We were at the RIU from 2/23 - 3/2, 2008 and had a great time. We have been to many all-inclusives in the past and this is definitely one of the best.

The food, for an all-inclusive mind you, was very good. When we stay at all-inclusives we eat breakfast and lunch every day at the resort but make a point of going into town for dinner at least every other night. I think most people expect 5-star dinners at these types of places and have unrealistic expectations. The breakfast and lunches were excellent with a large variety of choices. When we at dinner at the resort, we only ate at the Baja California. The food there was surprising good with a large variety of different food. Again, we stay at all-inclusives for the drinks, breakfast, and lunch-- NOT the dinners.

As other reviewers have noted, the grounds and rooms are in excellent shape as it has only been open for a few months. Our mini-bar was stocked everyday (but we also made a point to tip our maids everyday as well). There are also bottles of liquor in each room. There were always plenty of lounge chairs, whether at the beach or pool. We always went to the pools near building 7-- less noise, by the beach, 3 beautiful inifity pools. We had no problems with theft but kept items in the safe and locked our suitcases. We had no problems with our AC as other reviewers have noted.

Our EPIC representative was excellent and gave us some good advice about different excursions. He booked all of our excursions for us and there were no problems.

Definitely make sure your trip has airport/hotel transfers included--it is quite a hike from the airport and I would imagine it is an expensive cab ride.

We took a water taxi (from right in front of the RIU) to Lovers/Divorce beach for $10 roundtrip-- highly recommend doing this. Pack a few beers/drinks from your mini-bar and bring them with you. We also did the sunset cruise with Sigame which was very nice (but quite cool in the evening on the water). Lastly, we also did a whale watching trip with Ocean Riders. After driving around for quite some time, we eventually came across a group of 4 Gray whales. We got within 30 yards of them and followed them for a while. We then found 2 humpback whales. The trip was only 2 hours long and could have been longer-- but still well worth it and was excellent. There are other whale watching trips available but most of them use larger boats and can't get nearly as close as Ocean Riders. I also heard very good things about the ATV tours.

Negatives:
This has nothing to do with the resort but with Cabo itself--there are timeshare salesmen everywhere so beware. As far as the Riu, it was a little annoying that pool was $3/game in the sports bar-- a little steep. Also, the internet is quite expensive and only available in the sports bar (but you can use your own wi-fi device). I could care less about the entertainment, but it seemed pretty bad if that is important to you. The pools were a little cool for my taste but it's hard to please everyone.

In general, this was a very good all-inclusive. The resort is in great shape and the food is as good as can be expected. There is a ton to do in Cabo or you can just lounge by the pool/beach. The weather is a lot like Arizona and gets quite cool at night--bring a sweater or light jacket.

We stayed at the Santa Fe from Feb. 16-22nd. We had a great time. We would not have changed a thing.

Check in: Great experience. This took less than 10 minutes and immediately they brought us a drink while they checked us in. The bell hop took us right to our room with our luggage.

Room: We were in building 7 with a partial ocean view. The view was beautiful and the room was very nice. The rooms do have two double beds together. The next morning we stopped at the front desk and asked if they had something to convert the bed to a king and they said yes. By the time we finished breakfast and our walk, the bed was fixed with a topper on it and it was perfect. The beds were amazingly comfortable. We had no problems with theft--use your safe, it holds alot.

Service: Great. Everyone nearly trips over each other to accomodate you. I think they truely want you to have a good time. They are hard workers who never stop and the place was so clean all the time--never anything out of place . The help was also extremely friendly. If you passed them throughout the facilities, they always gave you a hello or smile.

Food: We loved the variety of food, fruit, veggies, etc. There was basically the same food everyday but they would add in a few new things each day. There are so many choices, you never leave hungry. The La Baja California was great and we enjoyed eating there. Our first night we arrived at opening time for dinner, the entire help staff was waiting in lines as you entered and clapped for everyone. That was a nice welcome. The last night we were there they had a huge barbeque with chicken and porkchops......it was wonderful. The guacamole and salsa are the best!!!

Grounds: Immaculate and beautiful. People complaining about the walking are just lazy. It is a beautiful resort that you would be crazy to not want to walk around it and see all the landscaping and the pools not to mention walking off some of those meals!!

Beach: Beautiful scenery. We spent our days on the actual beach and came home with fantastic tans. We did not use the pools at all but they were beautiful too and plentiful. There was never a shortage of loungers on the beach or by any of the pools. There are vendors on the beach that do bother you, but we got used to it. "NADA" seems to work better than "no thank you". By the end of the week we became friendly with several of them and got some good bargains too.

Town: Walked along the beach to town. That is not an easy walk but we enjoyed it--the sand is deep and with the slope it makes it a little tougher. It took about 45 minutes. We then took a water taxi from the marina over to Lands End which was nice. The taxi then took us right back to the beach in front of the RIU. The view of the resort was amazing from the water taxi. We visited Squid Roe one night for dinner. It was a fun place.

Take a larger glass or mug with you for drinks--they don't mind filling them up for you. The ones they have outside are very small.

All in all, we loved the Santa Fe and Cabo. It was breathtaking. We can't wait to come back and have told all our friends.

We just got home from the Riu Santa Fe.
It was great. Some things you might be wondering about......
How's the food? It's really good, with the exception of the desserts. They're not very sweet and anything chocolate is a huge disappointment. Fill up on chocolate cake before you go. Stick with the icecream, flan or deep fried bananas. However, by day four or five you will get a little tired of buffets. The reservation only restaurants are ok.
The Steak House is probably the best. It has the best ambiance anyway. Overlooking the ocean. But remember, you have to make a reservation about 7 or 8 am the day you want to go.
There will be a table near the gift shops where you can sign up.
The drinks? Good. However, you might want to specify if you want alcohol in them. They are extremely weak!
Can you drink the water? Not sure. The gentlemen that gave us our orientation when we first arrived said that we could drink it.
So we did. We didn't get sick. However, the next day our Apple representative told us not to drink it.
Can you swim in the ocean in front of the hotel?
Not when we went. The waves were gigantic! Extremely dangerous. The water is also very cold right now.
You may have to walk a ways to find safer waters.
What about transportation? We had eleven in our group and got a van outside the lobby for $20 one way into town.
You can take the walk on the beach towards the marina, but you will get tired. So grab a water taxi for about $3 per person. It's fun. Entertainment? Lots of contests and entertainment by the pool all day long. Similar to a cruise. At night they have shows. And they usually start off with shows that the kids can participate in. Don't forget a jacket. Something that will work well with your dinner attire. The Sunset Pirate Ship is fun, but make sure you bring a warm jacket and take some Bonine...it's rough water. Foodwise, they only served chips, salsa, and some olive and hotdog hordeurves. Not enough for dinner by any means.
Don't forget your sunblock and aloe. You'll pay $17.50 for a bottle at the gift shop. And lather up good. The sun is intense.
Good for families? Yes. They have a nice pool for kids. Near the lobby area. No slides though. And they have rings you can use for the kids. You may want to bring water wings. The pool/bar near the ocean is the party pool.
Beware of..... The hallways outside your room are also all tile. This means that when the partiers start coming in around 3am, it sounds like they are in your room. It's very loud.
And if you are booking through Apple.....when you get to the airport and through the luggage screening, go immediately outside and look for a guy in the "sexy" hawaiian shirt.
There are guys lerking in the airport from other companies that will try and tell you that they are with Apple. Before you know it, they are trying to get you to sign up for some timeshare presentation. One even told us to go outside and look for our guy in a green shirt. Just remember your guy will be waiting outside in a hawaiian shirt and he won't try to scam you!!!!!

The facility and grounds were spotless and done very tastefully, using plenty of marble and granite. The staff was,in general, extremely accommodating, although our maid service came late inb the afternoon. Rooms are immaculate with full-service bar and the Mexican version of cable TV(yes, there are American channels), but not many rooms have decent views. The hotel and grounds are spread out over a lot of land, so be prepared to walk. My wife discovered that we could turn our wristbands around so that we could eat at the adjoining Riu, which is upper scale and has a better food selection. Plenty of bars! Water in the pool is not heated. We noticed that the town of Cabo was inundated with graffiti, we didn't expect that. Also, we took a tour to La Paz(sponsored by Apple), we don't recommend it. The tour driver took us to all of his relatives shops and restaurants to spend money, and it took 12 hours out of our lives that we'll never get back. All in all, the hotel is nice and we had a pleasant experience.