Cabo San Lucas●○○○

Mayan Monkey Los Cabos

★★★★½4.9 out of 5 · 1,374 reviews

5★

Photo: © TripAdvisor contributor via TripAdvisor

Mayan Monkey Los Cabos is a 5-star resort in Cabo San Lucas with 100 rooms rated 4.9/5 by 1,374 TripAdvisor reviewers; typical rates from about $65 a night; direct beach access.

About

Mayan Monkey sits on the marina side of Cabo San Lucas, and it's a hostel disguised as a social experiment. The 4.9 rating across nearly 1,400 reviews is unusual for the category — most budget properties trade service for price, but the subratings here are flat across the board at 4.7 or higher. That includes sleep quality, which is the tell. The bunk crowd usually complains. The location score makes sense if you know the marina strip. You're walking distance to the water, the bars, and the main tourist grid without being inside the resort zone pricing. It's backpacker infrastructure with hostel rates, which is why the value rating sits at 4.8. The staff clearly knows what they're doing — service matches rooms and cleanliness at 4.8 each. If you're solo or traveling light and want to meet people without paying resort money, this is the obvious play. Just know what you're booking — it's social by design.

At a glance

Area: Cabo San Lucas
Star rating: ★★★★★
Typical nightly: $65
Beach access: direct
Kid-friendly: ●●○○○
Party score: ●●●●○
Walkability: ●●●●●
Rooms: 100
Casino: –
Swim-up: –
Kids' club: –
All inclusive: –
Vibe: social
backpacker
lively
budget
marina
friendly

Sargassum: not a factor

Not a sargassum coast.

Photos

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Recent Pulse

What travelers are saying.

Steady

Low confidence

Travelers say Mayan Monkey Los Cabos delivers an unusually polished hostel experience anchored by staff who remember names and create community. You're steps from the marina, a 5-minute walk to the public beach, and close to the Mt. Solmar trailhead. The property runs daily social activities—yoga, hikes, pool games, karaoke nights—that help solo travelers and groups connect. Rooms stay spotless with daily cleaning, and shared dorms include privacy curtains and in-room bathrooms. The rooftop pool and bar area function as the social hub, with 2-for-1 happy hour pricing. Reception staff like Rodolfo, Mitzy, and Marlon earn repeated mentions for going beyond check-in duties to suggest local spots and coordinate logistics.

Standing out

Staff remember guests by name and coordinate activities beyond standard reception duties
68 mentions
“Rodolfo and Mitzy helped with logistics for my 40-day stay and checked in regularly”
Daily social programming including yoga on the beach, Mt. Solmar hikes, and karaoke nights
24 mentions
“They run a WhatsApp group for weekly activities like cooking classes and live DJ sets”
Marina-side location puts you 5 minutes from the beach and 3 minutes from boat launches to the Arch
21 mentions
“We walked 6 minutes to the public beach and 8 minutes to the organic grocery”
Rooms cleaned daily with privacy curtains in shared dorms and in-room bathrooms instead of hall facilities
19 mentions
“Beds have curtains for privacy and I loved having the bathroom in the room itself”
Rooftop pool and bar run 2-for-1 happy hour with bartenders like Misael crafting mimosas and carajillos
17 mentions
“Misael's carajillos were spectacular and the mimosas kept coming”

Watch-outs

No dedicated parking forces you to walk 25 minutes with luggage in high heat to find street spots
2 mentions
“We walked maybe 25 minutes in the heat with bags to find parking”
WiFi signal weak enough that digital nomads struggle to work reliably from rooms
2 mentions
“The only problem would be that the internet is not very good”

Tips from travelers

Join the WhatsApp group at check-in to get daily activity notifications for yoga and hikes
Reserve a palapa at the beach before 7am if visiting during high season
Ask reception staff for Mt. Solmar trailhead directions—it's a 5-minute walk from the hostel
Take advantage of 2-for-1 happy hour at the rooftop bar before dinner

Maybe skip if: Travelers needing guaranteed parking or reliable high-speed WiFi for remote work should look elsewhere.

Similar resorts

Cabo San Lucas●●○○© TripAdvisor contributor via TripAdvisor

PLAYA GRANDE RESORT

Playa Grande Resort is on Médano Beach in central Cabo San Lucas, steps from the marina and the main strip. The 4.7 location score makes sense — you can walk to most of what people come to Cabo San Lucas for, and the beach here is swimmable, which isn't true everywhere on the Pacific side. The 4.6 overall rating across nearly 9,000 reviews suggests it delivers consistently. Cleanliness matches at 4.7, and service holds at 4.6. Rooms and sleep quality both hit 4.5 or better, which is solid for a beachfront property where noise can be an issue. Value sits at 4.4, fair for the location. This is a resort that works if you want to be in the middle of the action without paying top-tier rates. You're trading some polish for proximity. Médano Beach means jet skis, beach vendors, and restaurant access — it's lively, not secluded.

lively

Cabo San Lucas●●○○© TripAdvisor contributor via TripAdvisor

Sandos Finisterra

Sandos Finisterra sits on the cliffs where the marina meets Land's End in Cabo San Lucas, and the location rating backs it up — you're looking straight at the arch and the Pacific convergence. The 8,700-plus reviews and 4.6 overall put it in solid territory for mid-tier travelers who want proximity over polish. Service and cleanliness both land at 4.5, which means things run consistently; rooms and sleep quality come in a notch lower at 4.1 and 4.3, so adjust expectations accordingly. The value score at 4.3 suggests you're paying for the spot and the setup, not luxury finishes. It's family-friendly, the pools sprawl, and you can walk to the marina boardwalk in five minutes. If you want the postcard view without the price tag of the ultra-tier resorts down the coast, this delivers. Just know the bones are older and the rooms show it.

All inclusive

Cabo San Lucas●●○○© TripAdvisor contributor via TripAdvisor

Pueblo Bonito Rosé Resort & Spa

Pueblo Bonito Rosé sits right on Playa El Médano in Cabo San Lucas, which means you're walking distance from the marina and downtown but still on the best swimming beach in the area. The 4.8 location score makes sense — it's one of the few resorts where you can actually swim without getting pounded by surf, and you can walk to restaurants and bars when you're done with the pool. The property skews traditional all-inclusive resort, and with nearly 10,000 reviews holding at 4.5 overall, it clearly works for a lot of people. Service ratings match the overall score, so expect attentive staff. Rooms and sleep quality come in slightly lower at 4.1 and 4.2, which is honest — this isn't a new build, and some units show their age. The value rating at 4.2 suggests the all-inclusive pricing feels fair for what you get. If you want calm water, walkable access to town, and a full-service setup without driving everywhere, this checks the boxes.

All inclusive

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Restaurants nearby

Cabo San Lucas

Salvatore G's Italian Restaurant

Salvatore G's is an Italian spot in downtown Cabo San Lucas, a few blocks off the main strip. The food rating sits at 4.8 out of 5, which is unusually high for a tourist-heavy area — the kitchen clearly isn't coasting. Pasta comes out right, the portions are honest, and the pricing lands in the mid-range without feeling like a gouge. Service also clocks in at 4.8, meaning the staff moves and the pacing works. The atmosphere rating matches the rest at 4.7, so it's not trying to be a scene — just a solid Italian dinner without the resort markup. Over 4,400 reviews and the scores hold steady, which suggests consistency more than novelty. If you want red sauce and a booth in Cabo without overthinking it, this does the job.

Cabo San Lucas

Maro's Shrimp House

Maro's Shrimp House is on Calle Miguel Hidalgo in Cabo San Lucas, across from La Dolce. The menu does what the name says — shrimp, prepared about a dozen ways, from garlic and butter to breaded and spicy. The operation is efficient and the portions are generous, which explains the 4.6 on both food and value across more than five thousand reviews. Service runs at 4.7, so the staff keeps pace even when it's full. The atmosphere sits at 4.4, which is fair — this is a working shrimp house, not a scene. You come for the food. The kitchen moves fast, the plates are consistent, and the price point makes it easy to return. If you want shrimp in Cabo without the beachfront markup, this is the answer.

Cabo San Lucas

Lorenzillo's Restaurant Cabo San Lucas

Lorenzillo's sits right over the marina in Cabo San Lucas, with tables that look out on the boat traffic and the arch beyond. It's been a fine-dining anchor here for years, built around whole live lobster — you pick from the tank, they weigh it, you pay by the kilo. The 4.6 rating across nearly 4,000 reviews holds up mostly on service and setting; the food score is lower, which tracks with what you'd expect from a tourist-facing seafood house that moves volume. The atmosphere and staff execution are where it justifies the price tier, not the kitchen innovation. If you want a celebratory dinner with a view and you're comfortable with the formula, it delivers that. Just know the value subrating is the lowest of the four, so set expectations accordingly. Reservations help during high season.

Beaches nearby

Cabo San Lucas

Medano Beach

Medano Beach is the main swimming beach in Cabo San Lucas, which matters because most of Cabo's coast is open Pacific with serious undertow. This one sits on the Sea of Cortez side, sheltered and calm enough that lifeguards actually oversee designated swim zones instead of just waving people back. The 4.3 rating across 4,500+ reviews holds because it delivers the straightforward thing people want: swimmable water, long stretch of sand, and the restaurant-and-bar infrastructure you expect from a tourist beach. You'll find beach clubs with lounge setups, water sports rentals, and boats heading out to the arch. It gets crowded, especially midday when the cruise groups arrive, but the water stays gentle. If you're traveling with kids or you just want to get in the ocean without checking the flag conditions, this is the one that works.

Cabo San Lucas

Playa de los Amantes

Playa de los Amantes sits at the southernmost tip of the Baja peninsula, where Land's End meets the Sea of Cortez. You can only reach it by water taxi from the marina or by walking along the base of the cliffs from Playa El Médano at low tide. The beach is tucked into a cove with calmer water on the Cortez side, though you're swimming without lifeguards and dodging boat traffic from tour groups coming to see the Arch. The rock formations are the draw—the natural stone archway frames the beach and marks the division between the two seas. The Pacific side, officially Divorce Beach, is a different story. Swimming there is prohibited. The rip currents are serious and people have drowned ignoring the warnings. Most visitors stay on the Cortez side, where the water is swimmable if you're cautious and aware. Bring what you need—there's no shade and no facilities. The water taxis run frequently, and most will wait or pick you up on a return trip.

Source: TripAdvisor · view on TripAdvisor →

Photos by individual contributors as credited above.

Review summaries are AI-paraphrased from public traveler reviews.

Mayan Monkey Los Cabos

Not sure how this fits your trip?

PLAYA GRANDE RESORT

Sandos Finisterra

Pueblo Bonito Rosé Resort & Spa

Salvatore G's Italian Restaurant

Maro's Shrimp House

Lorenzillo's Restaurant Cabo San Lucas

Medano Beach

Playa de los Amantes

Salvatore G's Italian Restaurant

Maro's Shrimp House

Lorenzillo's Restaurant Cabo San Lucas

Medano Beach

Playa de los Amantes

Cabo San Lucas Beach