Background:
Vidanta Los Cabos is an existing luxuriousbeachside resort in Mexico’s Baja California Sur state. The peaceful resort sits on a pristine beach overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Rockwell Group was tasked with refreshing and updating the amenity spaces, improving circulation, access, and views, while also pivoting the resort’s appeal to a younger demographic.
Design Concept:
The U-shaped resort faces the beach and embraces several swimming pools. To break up the uniformity and symmetry of the existing plan, Rockwell Group raised the elevated pools by 2 meters for better beach views, removing half of the swimming pools in the process to create more energy within the remaining pools. We groundedthe amenity spaces with regional materials such as rope, Mexican tile, and wood, and added youthful twists like a renovated Airstream trailer for serving tacos, and 70s bar games. Rockwell Group also updated the exterior of the resort, including a new landscaping and site plan, a newly constructed portecochere, and front entrance.
Design Details:
Entrance and Lobby
We reconceived the entry experience to the resort with a new, portecochere. Columns are concealed with totem-like, geometric, slatted wood screens. As guests enter the lobby, asky bridge now provides views and circulation directly out to the beach by way of grand, bleacher-like stairs.
SHOREbar
Sitting under existing canopies and directly on the reflecting pool, the SHOREbar is a large, casual, open-air pavilion serving food and drinks (all day). Rockwell Group added a truss structureto a dramatic, curved thatch roof and reoriented the bar so that it has views of the ocean. Clusters of pendant lights hang over wood lounges and tables, with subtle industrial details and blue-hued rugs and upholstery. We added classic board games such as shuffleboard and foosballand a back garden outfitted with swings. We also renovated a classic Airstream trailer, creating a small operable kitchen inside, for the back of the space.
OMNIA Dayclub
The exclusive dayclub is elevated from the beach for privacy and surrounded by a trellis made of wood to support livegreenery. The trellis peaks up at the entrance to the club. The club includes a central pool as well as two private infinity plunge pools with two-story VIP cabanas (three additional VIP plunge pools). Twig cabanas are juxtaposed with lush, rich curtains.
Casa Calavera
This bar and lounge doubles as a club with a custom built credenza serving as the DJ booth.Authenticfurniture pieces and lighting nod to the local culture. An array of architectural finishes, from Mexican tiles to pebbles, stacked stone, and Mexican altar shadowboxes set into niches add texture and color. A long corridor with special reveals creates a dramatic and welcoming private entry to the lounge at night. Half-moon banquettes face the beach on a private deck. The open-air pavilion is mostly covered and surrounded by geometric wood screen walls and shutters.
Herringbone Restaurant
The Los Cabos location of Chef Brian Malarkey’s restaurant Herringbone has been imagined as an airy Mexican beach house that sits on a series of the resort’s cascading reflecting pools with views of the ocean. Operable glazing along the facades allows the space to literally open to the surrounding property, blurring the line between indoors and outdoors. Lush trees and gardens are brought within the space to reinforce this concept, as well as Herringbone’s emphasis on using the freshest seafood, meat, and seasonal produce in their cuisine. Custom industrial accessoriesprovide the feel of an authentic Mexican cocina with views from the dining room. Rope accents and industrial fixtures—a nod to existing Herringbone locations in California and Las Vegas—have been reinterpreted in a way that feels fresh but familiar, such as the adobe-like, handmade space for the restrooms. The restaurant aims to create a relaxing environment that simultaneously provides moments of calm and surprise.
