Tl;dr – Yet another marquee luxury hotel brand has set sights on Los Cabos, the popular destination in Mexico’s Baja Peninsula.
Accor will enter the Los Cabos luxury hotel market in 2029 with the Raffles Estera East Cape Resort & Residences. Located roughly one hour from Los Cabos International Airport, East Cape is unique in the Baja California Sur region due to its tranquility—the water is much more swimmable there.
While there aren’t a ton of renderings to showcase now, we do know the property will be an 80-key outlet (not including the 46 residences), and there will be room for expansion in a ‘phase two.’ The property will sit between the Sierra de la Laguna mountains and the Sea of Cortez, offering guests both beach and mountain clubs to enjoy the pristine waters and hike. Other amenities include an “expansive spa, multiple outdoor pools, a beachfront watersports center, and club spaces for both kids and teens.”
Visitors will have their pick of “seven distinct culinary offerings, including a lobby lounge, signature restaurant, specialty restaurant, pool bar, and gourmet café, as well as a signature Raffles Long Bar and Writer’s Bar.”
Oooo wee.
Can we take a minute to address the lineup of luxury hotels in the greater Los Cabos area? The following hotels, listed in no particular order, are already open to guests:
Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal; Montage Los Cabos; Rosewood’s Las Ventanas Al Paraíso; two Auberge hotels – the Esperanza and the Chileno Bay Resort; two Four Seasons Resorts – Costa Palmas (this is in the same area where the Raffles will be) and Four Seasons at Cabo Del Sol; One&Only Palmilla; Viceroy Los Cabos; The Cape, A Thompson Hotel by Hyatt; Zadun, A Ritz-Carlton Reserve; Solaz, A Luxury Collection Resort; and just for kicks, the JW Marriott Los Cabos Beach Resort & Spa.
We’ll also welcome the Park Hyatt Los Cabos at Cabo Del Sol in a matter of months (August 28, 2025 🙂 and Aman’s Amanvari (also located in the Eastern Cape) sometime later this year.
Is this the Monstars of luxury tropical hotel lineups?
Of Mexico’s ‘big three’ beach destinations – Cabo, Puerto Vallarta, and Cancun (I’m liberally including the Riviera Maya down to Tulum in ‘Cancun’) – I think Cabo has the best feel for luxury. The big drawback to Cabo is that many of the beaches at the resorts aren’t swimmable due to the rough water.
Puerto Vallarta feels the least touristy – though it most definitely is a tourist destination. Its luxury hotel scene is small but growing. In Punta Mita, you have the Four Seasons, Susurros de Corazon, an Auberge Resort, Conrad Punta de Mita, St. Regis Punta Mita, and the W Punta de Mita. By 2027, we should see a Rosewood outpost and, a Montage Punta Mita and Pendry Punta Mita. Much of the region is built around Bahía de Banderas, and you’ll find some solid beaches, though the water, in my opinion, isn’t that stunning. If you’re headed there soon, check out Yelapa and Las Marietas.
Cancun has many high-end brands, and when the sargassum seaweed blooms aren’t popping off, the water is excellent – easily the best of the three. That said, Cancun is a numbers game that too easily feels overrun. I mean, look at this connectivity map – you’ve got cats from three continents dropping in daily.
Conclusion
Though it won’t be coming to market soon, the Raffles Estera East Cape Resort sounds like a promising addition to Cabo’s already strong luxury hotel lineup. In the comments, let me know your favorite Mexican resort.
