Four Seasons Cabo del Sol vs Costa Palmas: Which Los Cabos Four Seasons to Book

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Four Seasons Cabo del Sol vs. Costa Palmas: the short answer

Los Cabos has two Four Seasons resorts, and the names cause a lot of confusion. Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos at Costa Palmas is the older one, opened in 2019 on the remote East Cape, about an hour from the airport. Four Seasons Resort Cabo San Lucas at Cabo Del Sol opened in 2024 on the main Tourist Corridor, about 20 minutes from Cabo San Lucas. Both face the Sea of Cortez, and both carry the same brand, but they could hardly feel more different.

Costa Palmas is the better choice for families and for anyone who wants to swim in the sea. It has two miles of calm beach, seven pools and a free kids club, and once you arrive you won't want to leave.

Cabo del Sol is the better choice for couples and for anyone who wants to get out and see Cabo. It's smaller, more design-led and closer to everything, and its casitas with plunge pools are some of the best rooms in Los Cabos. Just don't book it for the beach.

Four Seasons Costa Palmas

What I like:

• A long, calm beach you can actually swim from, which is rare in Los Cabos
• Seven pools, so there's always space, plus an adults-only pool
• The free kids club, and a resort that's easy with children of any age
• Estiatorio Milos, and a whole marina village of restaurants to explore

What I don't like:

• It's remote: about an hour from the airport and well over an hour from Cabo San Lucas
• The wider Costa Palmas development is still being built
• Winter northerly winds can make the beach blustery
• Entry rooms are the smallest of the two resorts

Four Seasons Cabo del Sol

What I like:

• The casitas, with heated plunge pools and indoor-outdoor showers
• Only 96 rooms, so it feels intimate
• About 30 minutes from the airport and 20 from town
• Tierra Mar Spa and the Sora rooftop bar

What I don't like:

• The beach is rocky, with currents; I wouldn't plan on swimming in the sea
• A hillside layout with lots of stairs and slopes
• Still young: the landscaping is growing in and residences are being built
• Taxes and service charge add close to 40% on top of the rate

I send most families to Costa Palmas and most couples to Cabo del Sol. Costa Palmas is the better beach resort. Cabo del Sol is the better hotel for a short trip, if you'll spend your days at the pool, the spa and Cabo's restaurants.

At a glance

Location: Cabo on your doorstep, or nowhere at all

This is the decision that matters most, so I'll start here.

Cabo del Sol is in the gated Cabo del Sol community on the Tourist Corridor, between San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. It's about 30 minutes from the airport on a good run, closer to 45 in traffic, and about 20 minutes from Cabo San Lucas. That means you can have dinner at Flora Farms one night and the Marina the next, and still be back in your casita by 10pm. You do need a car or a taxi for everything, as there's nothing to walk to outside the resort.

Costa Palmas is on the East Cape, about 41 miles from the airport. Allow 45 minutes to an hour from SJD, and about an hour and a half to Cabo San Lucas. Nearby there's the small fishing town of La Ribera and, further down the coast, Cabo Pulmo National Park, the best snorkeling and diving in the region. That's it, and that's the point. Most guests arrive, unpack and don't leave the Costa Palmas development until it's time to fly home.

My rule of thumb: for four nights or fewer, Cabo del Sol. The shorter transfer gives you back half a day, and you can see more of Cabo. For a week or more, Costa Palmas. The drive matters less, and the beach and the space matter more.

The beach: Costa Palmas wins easily

Most beaches in Los Cabos aren't safe for swimming. Even on the calmer Corridor, strong currents and shore breaks are common, so good swimming beaches are rare. Costa Palmas has one. It's two miles of calm Sea of Cortez, shallow enough for young kids and calm enough for paddleboards and kayaks. The sand is coarser than the fine white sand you'd find in the Caribbean, but that's my only complaint.

Cabo del Sol is sold as having a swimmable beach, and on a calm day it can be. But it's a small cove with rocky reefs, coarse sand and currents that change from day to day. I'd treat it as a beautiful view and a place for snorkeling with the Baja 360° team, not a beach for a swim. If your idea of a beach holiday is floating in the sea, this isn't the right hotel for you.

Costa Palmas's beach has one weak spot: wind. From roughly late November into spring, northerly winds blow down the Sea of Cortez, which is why the East Cape is a kitesurfing spot in winter. Some afternoons will be blustery on the sand. Mornings are usually calmer, and the pools are sheltered.

Pools: space at Costa Palmas, style at Cabo del Sol

Costa Palmas has seven pools: a lap pool, two family pools, an adults-only pool by Milos, and three smaller "arroyo" pools tucked along a dry riverbed. With 141 rooms spread across them, you shouldn't ever have to fight for a pool chair.

Cabo del Sol has three: the Coraluz family pool with a zero-entry area, the adults-only Brisas infinity pool, and a spa pool. The Brisas pool is the one you'll see on Instagram, and it's lovely. Since the beach isn't for swimming, though, the pools take all the pressure. At busy times, book a cabana a day ahead through the app.

Rooms: Cabo del Sol, if you book a casita

This is where Cabo del Sol pulls ahead.

At Cabo del Sol, every room has an ocean view, and even the entry-level La Casona rooms are a generous 847 square feet. But La Casona rooms are in the main building, and they're the least special rooms at the resort. The Ocean View Casitas start at about 1,170 square feet, and the casitas with heated plunge pools are what this resort is famous for. If you're a couple, that's the category I'd book. The rooms are set back up the hillside rather than on the sand, which gives you better views but no stepping straight onto the beach.

At Costa Palmas, every room faces the sea, and the entry rooms are about 680 square feet. They're comfortable but not big for the price. The location matters more than the category name: Oceanfront rooms and suites are closest to the beach and are the ones I'd ask for, while Prime Ocean-View rooms look over a family pool, which is great with kids and less great without them. Adding a plunge pool costs roughly $100 a night more, and on a long stay it's worth it.

Dining: Costa Palmas has more, Cabo del Sol has Cabo

Costa Palmas has more choice than any resort this remote has any right to. Estiatorio Milos is the highlight, with Greek seafood that's as good as anything in Cabo. Casa de Brasa does Baja and Mexican wood-fired cooking, El Puesto does ceviche and sushi, and Limón is a grill set in a lemon grove. Zest seats just 12 at a single table for a nine-course tasting menu. Beyond the hotel there's the Costa Palmas marina village: Nancy Silverton's Mozza Baja by water taxi, the Delphine day club and the Chiki cocktail lounge. For a week, you won't run out of options.

Cabo del Sol has fewer restaurants, but good ones. Palmerio does Riviera-style Mediterranean food and breakfast, Coraluz is the beach club, and Cayao does Nikkei. The Sora rooftop bar at sunset is the place to start the evening. Its real advantage, though, is that you're 20 minutes from the best restaurants in Los Cabos, so you're never stuck eating at the hotel.

Both are expensive. Expect about $45 for a main course at dinner and $20-25 for a cocktail, before the service charge. Breakfast at Costa Palmas is around $80 per person if it isn't included in your rate, which is one more reason to book through an advisor (more on that below).

Kids, spa and golf

Kids: Both resorts have a free Kids For All Seasons club for ages 4 to 12, and both have teen programs. Costa Palmas still wins for families: a calm beach, more pools, and a flat, spread-out site that's easy with a stroller. Cabo del Sol's hillside layout means stairs and slopes, and if anyone in your group has limited mobility, plan on using the golf-cart shuttles.

Spa: Cabo del Sol's Tierra Mar Spa is the better spa. Each of its ten treatment rooms has its own private garden, and it has quickly built a strong reputation. Costa Palmas's Oasis Spa is good and calm, but it isn't the reason anyone books the resort.

Golf: Costa Palmas has its own Robert Trent Jones II course a short ride from your room. At Cabo del Sol, the concierge can book the public Cabo Del Sol course next door. The famous Nicklaus course is now part of the private Cove Club, so ask me about access before you pack your clubs on the strength of it.

Where each one falls short

Every resort has a weak spot. These are the ones I warn clients about.

Costa Palmas is still a construction zone in places. The development around it, with residences, the marina village and now Amanvari, Aman's first Mexican resort (opened August 2026), is still being built out. You won't hear it from most rooms, but you'll see it on the drive in, and it will continue for years. Ask for a room away from any active work.

Costa Palmas also isn't for anyone who wants to explore. Driving into Cabo San Lucas for dinner takes about three hours there and back, and excursions are expensive because everything is far away. Guests who expect to explore often feel a little trapped by day four.

Costa Palmas's Beach & Yacht Club is for homeowners only. Hotel guests have plenty to do, but don't book expecting to use it.

Cabo del Sol's beach doesn't match its marketing. "Swimmable" is generous on most days. If swimming in the sea matters to you, book Costa Palmas, or Chileno Bay further up the Corridor.

Cabo del Sol is still settling in. It opened in 2024, the desert landscaping is still growing in, and residences are still being built in the wider community. It's improving every season, but it doesn't yet feel as finished as the photos.

Neither one is cheap once you add taxes. Neither has a resort fee. But at both, a 15% service charge, 16% VAT and local taxes are added to the rate. That's roughly a third more at Costa Palmas and close to 40% at Cabo del Sol. A $1,700 room is well over $2,200 a night all-in.

Prices: what to expect

As a rough guide, before taxes and service charge:

• Costa Palmas: entry rooms from about $850 a night in summer and autumn, around $1,350 in the winter high season, and $1,850 or more over Christmas and New Year.
• Cabo del Sol: from about $1,000-1,100 a night in late summer, rising to well over $2,000 in February. Casitas with plunge pools start at around $2,000 for most of the year.

Cabo del Sol usually costs more for a comparable room, but it's also a bigger room. Late summer is the cheapest time at both, but it's hot and humid, and hurricane season runs from June to November. November and late April to May are the best value for good weather.

My verdict: who should book which

Book Costa Palmas if:

• You're travelling with kids, especially young ones
• Swimming in the sea is a big part of the holiday
• You're staying a week or more and want to switch off
• You play golf and want a course on site

Book Cabo del Sol if:

• You're a couple, on your honeymoon, or celebrating something
• You're staying four nights or fewer and want a short transfer
• You want to eat out in Cabo, not just at the hotel
• You'll book a casita with a plunge pool

Book neither if you want the best beach and an easy location in one place. For that, look at Chileno Bay on the Corridor, which has a calm, swimmable bay and is 20 minutes from town.

How I'd book it

• At Cabo del Sol, skip La Casona if you can. The casitas are what you're paying for, and the plunge-pool casitas are worth it.
• At Costa Palmas, ask for Oceanfront. Prime Ocean-View is great with kids because it overlooks the family pool, but less so for couples.
• Pre-book the airport transfer. Both resorts can arrange it, and from SJD to Costa Palmas, you don't want to be negotiating at the arrivals hall.
• Book cabanas and Zest when you book the room. Zest has 12 seats a night.
• Avoid the windiest and hottest months if the beach matters: aim for November or late April to June for Costa Palmas.
• Book through an advisor, not direct. I'm a Four Seasons Preferred Partner, so when you book either resort through me you typically get daily breakfast for two, a hotel credit and upgrade priority, at no extra cost. At Costa Palmas, breakfast alone is worth around $160 a day for two. Send me your dates and I'll price both side by side.

FAQ

Is Four Seasons Los Cabos the same as Four Seasons Cabo San Lucas? No. Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos is at Costa Palmas on the East Cape. Four Seasons Resort Cabo San Lucas is at Cabo Del Sol on the Tourist Corridor. They're about 90 minutes' drive apart.

Which Four Seasons in Cabo has a swimmable beach? Costa Palmas. Its two-mile beach on the Sea of Cortez is calm and safe for swimming most of the year. Cabo del Sol's cove is rocky with currents.

Which is better for families? Costa Palmas: a calm beach, seven pools, a free kids club and a flat, easy site.

Which is better for a honeymoon? Cabo del Sol, in a casita with a plunge pool. Costa Palmas is a good choice if you'd rather be remote.

How far is Four Seasons Costa Palmas from the airport? About 41 miles from SJD, or 45 minutes to an hour by car.

Do either of the Cabo Four Seasons charge a resort fee? No. Both add a 15% service charge plus 16% VAT and local taxes to the room rate.