Took a gamble on this property due to a special price I got. First impression was not so nice as the line to check in took over 30 minutes (probably my bad, I think a bus just arrived before us) and then when I got to the desk It was 2:30 and our room wouldn't be ready until after 3:00pm. Ok, that is check in time so I will give them that. We walked the grounds and had lunch at the poolside snack bar and the tortilla chips were stale and the burger was one of the nastiest I have ever seen. I realize it sounds like a terrible experience but it was all quickly uphill from there.

Finally got to our room which was in the "tower" building on the 4th floor. The room was absolutely excellent and was very big. One king bed, one loveseat, one table with two chairs and an entertainment armoire. Nice closet and superb bath. I would give the room a 5+ rating and actually much nicer than many of the rooms i have stayed in during my international travels (my job call for travel). The pool area and grounds were immaculate and very well maintained. The pool chaise were kind of cheap and didn't bode well for the "luxury" name the Grand Faro gives themselves. They were the PVC pipe variety but at least had the mesh fabric and not the plastic slats. That is my only complaint about the pool.

Restaurants were all good. The buffets were better than most of the other all inclusives I have stayed at. The Mexican Fiesta night was really good with a wide variety of very tasty regional dishes. Breakfast was the same every morning but had enough variety. I mean, how much can you vary breakfast menus?

Service was excellent, night time shows were "OK" as I have seen better, activities were par for the course as they offered a lot but nothing very creative, housekeeping was fantastic.

The beach was very nice yet the surf was a little to rough for the kids to swim in. I had a blast in the waves though. All in all, a high end 4* for me and I would go back.

My wife and I had to cancel on our extended family trip (endurocations, as my family calls them) in May due to some work scheduling, so we decided to try something new, all inclusive. We have stayed at a similar resort in Playa Del Carmen for our honeymoon, but had opted out of some of the all inclusive parts. So we are not total virgins to this type of resort, but it is not our normal type of vacation. Now that you have a bead on where I am coming from, you can read this review more accurately I think.

Bottom line, if you are a demanding, impatient person with a closed mind and hate mexican food, you probably won't like it. If you are at all reasonable, you will like it. Please read the full review.

A large push for this vacation was a livingsocial.com deal that we had seen. For 4 nights/5 day stay at the Hola Grand Faro in San Jose de los Cabos, all inclusive, it was only $699 for two (also two children free, but we left our one son with grandma for the ultimate anniversary getaway). About half the normal price, as I understand it. Plus I had a BOGO for airfare.

The Room-
A great ocean view, room 3519, its a single king bed room with ample space and a nice balcony on the 5th floor. Bed was a little firm, but that is really a subjective thing. Room service was quick and the cleaning staff was very respectful of our personal belongings. They also stock the room with ample bottled water, even one in the bathroom for brushing your teeth. Side note - all the water served at the resort is from a bottle (they just put it in a jug to pour at your table). A/C worked great.

The Resort -
It was not overdone and not shotty either, I thought it was a perfect mix of luxury and the fact that you are no longer in the USA. The pools were a bit chilly, warmed only by the sun which was mostly hidden by clouds during out stay, and very clean. Swim up bar, freshwater pools, saltwater endless pool, spas, etc. It was not lacking. We spent most of the time lounging around in the pool area.

There are Moths at the resort, but they never bothered us, clinging mostly to the walls. And not in our room.

The fitness center was great and never crowded, there were plenty of machines to exercise on and the A/C was cranked for a comfortable workout.

There is tennis, racquetball and some other activities available, but we did not participate in those.

The Beach-
It was oceanfront and the beach was great for lounging or walking. The water was easily in the low 80s and during our trip, the surf was not too big and we were able to enjoy ocean swimming. The resort does have a flag warning system (similar to so cal where I am from) to warn you of the ocean conditions. The beach and water were extremely clean, cleaner than most US beaches I have been to. There is the standard hoard of trinket salesmen standing in white clothes on the beach, just outside the resorts flag boards in the sand, but they were respectful when told "no, gracias." The resort appears to have an agreement with them to stay out of the way.

The Food-
I saw a lot of conflicting reviews on this prior to purchasing the deal, but I was delighted upon arrival. We traveled during the off season (early November). The only place that was not open during our trip was the Sky Bar, because the elevator had recently broke and was under reconstruction.

THE MAJOR COMPLAINT I SAW PRIOR TO ARRIVAL WAS THAT RESTAURANTS WERE NOT OPEN, OR FLIP FLOPPED DAYS. AN EASY WAY TO AVOID CONFUSION IS TO CALL THE RESORT AND JUST ASK, OR ASK WHEN YOU ARRIVE WHICH ONES ARE OPEN AND WHEN.

The mexican restaurant Jicamas was open every night from 6:30-10:30 and had a rotating menu with plenty of options. You don't always need reservations, but its best to. Its very simple, just call the front desk on the day you want to eat. Since the lunch place was open late we decided to eat dinner later, we were one of 4 couples each night. The italian place Glondola was only closed Sunday/Monday night - this was some great food, the best at the resort. The Albatros buffet was open every night, but we only ate there once, its food was average.

The Acuario bar was a big hit after dinner for the people at the resort, they don't serve food, but do have an endless supply of drinks and the hotel staff also runs fun games or events there around 8pm nightly.

Las Olas was a wonderful buffet for breakfast (open 7-10:30am), the food can be a bit cultural, but then again you are in Mexico. But there was still, french toast, omelets, and pancakes, plus about 50 other things to eat.

The lunch buffet at Las Olas (open 1-4:30pm) was pretty much the same every day, but offered good variety, but I would say pretty average as far as taste.

The poolside buffet for lunch was really lacking and more of a kids menu, with burgers, hotdogs, fries, and the like. And the food was maybe on the low side of average for taste, this was probably my biggest complaint, but given the other options, it didn't dent my review too much.

Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks were available pool side with pretty attentive staff always roaming the area.

The Staff-
Absolutely no problems with the staff. Attentive and expedient always.

Misc-
We had our pictures taken at the resort by the resort photographer. Pictures were about $15 each. This was the only time anyone approached us on resort property to sell us something. And we actually bought it, he was very respectful.

There were a lot of Moths at night time, always on the walls and never attacking us or flying into us. I thought they were cool to look at. Some were larger than birds, no joke.

Overall-
The lunch portion was a bit lacking, but it was compensated for in other areas. This is an above average resort for the average person. If you are the top 1%, maybe go somewhere else, so your review does not impact average people trying to make a simple destination decision.

This is not a top of the line resort, evident by the standard price of a room. I believe you get what you pay for here, it is above average. Since I had a deal, it was beyond expectation.

I came to this beautiful city for pleasure. I was working in Mexico City and I decided to travel to this town to relax and enjoy the beautiful views from this country. Excellent hotel, very good service from the staff, and reasonable prices.

Bought a 5 night stay on Groupon for September 2012. Hotel room in Sol tower was roomy, clean, bed was comfy, great ocean view. All 3 pools were very nice, hotel wasn't crowded so we had very attentive poolside and dining service.
The all inclusive package was a deal: the buffet meals were good. Snacks by the pool ok, and poolside bar always staffed.
We would have given the hotel a full five star rating for our stay, however we experienced 2 disappointments, one being the fancy dinner restaurants. Not so great food, more like Olive Garden quality in the Italian restaurant. But hey, if you like Olive Garden, you'll love the restaurant! And the Mexican restaurant food was just Ok.
Also the gym was torn up, open air with construction next door, and equipment is old.
Overall, we would consider a return stay, due to the nice pools, great Sol tower rooms, super staff, and the easy access to public transportation into Town.