The Sea of Cortez, which Jacques Cousteau famously called “the aquarium of the world,” is gaining a significant new arrival this August. Aman will open Amanvari on August 1, 2026, in the East Cape of Baja California Sur, marking the Swiss group’s debut in Mexico and its sixth property in the Americas and the Caribbean.
The hotel’s name derives from Sanskrit: aman means “peace” and vari means “water.” It’s a fitting name for a place where the desert sands meet the Sea of Cortez.
A Corner of Baja Untouched by Mass Tourism
The East Cape is not Los Cabos. It’s what you find when you turn left at the airport instead of right — a coastal strip long overshadowed by its glitzier neighbor, a place of deserted beaches, desert plains, and the turquoise waters of the Sea of Cortez.
Historically, its isolation has slowed development. What little development did take shape was thoughtfully executed: Costa Palmas, a 1,500-acre private community that also features a yacht club and the Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos, which opened in 2019. Amanvari will be the second hotel within that community.
Behind the resort, the Sierra de la Laguna mountains rise. In front, 3 miles of beach give way to organic orchards and a sea that hosts roughly 900 fish species, 39 percent of the world’s marine mammals, and a third of all cetacean species, according to scientific surveys of the region.
18 Rooms and Baja Cuisine with Japanese and Italian Influences
With just 18 rooms and a limited collection of private residences, Amanvari is designed to preserve the exclusivity and privacy that define the brand. There are no hallways lined with dozens of doors, nor are there crowded lobbies.
The rooms reflect a contemporary, organic aesthetic that blurs the line between inside and out. Eighteen perch above the landscape; others sit beside the estuary or directly on the sand.
Interiors are dressed in sand tones that echo the surrounding landscape. Open-air terraces, bespoke ceramics, and original artwork by Mexican artists complete each space.
Amanvari‘s dining spans signature Japanese and Italian restaurants (Sesui and Arva) alongside concepts more firmly grounded in the region. At Luma, coastal traditions take shape through open-fire cooking, while The Lounge serves as a venue for craft cocktails and unhurried conversation.
Much of the sourcing is hyper-local: Costa Palmas maintains an 18-acre organic farm and orchard that provides the resort with seasonal produce. The property also offers a spa with six private treatment rooms, two Hydro Houses (one with a banya, one with a hammam), a 24-hour fitness center, and a contemporary temazcal — a pre-Hispanic sweat lodge tradition, reimagined for modern guests.
The adults-only policy signals both the kind of guest the resort is after and the atmosphere it intends to cultivate.
A Long Time Coming
Amanvari is opening roughly six years behind schedule. What remains unchanged, however, is the vision: for Aman, the opening marks a significant step forward in the Americas, part of a broader expansion that also includes Aman Beverly Hills (2027), Aman Miami Beach (2026), and Amancaya in the Bahamas.
Reservations are open for stays starting August 1, 2026. The nearest airport is San José del Cabo, approximately a 45-minute drive away. For those who prefer a shorter transfer, the Punta Colorada airstrip is just 20 minutes from the resort.
The East Cape was always there. The world simply took its time finding it.
