TripAdvisor.com
November 15, 2011
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Villa del Palmar Beach Resort & Spa at The Islands of Loreto: Traveler Reviews

"Can't go back soon enough!!!"
It's very simple! Great Resort! Great Service! Located on a very beautiful untouched bay! We just loved the staff! From the entertainment to the food and beverage to the front desk etc,They are always making sure you are having a great experience! The town of Loreto is a 30-40 minute drive away by a free great shuttle service leaving every 2 hours or so in both directions. The drivers will even stop off at a corner store on the way for your convenience! Just tip the drivers, they do a wonderful job for you. The town of Loreto is a beautiful, friendly town located on the Sea of Cortez! A hidden jewel! It is so nice to go to a town of 12,000 or so and not see one Franchise business! No Starbucks, no McDonalds or Taco Bells etc. Just the hometown family run businesses! The town has a lot of history and ambiance and great restaurants!For the week we were there we met so many wonderful people! I sure hope the town doesn't change much and I hope the resorts don't take over the area! My guess it will take years! So enjoy it now while you can! Next year already booked and we can't wait! Room Tip: We had a corner unit facing the pool and it had an unbelievable balcony! I'm guessing 800-1000 sqft.

"If you are looking to relax, this is the place for you"
Been going to Cabo since 1996. Don't know if it's gotten louder and more obnoxious, or if I've gotten older and more mellow, but Loreto was EXACTLY the vacation my wife and I have been yearning for. No beach peddlers, no loud bingo at the pool, no drunks screaming "wooooo!" Just a peaceful, quiet week in paradise. The ocean is calm and shallow. Great for kids - my two year old LOVED it. The resort is unfinished, so it obviously needs some work. The staff is green but VERY helpful and seem genuinely happy that you are there. That goes a long way in my book. If you are looking for a crazy party, please, for the love of God, keep going to Cabo. I'll be hoping that Loreto stays nice a quiet for years to come.

"A way to totally relax..."
As of October 2011 it is still under construction but what is there is beautiful. It is a place to totally relax. If you are into the Cabo scene you will find this place too quiet and too far away from town to walk, but if you are tired of the wild nights, constant harassment of timeshare and beach peddlers attacking you, you will love this place. The staff are wonderful and many live nearby and will welcome you to their home for fresh clams or tortillas! The people in the town of Loreto are welcoming and friendly. I think it is sad that they have so much development planned for this area, being that it is a nature reserve, but that will take years to realize so enjoy the peace and quite while you can. I cannot wait to go back and use the spa facilities... Room Tip: Almost all the rooms have a great view of the pool and beach.

"Loreto Villa Del Palmar Retreat"
We celebrated our 25th anniversary at the Villa Del Palmar Loreto, Mexico October 21 to October 28, 2011.via direct non stop service from L.A. friday to friday. Marielia was instrumental assigning a ground floor room for us close to the restauants and beach as well as Ler Medina. Both were exceptionally professional. We are time share owners and were pleased with their soft opening continuation. The one bedroom suites are of course luxurious. I also appreciated managements decision to limit the number of guests during the soft start opening while the the details are refined. Our room was needing some completion with the spa tub, which was attended to promptly.

This is a smaller luxury hotel, secluded along one of the protected Loreto Marine bays, which to us VDP time share owners represents a guarantee that the beach bay will not be compromised, protecting the small stingrays, sea turtles and other marine life. I will say that this is not a Cabo San Lucas environment. The spa is under construction, but one could request a message and other services. Bicycles are available, several trails leading to view the sea of cortez offer additional recreation as well as kayaks, snorkeling gear for rent. There are several snorkeling trips, etc that are conveniently docked in the bay, so one does not have to travel to Loreto (45 minutes) away. Also in the bay, Chocolate Clams are plentiful, some of our new friends collected bags and prepared in their suites. The staff offered to prepare also. Each afternoon the tide recessed so one could walk over to other beaches to see the bright pink, red and gray hermit crabs. Pelicans offer amusement "fishing" Another treat was viewing a palomino with four white stockings appear above one of the beaches grazing. One day on the beach three wild horses decided to say hello, but were promptly ran off by the security guards. We were not quick enough to enjoy observing a sea turtle that had layed its eggs on the beach, but most of the guests were able to view.

We opted for the all inclusive meal plan which is $84.00 U.s. per person daily. We are from St Louis and found all of the meals and beverages comparable in price at VDP Loreto. With the exchange rate of $13 pesos to $1.00 U.S., one might be better off not using the all inclusive plan...but if you enjoy wine with dinner and a few adult beverages in the afternoon, the all inclusive plan pays for itself, we opted adding an additional 15% gratuity. There are only two restaurants open currently. The market which serves breakfast until noon and reopens at 6:00 for fine dining. Breakfast was a buffet two mornings offering omelettes, the remaining mornings ala carte. All of our breakfasts were cooked and served very well. The Casa Mia is an open air beach front restaurant serving wood fired pizza's, fabulous shrimp coctails, real tacos, great hamburgers and Lobster nachos, etc. Chef Julio came to all of the tables and personally expressed his gratitude for us enjoying lunch. The Market reopens at 6:00 pm serving fresh fish, lobster, which we had three times, fabulous lasagna and desserts...we had ice cream every night with a praline tuille cup drizzled with caramel and raspberry sauces. We are foodies and more than recommend eating at the restaurants. Some of the guests opted to eat in Loreto, but most of the people we met returned to the VDP for meals. The staff provides entertainment some nights, dancing, improvising, etc., but the most important comment on the shows are that each person truly enjoys interacting with the guests. This is not broadway, but enjoyable.

Now for the staff which VDP management obviously excels hiring. Ernesto, maite d'i or el capitan professional, always smiling greeted us each morning, afternoon, evening. Juan Gabriel, Omar, Jorge and the exceptional young man who served us our last night, were all over the top professional, always happy and made us feel genuinely appreciated as guests. The Service from the time we arrived to leaving, we were treated like royalty. Now, several of us jokingly said that we would write unflattering reviews because we do not want this spoiled...do not want this area to become a Cabo San Lucas, not that this is bad, but this area is truly a very laid back, Spa like retreat especially good for small children and families. the spa will be finished. if you go, be ready to RELAX...this is what we loved about it. And also if you go and see the palomino raise a toast Viva El Loreto Bay Cabello..we will definitely return. Room Tip: The east side rooms near the restaurants and pool area are very nice...stay away from the west side, construction is continuing, although we did not hear., the view was not appealing. such as room 2212...we really enjoyed 4135A, a bay view and mountain view.