Its like a Holiday Inn of all-inclusive resorts .. nothing special. Its far from the happening place - Cabo San Lucas .. Lands End etc. and is a $35 taxi drive away. If you want to just lie on the beach - don't care about activities, food, water etc., you can go here. The food is quite bad (especially if you're vegetarian - its hopeless); their restaurants need reservations almost 12 hrs in advance (which i'd not heard of before in all-inclusives) - the restaurant servers and waiters are very nice and polite however!! They have a sea facing restaurant which is pretty. One of the days that we were there, they had a Mediterranean cuisine .. with nothing Mediterranean however - they hadnt heard of pita bread or hummus (which was hilarious). The rooms are ordinary. The surroundings are quiet and makes for a relaxing lazy ambiance. One more annoying aspect is that they make you wear a band around your wrists for the entire duration of your stay with a fine if tampered with!! All in all, its just OK.

We stayed here three nights, then moved to Riu Palace for 3 more nights so we could explore San Jose and Cabo. The Riu was without a doubt a better resort and IMHO worth the extra $$.
We had a corner beachfront room, which is one of the best rooms you can get. When we first got there I will admit seriously thought about calling Expedia to check out early...the room was dissapointing on first impression. And we travel to Mexico a few times a year so we know there is sometimes musty smells etc because of humidity, but it was also the room seemed tired and didn't impress and could have been cleaned better. But we stuck it out and the view was amazing, we slept with the doors open one night and sleep to the sounds of the waves...the balcony lights go out late at night. We loved that one of the large pools was heated (the Riu wasn't), the a/c worked well and was noisy enough to sleep to, breakfast was good but not great. We were with our baby so we didn't check out any ala carte restaurants but the lunch and dinner buffets were weak. Just not much to choose from. Again the Riu had close to 10 times the choices. It was good for our diets as we just never ate too much. But if food is important, you might look elsewhere. The resort wasn't very busy which can be nice but it also didn't have a lot of atmosphere, but that could change from time to time. The service was pretty good, they did come around and bring drinks by the pool, many resorts don't. The location of Hola is nice, we walked to the Mega and picked up some beer and other items (water and soda in minibar but not beer), it really close and actually ended up walking back from Downtown to the hotel, but its a taxi is recommended. So knowing the pricing of Hola its nice, just not near as good as so many Mexico resorts we have stayed at. We would not go back, but we are used to a nicer experience. On a budget this place might be fine. San Jose is a neat little town but if you are new to visiting Cabo I would stay closer to Cabo San Lucas since that is where the Arch is and where you will want to explore and the 20-30 min taxi ride from this area gets expensive.

We booked a last minute deal...great price which set us up for a great trip. Family with 2 adults, 4 teens/ young adults.

Pros: beach amazing, View was fabulous, 2 warm pools, excellent staff, smaller hotel so easy to make friends..or find your teens, we loved all of the food...and I am a vegetarian travelling with carnivores. We loved the Mexican buffet night the best since we are in Mexico. Beach party was really fun. A nice fairly quiet hotel. Lots of families when we were there. Rooms were cleaned well and nothing missing (we have had that in 3 of last 4 trips to Mexico)

Cons: 1 day of rain (can't be helped), some cloudy but warm weather (again can't be helped). Check in slow due to being apart of fairly large tour group checking in. Internet expensive so we didn't use. Local calls expensive. King beds are a bit hard but we slept really well anyway.

Tips: walk into San Jose...great little city with alot of stores for souvenirs. We went into a store for some glasses only to find out they have a factory in the back and we were able to try glassblowing. Great fun. Take public bus from Mega to Cabo or to Chileno Beach for some great off resort sightseeing and fun. We painted pottery at the hotel for a fun hour. The highlight was definately the baby turtles that hatched next door. It was a dream come true and not something to be planned. Ask the security guards at the entrance from beach to hotel if there are any nests about to hatch so you can be on the lookout. If you want some professional pictures then ask for the guy who takes them. Great pictures a little pricey but worth it.

Since this was our first trip to Mexico we didn't really know what to expect in terms of overall quality. But when choosing ANY resort we base our decision on certain criteria such as location, rating, and of course price. After that our final choice is based on the advertised amenities - such as the number of restaurants and food options; number of bars and nightclubs; entertainment and activities; and pools. These were NOT as advertised in the Hotel Details provided on the tour operator's website.

They listed 2 a la carte Restaurants - which there were - but only ONE was open on any given day.
They listed 2 Buffet Restaurants - which there were - but only ONE was operating at any given time.
They listed 3 Bars / Nightclubs - which there were. BUT - The Skybar was closed for the first 4 days we were there, (They told us it was because the elevator was broke, but we read reviews as far back as September and it was supposedly "broke" then too. We tried it. It wasn't broke - it did go up as far as the Conference Center.) and the pool bar closes at 6 PM, so essentially the Lobby Bar was the only place to go in the evening, and it closed at midnight.
They listed 5 Pools - but one is a jacuzzi and one is the children's pool. The "Infinity Pool" - while in a super location next to the beach - was NOT operating as an infinity pool but as a regular pool. The "Adult pool" with the swim up bar was SO COLD that NOBODY was using it. Since the Infinity Pool and the Swim-up Bar were 2 of the things we based our decision on we were pretty disappointed.
They listed Daily Activities and Nightly Entertainment - but except for our last day there, there were NO Daily Activities. There WAS nightly entertainment in the Lobby Bar, and we enjoyed it, but it was usually over by 9:30.

The place looked deserted when we arrived. We asked about it, and were told they were only at about 30% capacity and that it was their off season. It didn't take us long to figure out that they had cut back on the amenities due to the low occupancy rate. But we based our decision on the FULL AMENITIES as advertised, so felt like we had been deceived and a little ripped off. Basically, we didn't get the vacation we signed up for.

Also, we are smokers, and since we were not given the option to ask for a smoking room when we booked we didn't think it was going to be a problem. But when we checked in, we were told our assigned room (Deluxe Ocean View with King Bed) was NON-SMOKING - including the Balcony! So we asked to move to a SMOKING room. They gave us a DOWN-GRADED room, with 2 double beds, overlooking a (not very pretty) vacant lot beside the Hotel. So we went back to the desk to ask for a better room, since we had PAID for a better room. They gave us a room in the Sol Tower - with a great view - but it cost us an extra $30 per night. And we were only allowed to smoke on the Balcony. Here's the thing. Why would we be allowed to smoke on the Balcony of an UPGRADED ROOM?? This was a money grab pure and simple. In addition - we asked for one of the Master Suites on the corner at the front of the buildings. They wouldn't upgrade us to it - not even if we were willing to pay for it. But I have read reviews from people who were there when we were - and they got upgraded to one FREE OF CHARGE. Not impressed.

So, in the end, if we had known about all of these things, we would have added that money to our budget and looked for another resort with the amenities we wanted. That being said, it wasn't ALL bad. See below:

LOCATION:
The Good: It was a beautiful area, with lovely white sand beaches, and we felt SAFE there. They don't recommend swimming in the Sea of Cortez due to strong undertows - although some people did anyway.
The Bad: If you want better access to adventures, tours, shopping, and night life you would be better off staying in Cabo San Lucas. Many of the Adventures we inquired about don't even have shuttle service to this hotel. And the Hotel doesn't provide shuttle services.

HOTEL PROPERTY:
The Good: Everything was EXCEPTIONALLY CLEAN and VERY WELL MAINTAINED, and the landscaping was ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL.
The Bad: Although things are still in good shape it is a little dated, and we feel "Luxury Resort" is not an accurate description.

STAFF & SERVICE:
The Good: Fantastic! This is one area they really shine. Everyone was extremely courteous and helpful. You can tell that they have been very well trained. Now, we like to establish a relationship with the staff, AND we tip well for good service - which in our opinion was worth every penny. These are hard jobs - I know because I used to work in the Hospitality Industry. Respect earns respect.
The Bad: None, really. We had one incident where a waiter at the Pool Bar wouldn't serve us Premium Liquor - he said they were out of it. UNTIL my husband produced a 20 Peso tip. Our drinks arrived as ordered! But that was certainly not the norm. We kind of got a chuckle out of it, but we never tipped him again.

FOOD CHOICES & QUALITY:
BREAKFAST: Pretty standard selection - the food was just OK. They have an egg station, but it was very slow - they generally cooked one persons order at a time.
LUNCH: First of all, the breakfast buffet closes at 11 AM. The lunch buffet doesn't open until 1 PM. So if you're hungry in between the only other option is the Snack Bar at the Pool, which consists of burgers, hotdogs, fries, etc. Basically junk food - which we don't eat. We found the Lunch Buffet to be mediocre at best.
DINNER: Well, the options, depending on the day, were either Mexican or Italian, and the Buffet. We ate once at the Mexican and never went back, twice at the Italian and it was alright but we certainly didn't rave about it (and there wasn't much Italian about the menu), and three times at the Buffet. BBQ Steak Night was fabulous - even if the steaks were thin; Oriental Night was terrible - everything was doused in Soy Sauce; and Mediterranean Night was the best.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: We found the food quality to be just OK, and the selection very limited. No real complaints, but no accolades either. EXCEPT FOR THE SOUP - Wow! They know how to make good soup! Also - Room Service was fairly fast, and a good alternative to the above.

IN CONCLUSION: If you are looking for a nice location, good service, cleanliness, and just want to lay back by the pool and read a book for a week, then this is a good choice for you. If you want lots of amenities, good food, and entertainment look elsewhere.