Hotel Casa Natalia — Hotel in Baja California Sur

After visiting Cabos San Lucas several times, we selected San Jose Del Cabo for a different vibe. We hadn’t stayed in San Jose for about 20 years. We selected Casa Natalie for its super central location and walkability. ||CHECK IN:||We arrived early and met with Fernando who was working the front desk. Fernando was fantastic and assisted us with booking a beach club day pass for the following day at the Hotel El Ganzo to which they have an affiliation. We waited a couple of ours, and our room was ready. ||ROOM: ||We were assigned a “superior” room, which was called the Romantica on the ground level. The room was well-decorated with ceramic or pottery cherubs and other eclectic decor on the walls. To enter the room, you first had enter a lockable solid wood door that led to an open air patio. ||To enter the actual room, you have to enter a sliding glass door that doesn’t lock. As the room being on the ground floor, this was a security concern. I reported the concern, and a different person working the evening shift at the front desk gave me a key. The key fit the sliding glass door lock, but the locking mechanism would not allow the key to turn. As a result, we couldn’t secure it. We reported this to the same person who said maintenance would look at it the following day. This never occurred. It seems the sliding glass doors are not intended to be locked. Again, this is a security issue as the room is on the ground floor. The four foot wall to the patio could easily be jumped by an intruder. ||BREAKFAST:||Our breakfast was included in our stay. The menu was limited, but it was very good. Regarding the breakfast service, it was fantastic. We had the same female server each day, but I didn’t note her name.||POOL: ||The pool is somewhat small but perfect for the hotel size. The water temperature appeared to be around 85 Fahrenheit, which was great. Occupancy appeared to be low, so the pool was never crowded. We actually only interacted with three people at the pool the entire week. ||HOUSEKEEPING:||For housekeeping and related service, you must make a request at the front desk each day before 11:00 AM. When we did remember to ask, the housekeeping staff did a great job. ||BEACH CLUB ACCESS:||Casa Natalia has a relationship with nearby Hotel El Ganzo, which is a short Uber drive away. The cost is $1200 pesos each, but you get 50 percent off. So, for one person the cost is $600 pesos, and you can apply $400 pesos of the $600 to food and drinks. We really enjoyed the food, chill atmosphere, drinks, and service. If visiting the beach club is for you, Casa Natalia will make same day arrangements. If Hotel El Ganzo is full with their own guests, you’ll have to try another day. ||CHECKOUT:||Checkout was a breeze. Cesar was friendly, welcoming, and professional. We actually had a chance to interact with Cesar on a few occasions, and he was always attentive. ||SERVICE: ||The service was good, but Fernando and Cesar were very good. We appreciated their hard work. ||It appears based on the boutique nature of the hotel, employees do multiple jobs, which pulls them away from their primary duties. There were times when we had to wait several minutes to order a drink at the bar (because the bartender was outside helping load or unload items outside) or when we needed our check (because the server was helping in the kitchen). ||These issues aren’t deal breakers, one just needs to have patience. It should be noted that for dinner, the hotel restaurant (Mi Cocina) was very busy and being patronized by the public. At these times, there were several employees around, and they were hustling.||A return visit might be considered. If you’re interested in a centrally located boutique hotel and have patience, you should enjoy...

After visiting Cabos San Lucas several times, we selected San Jose Del Cabo for a different vibe. We hadn’t stayed in San Jose for about 20 years. We selected Casa Natalie for its super central location and walkability.

CHECK IN:

We arrived early and met with Fernando who was working the front desk. Fernando was fantastic and assisted us with booking a beach club day pass for the following day at the Hotel El Ganzo to which they have an affiliation. We waited a couple of ours, and our room was ready.

ROOM:

We were assigned a “superior” room, which was called the Romantica on the ground level. The room was well-decorated with ceramic or pottery cherubs and other eclectic decor on the walls. To enter the room, you first had enter a lockable solid wood door that led to an open air patio.

To enter the actual room, you have to enter a sliding glass door that doesn’t lock. As the room being on the ground floor, this was a security concern. I reported the concern, and a different person working the evening shift at the front desk gave me a key. The key fit the sliding glass door lock, but the locking mechanism would not allow the key to turn. As a result, we couldn’t secure it. We reported this to the same person who said maintenance would look at it the following day. This never occurred. It seems the sliding glass doors are not intended to be locked. Again, this is a security issue as the room is on the ground floor. The four foot wall to the patio could easily be jumped by an intruder.

BREAKFAST:

Our breakfast was included in our stay. The menu was limited, but it was very good. Regarding the breakfast service, it was fantastic. We had the same female server each day, but I didn’t note her name.

POOL:

The pool is somewhat small but perfect for the hotel size. The water temperature appeared to be around 85 Fahrenheit, which was great. Occupancy appeared to be low, so the pool was never crowded. We actually only interacted with three people at the pool the entire week.

HOUSEKEEPING:

For housekeeping and related service, you must make a request at the front desk each day before 11:00 AM. When we did remember to ask, the housekeeping staff did a great job.

BEACH CLUB ACCESS:

Casa Natalia has a relationship with nearby Hotel El Ganzo, which is a short Uber drive away. The cost is $1200 pesos each, but you get 50 percent off. So, for one person the cost is $600 pesos, and you can apply $400 pesos of the $600 to food and drinks. We really enjoyed the food, chill atmosphere, drinks, and service. If visiting the beach club is for you, Casa Natalia will make same day arrangements. If Hotel El Ganzo is full with their own guests, you’ll have to try another day.

CHECKOUT:

Checkout was a breeze. Cesar was friendly, welcoming, and professional. We actually had a chance to interact with Cesar on a few occasions, and he was always attentive.

SERVICE:

The service was good, but Fernando and Cesar were very good. We appreciated their hard work.

It appears based on the boutique nature of the hotel, employees do multiple jobs, which pulls them away from their primary duties. There were times when we had to wait several minutes to order a drink at the bar (because the bartender was outside helping load or unload items outside) or when we needed our check (because the server was helping in the kitchen).

These issues aren’t deal breakers, one just needs to have patience. It should be noted that for dinner, the hotel restaurant (Mi Cocina) was very busy and being patronized by the public. At these times, there were several employees around, and they were hustling.

A return visit might be considered. If you’re interested in a centrally located boutique hotel and have patience, you should enjoy...

Overpriced, Poorly Managed, and Zero Privacy – Disappointing Stay

We were extremely let down by our stay at Casa Natalia. For nearly $300 a night, we expected a peaceful, boutique experience—but instead, we got cold food, zero privacy, and dismissive service.

One of the biggest issues was that a maid unlocked our door and walked in while we were changing—before checkout time and without knocking. When we tried to speak to management about issues, we were told no manager was available until Monday—the day we were checking out. When we finally did speak to someone, her only response was that “cheap hotels are in another part of town.” No apology, no solutions, just condescension.

As for the room: it was not what was advertised. The listing’s main photo shows a private jacuzzi on the balcony—there was no jacuzzi at all. We had a shared balcony with only a flimsy bamboo screen between us and our neighbors, offering no privacy whatsoever. Both we and a neighboring guest (who paid over $3,000 for the week) had issues with no hot water and terrible water pressure.

The bathroom light didn’t work, and the TV was so outdated it couldn’t stream anything—buttons for Netflix and apps were non-functional. We could live with that, but combined with everything else, it just added to the disappointment.

We also ordered food from the restaurant—$30 shrimp tacos and $40 steak tacos—and both dishes arrived cold. The shrimp even had shell pieces still on them, and the taste was bland and underwhelming for the price.

All in all, Casa Natalia is nowhere near worth the price. Between the poor food, lack of privacy, nonexistent amenities, and terrible customer service, we left feeling completely taken advantage of. Would absolutely not return...