Zadun, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve

We have been coming here annually since it first opened in 2021 and five years later, it is just getting started. Awarded the Forbes 5-star ranking two years in a row is a statement in itself and most likely earned because of the level of staff working here. Many have been here since the opening and the managers look after their guests as do the butlers (yes, they have a special name for them, but they take care of all your needs). Humo is their star restaurant and continues to impress with both the menu and food quality. El Barrio is one of the best overall breakfast restaurants we have experienced at any resort. They are open for lunch and two themed dinners during the week. The good news is if you are reading this, one of the themed dinners is moving from Thursday to Sunday and will focus on Tacos & Tequila, I can't wait to come back for this. Equis is their third restaurant located just off the beach. They updated it this year to include tables on the beach, great touch and now they plan on having a TIKI bar on the beach as well. Open for lunch and dinner, I am hoping the dinner menu gets updated for a more relaxed seafood and Mediterranean experience. We stay in a two-bedroom villa even though we only use one bedroom because we like the location so much. Rooms are filled with plenty of amenities although I wish the snacks and soft drinks were complimentary especially based on the room rates and daily service charge. There are kids and babies here. Luckily, they have an adult pool close to the beach and a kid's center. They also have one of the most amazing spas which is adult-only and I love their lap pool by the fitness center. Overall, there are no shortage of 5-star resorts in Cabo plus there are new ones opening in the future. However, Zadun is very special with close proximity to the beach, plenty of green grass instead of concrete and easy access to all restaurants and facilities (no golf cart required). Enjoy!

My husband and I spent one week at Zadun in mid February and at the risk of sounding like a horrible person, I very rarely am 100% delighted with service the way we were on this trip. Especially when paying a premium, I realize our expectations were high, yet Zadun not only met them but exceeded them. Pros The setting - our room was set high on the back of the property (room 631 I think?) and it afforded us amazing views of the sea. The entire property is beautifully maintained with native plantings. The buildings are simple with natural materials, and they didn’t obstruct our view. It was great for whale watching. The room - we loved the room we had, we had a nice warm plunge pool on our patio with chaise lounge chairs, a table for eating, and two doors (one sliding, one not) into our room. there is a heavy metal door between the patio and the main walkway so we felt very private. The room was large with huge glass doors facing the sea and the patio, a very comfortable bed, a nice big bathroom with shower and tub, and enclosed toilet area by the closet. It was private and we never heard other guests (with one exception of a kiddo). Thoughtful touches - I could go on and on about the thoughtful details we enjoyed, from binoculars in our room to sun hats, a beach bag, and high quality body lotion in a full size bottle. Loved all of them! Dining - The food, like many resorts, is essentially the same from restaurant to restaurant. We usually ordered coffee to our room, had lunch by the pool (get the shrimp tacos grilled), and dinner at either Barrio or Humo. Room service was fantastic although a couple times it took extra long. If you stayed for a few weeks you might tire of the same restaurants but the food was really great and fresh. Peace and quiet - The resort doesn’t have a ton of guests and even at full capacity it was mostly quiet. Midway through our stay a family arrived with a little boy who screamed a lot. A LOT. I suspect other guests complained as after the first night of unrelenting toddler tantrums on their outside patio which reverberated across the resort, he was much quieter (or inside). I understand kids are noisy but the peacefulness was something we cherished and I was grateful it didn’t continue. There is construction nearby by it wasn’t disruptive. We never heard people blasting music or talking on cell phones in public areas. It truly allowed us to relax very deeply. Family atmosphere - This place is not for partiers. Guests were a mix of families and couples. The gym is hopping at 6 am! The kids we saw were all beautifully behaved at meals (we were impressed!). Adults covered up in the restaurants so we didn’t see wet bathing suits or barely-there suits at lunchtime. Overall, guests seemed very respectful of each other and tastefully attired. Great spa - I had one of the best massages of my life here! thank you Bris. The little shop at the spa has nice stuff too. Environmental - I don’t think I saw a single piece of trash or plastic on the entire property. Even the razors had wooden handles. Water in the rooms came in tetrapak cartons. I loved that we didn’t fill our garbage each day with plastic water bottles! Walkable - we found ourselves enjoying walking to our room (although golf carts are available). Every day we walked from the property for about an hour around the area. The beach is not very walkable (it’s steep) so we enjoyed the paved trails instead. The entire area felt safe and clean. Service - this is where this resort went far, far above and beyond. We have stayed at Ritz Carlton hotels before but Zadun somehow managed to be professional yet warm, attentive yet not too intrusive, kind and caring while seeming to be authentic. Whatever management is doing to train and retain their staff, keep doing it. Our butler was Guillermo and he was simply wonderful. All week we just texted him when we needed something like a reservation for dinner and he took care of it. On his day off he had a backup who then stepped in and took care of us (Diego). I wanted to hug him goodbye when he gave us a parting gift of a beautiful beaded whale. Pool seating - you know how some resorts have those guests who leave their towels at 6 am on the most desirable chairs but never show up? We came down one morning to ask about chairs and were told they would hold our chairs for one hour, no more. I LOVE THIS. It was always easy to get a great spot no matter what time we arrived, and the pools are well staffed too. Pools are clean and there are separate adults vs kids pools. English/Spanish - Language was never a barrier. We speak a little spanish but mostly English and they were easy to communicate with. We were consistently greeted by everyone in our path with “Buenas dias” including the gardeners and housekeepers. Transport - a few nights we wanted to get off site and hired the resort’s driver to take us. They have a great team with clean Escalades that were perfect. I think they were $80 so more than an Uber but you can also call an Uber if you prefer. Way above & beyond - Let me add that we ate off site one night and the next day were both violently ill; Guillermo checked on us and sent electrolyte water and chicken soup to our room (without being asked). There were no goofy tequila jokes or awkwardness when I couldn’t get out of bed. They even sent up plain rice for my husband when he asked for it. If you’re going to be that sick, it was nice to be in a great bed with a good view. Cons The only hiccup was our first night at Humo was weird. There was a large noisy/drunk table of young people dominating the server’s attention and he was rattled. After ordering I realized they were going to ruin our night so we just asked them to send our food to the room, which they did quickly. We ate our piping hot meal on our beautiful patio and looked at the stars! When we went back another night they remembered we’d had a less than ideal experience even though we never complained, and apologized and took very good care of us. (ps get the Totoaba, it’s a local fish). If you want to sit at the beach get there early as beach seats are in high demand.

The facility is great. Location very nice as well. The pool had good service. Great beach area. Should have been a 5 star review like my dinner restaurant at the hotel was. But asked for turn down to come and make out the bed that didn’t happen. Was told we would be picked up from are room at 1050 that didn’t happen. Also please know the only breakfast on site is an all outdoor seating. This morning was 55 degrees.

The room is spacious and awesome, the pool inside the room is sufficient for kids under 6 to have fun and play, but too small if your kids are older than that. We spent most of the time in the hotel pool, drinking and eating, it was fun and the service was excellent. Food was great! Specially love the seafood in the fish market, but overall every restaurant was good. The only downside for us was it's too humid and hot for the season we went, it's too hot that you can't stay anywhere outside without pool for longer than 20 mins. Would be interested to explore in Spring/Winter. Also unlike many other resorts, activity here is limited, if you want to explore the beach and ocean, this is not the place for it. If you want to relax and have fun time with family, this is great! Due to it's probably slow season, there are a lot of constructions going on, it does not really bother us other than when you are walking around the facility, it felt like a construction zone, but hope it got all finished soon!

Well, this vacation meant a lot to our family so instead of booking online, I called to make sure we could get the room that we stayed in the previous 2 times- ocean view 2 bedroom suite. I was told I secured that room and paid almost $8000 a night with fees and what we ended up getting was a 2 bedroom room with a view of the bushes and on the path of the golf cart. I spoke with management and nothing they could do because of "terms and conditions". There is always something a hotel can do to make it right and they chose not to. They charged me for an ocean view and after 4 days, they did move us. They also gave us a resort credit. However, I asked for a reduced rate simply for the days we were in the wrong room and they refused. This was the third time we stayed at the hotel and that will be the last. They have lost their touch with their service, their food, and their commitment to creating a beautiful experience. They are now about money and if you are willing to spend money, there are 2 new Four Seasons in Cabo that are significantly better.