This Experiential Baja Hotel Is Launching Its First Branded Residences Outside Todos Santos

In Baja California Sur — where the desert meets the sea and the mountains, just off the dusty highway that connects La Paz and Los Cabos — a brutalist sculpture sits on top of the earth.

At first glance, Paradero could be a mirage. A long undulating concrete form stretches out in contrast to its surroundings between the last unspoiled Mesa farming community and the Pacific Ocean, but this is a very real place. 

Since the Paradero Todos Santos hotel opened in 2021, it has become a hospitality landmark attracting luxury vacationers away from the resorts in Cabo to the surfer-artist enclave of Todos Santos.

Positioned toward those who want their travel experience to feel as if they are locals, the property features food at chef Eduardo Rios’ restaurant that is authentic to the surrounding land; the wellness and healing sanctuary, Ojo de Agua, incorporates ancient rituals; and the landscape embraces five ecosystems covering virgin beaches, farmlands, cacti forests and more. The grounds with sculptural running water elements, 20,000 endemic plants, a botanical garden and soft sand for barefoot exploration are a sight to behold. Experiences are at the hotel are inclusive with stays and include cooking and fitness classes, farm outings, art walks, hikes, meditation classes and surf sessions. When you’re at Paradero expect to be active or just lounge by the infinity pool. Rooms start at $600 per night, available at paraderohotels.com and via booking.com.

Now the 41-room eco-compound, designed by Ruben Valdez and Yashar Yektajo, will post a bigger stake in the advancement of the region with a residential expansion of 26 homes.

The property’s “future living” approach — as described by Paradero creators and Comunal Capital founders Pablo Carmona and Joshua Kremer — takes the form of a 20-acre gate-guarded community focused on lifestyle experiences that also includes a private social club. The hotel-serviced furnished residences, the first of which are due this fall, are designed by Mexican architect Gabriela Carrillo.

The theme of becoming one with nature presides. Set on organic farm plots — in a landscape that UNESCO has designated as a Biosphere Reserve — the homes come in three layouts from four to eight bedrooms. The designs take advantage of Todos Santos’ 355 days of sunshine per year with open-air living spaces, including rooftops with star-nets (suspended rope netting) to relax in and gaze upon the sky. Terraces feature sunken dining rooms, private pools and reflection gardens. 

Kramer and Carmona say the forthcoming private members Paradero Club will be a “lifestyle platform for self-transformation,” centered around four principles: eat, outlook, connect and move. The property’s no-till farming approach helps preserve soil and also promises residents have access to nutrient-dense produce, and they can customize their private organic gardens through Paradero’s agriculture program, which provides support from daily tending to in-home cooking.

The property’s Clubhouse Market brings in seasonal produce, Mexican chocolate and handmade tortillas, and there are also plans for a Cooking & Nutrition Lab for education and private consultation, a Human Performance Center focusing on strength and fitness activities and the longevity-focused Clubhouse Spa for wellness treatments and spiritual rituals. Paradero handles daily needs from pet care and child care to household maintenance, freeing up time and energy to focus on personal fulfillment. Creating a space to connect, Paradero Club will have an ongoing music and dining series.

One out-of-this-world luxury perk offered at Paradero that could tip the scales is Paradero Sea of Cortez, a sailing excursion for eight to 10 people on a sustainably built catamaran that takes residents and hotel guests to uninhabited islands, secret snorkeling spots and off-the-beaten-path coastal locales. 

Living or staying at Paradero also means participating in the Paradero Foundation, as two percent of all sales go to the non-profit that supports ecosystem preservation, educational programs and affordable housing within the local community.

One of the initiatives that Paradero Foundation backed this year is art and culture festival ABC Art Baja. This is the first year the foundation has participated in the event, which runs for almost two months (from March 8 through May 5) and takes over five cities in Baja, including Tijuana, Ensenada, San José, Todos Santos and La Paz. Art activations and experiences are staged in galleries, workshops, artist studios, restaurants, bars, hotels and cultural centers throughout the festival’s geographic regions.

To commemorate this effort, hotel architect Ruben Valdez and Mexico City-based art curator Enrique Giner have created a site-specific, land art exhibition to educate visitors on destination conservation. Strategic mirrors, both large and small, are placed around Paradero’s architectural monuments known as the Sanctuary and Circle. These outdoor spaces, smoothly blending in with the existing landscape, are meant to highlight how the natural topography is carved by the elements — such as wind and water.

Homes start at $2.5 million, which some might consider a steal in comparison to the escalating real estate prices in Baja, which now average between $5 million and $30 million.

Scroll on for photos of the Paradero Todos Santos hotel including the pool, restaurant and a Garden Suite guest room: