocean-view balconies.

We also had excellent daily maid service, which we were not expecting in a timeshare exchange. The maid even cleaned any dishes we had left in our sink in the morning.

The pool facilities were gorgeous and well-kept. We found the food and service at the patio bar to be excellent (we didn't try the main Marias restaurant upstairs, and it always appeared fairly empty).

A few general tips. First, the airport - once you get through customs, you're assaulted by a gauntlet of timeshare snakeoil salespersons in identical shirts who make themselves look like official people you have to deal with in order to leave the airport. They are not - and we found the experience quite slimy. Based on other online reviews, we knew that the Hacienda Encantada was offering $300-400 USD cash per couple for attending the sales presentation if you signed up at the airport or in town, but only a $100 room credit if you signed up at the resort. Knowing this, I asked for an signed up for an appointment with one of the airport gauntlet people. They gave me the sheet, and said a $20 deposit was required, to be refunded after we kept the appointment. When we got to the resort, they told us that our appointment was actually with a different resort, and we'd been burned for our $20. However, they matched the offer, and we got our $320 cash plus a discount card for the week, so it worked out okay. Still, it sort of felt like it was "play or be played" with these folks (speaking of the timeshare promotions throughout Cabo).

Note that we did not buy the timeshare, although they ended up offering a deal that looked pretty fair.

We rented a car for the week, which worked out nicely for trips to Todos Santos (the food at Hotel California [the red one] was ASTONISHING), Cabo San Lucas, San Jose del Cabo, horseback riding, Wal-Mart for water/beer/food/wine, and Chileno Beach (nice snorkeling, but I was stung by a jellyfish in 4 places). We rented from National at the airport, but had forgotten to let our main credit card carrier know we were traveling to Mexico, and so our card was declined. National wouldn't let us use their phones to call our credit card company, so I was forced to use another credit card, and shell out an extra ~$100 for insurance I didn't need.

The only real negatives at the hotel relate to the phone service. There was a $5/minute rate for calls to the US (we had no cell service in Cabo), and a toll free number was listed on the phone for people to call you from the US/Canada, which did not work. They charged us $25 for one 5-minute call we didn't make, and the supervisor played detective for 15 minutes at checkout with the phone records before agreeing to refund the charge - it was a little tacky, but worked out okay.

Amazing resort - would love to go back once it's complete.

Overall experience was very nice. The property has only one section complete, so the number of people there was light. Facilities are very nice, but many are none existent at the present time.

There is no work out room or spa (even though they provide a shuttle to a sister facility that has these -$10 round trip a piece though). We took the shuttle a few times, as the sister facility is at the marina in town, allowing us to walk Cabo San Lucas and it was cheaper than a taxi.

The pool at Encantada is nice, but either was too much in the sun or too windy for us to enjoy (the last 3 days were cool and windy, which surprised us for late May).

Our room was large, well appointed, clean and comfortable. The doors to the balcony were wall to wall folding doors, so when open, the room was effectively inclusive of the balcony. The balcony was about 15 foot by 15 foot. There was a built-in bed/couch, a dining table, two chairs and two ottomons on the balcony.

The weather was nice enough, that we left the doors open most of the time and did not need the air conditioning.

For us, we wanted some quiet time to be together and Encantada worked great. We were given very good service that was friendly. We would be glad to go back again.

We went to the Wal-Mart on our first day, so we could stock the kitchen. That worked well and we ate quite a few meals in the room while sitting on the balcony.

For those who do not want to cook, we did not try the restaurant other than one breakfast. There are not other restaurants close, so you either have to shuttle to town, take a taxi or have a rental car.

Hopefully, as the other sections are added the pool social life will pick up and provide more entertainment for resort life. We would have rated the facility a 5, if not for the lack of social events, etc.