San Jose del Cabo, Mexico
Hotel El Ganzo
Arts Enclave
What it is
A new 72-room, adults-only hideaway on the Sea of Cortez with an illuminated rooftop infinity pool and subterranean recording studios.
What it isn't
Mundane. The hotel is so geared towards creative types that it has its own cultural calendar, replete with concerts (the Jalisco-based indie band Technicolor Fabrics took the stage recently).
What we think
For anyone who is bored to tequila-infused tears with Mexico-as-usual resorts, Hotel El Ganzo is the solution. Rooms at the seafront property are beachy without being campy, with bleach white walls, blonde woods and hand-painted murals dotting the interior, plus Rivolta Carmignani Italian sheets you won’t want to get out of. But with so many things to do on the premises, you will. According to the founder of the hotel, Pablo Sanchez Navarro, rules of creative expression here are strict: “You cannot, and may not, curate artistic expression, sell out, or give or receive awards. The purpose of art is a subjective journey, NOT popcorn likeability.” And yet there is just so much to like here, from the organic spa with a hydrotherapy pool and steam room to the beach club where fish tacos are always on offer.
You're here because
You feel like cutting that record (finally!) and the hotel has a tech-forward recording studio hidden below a trap door in the Downstairs Restaurant. Alert the Grammy Nominations committee now.
The Moment
You’ve done more than your share of yoga, but never by moonlight, until now. Facing the water on your beach towel, the full moon rising above you, you have to smile: you’ve never felt more at home with an om.
Restaurants & Bars
- Ganzo Downstairs. Sustainable, farm-to-table modern Mexican cuisine supplemented by produce from the hotel's own weekly farmer’s market.
- Gachoo Sushi Bar — Upstairs, by the rooftop pool, specializing in raw cuisine: ceviches, carpaccios, tempura and sashimis and a great cocktail menu.
- Ganzo De Playa — the hotel’s beach club. It serves its own unique menu, including salads, Baja-style fish tacos and burgers.
- Ganzo Downstairs Bar
Location
Beachfront on the Sea of Cortez, but a quick bike ride from the 12-acre Wirikuta Botanical and Sculpture Garden—where you’ll find more than 1,500 kinds of desert plants.