Las Ventanas al Paraiso A New Vision of Luxury by Scott Cooper, SWA Group The sun shines year round on the variegated desert landscape of Cabo San Lucas at the southern end of the Baja Peninsula's busy Los Cabos tourist corridor. In the early 1990s, Javier Burillo Azcarraga, a member of one of Mexico's richest and most distinguished families, acquired eighteen undeveloped acres at Cabo San Lucas, amid the clutter of cliched tropical-design resorts. He envisioned for the site a unique, super-luxury, all-suite boutique hotel that would not only stand out from the crowd, but also reflect Baja's indigenous culture and landscape. Burillo Azcarraga brought in Atlanta-based architect and developer Hal Thannisch, Jr. to create the master plan and orchestrate the design, construction, financing, and ultimate operation of the completed resort. A key part of Thannisch's role, as he defined it, was the need to stay aware of market demands and understand the expectations of guests. "What I found is that people want and crave memorable experiences," he says, "so that is what we built." Thannisch hired HKS Architects of Dallas to provide architectural services, and they in turn, retained The SWA Group of Dallas to create the site plan and landscape architecture. Construction began in December 1995, and the five-star Las Ventanas al Paraiso, or "Windows to Paradise," welcomed its first guests in July 1997. Sea of Cortez: The Focal Point The site presented SWA with some interesting opportunities. Set between San Jose Del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, Las Ventanas has dramatic views of both the inland mountains and the Sea of Cortez. A 7,000-yard championship golf course, called Cabo Real, surrounds most of the site. The course follows the natural terrain, winding through desert hills down to the white sand beaches and azure Sea of Cortez. SWA's challenge was to create a Las Ventanas site plan and landscaping that would merge seamlessly with the golf course, while creating privacy and exclusivity for the resort. Adjacent to the Las Ventanas site and the Cabo Real golf course are awkwardly massed hotels and condominiums as well as heavily watered tropical landscaping that is not compatible with the desert environment of Baja. The SWA site plan emphasized the resort's privacy and distinctiveness by turning its back to neighboring resorts. They focused the entire Las Ventanas project inward, toward the Sea of Cortez and desert gardens, with views of the nearby mountains. Exterior and interior spaces flow into and out of each other creating a unified whole. When guests enter Las Ventanas, they don't see all the buildings at once. Rather, the resort gradually reveals itself as guests walk down to the sea. The site plan radiates out from the open-air lobby, and every guest suite has a view of the shimmering blue Sea of Cortez. A Hand-Made Project Developed to blend into and extend the natural environment, Las Ventanas hugs the upward slope of the desert terrain. The resort resembles a small, beautiful sand and earth-colored Mexican village. The low-rise buildings are connected by stairs, bridges, and curving raised-pebble paths, hand-laid by local artisans using native materials. The resort is notable for its celebration of Baja California's art and heritage. Hand-crafted features, such as hand-made, wrought-iron gates and locks and hand-painted detailing in every suite create a softer, more inviting environment. SWA principal David P. Thompson aptly remarked, "This is a very personal, hand-made project." A Kind of Oasis The Las Ventanas landscape is dramatically different from nearby resorts, which have heavily watered, tropical vistas, probably better suited for a rain forest than Baja's desert climate. At Las Ventanas, blending the natural desert environment with the sensuality of the Mediterranean-Mexican style architecture enhances the resort's feeling of tranquility. "We immediately recognized the subtle beauty of this desert site and its startling contrast with the expansive, hypnotic value of the Sea of Cortez," notes Thompson. "We also were concerned by the limited water in the area. So we decided to incorporate the desert into the hotel property, using the subtleties of color, light, and shadow and the contrast between desert and water to give an aesthetic character to the site." Sand and stone are the two basic hardscape elements. Native rocks and stone, from the arroyos that meander through the site, create courtyards and podiums for the buildings. The walls reflect the local tradition of solid stone and rubble connected by broken pieces of rock and sticks in the joints. Because the site is located at the tip of a desert peninsula, materials were not always available, so "we often had to improvise," says Thompson. Sometimes, the local stone mason or metalworker had a better solution so SWA would use the idea, which added genuine local flavor and distinctiveness. Thompson admits that "doing this project as a desert landscape, rather than the typical lush tropical landscaping, was risky. I credit its success to Javier Burillo Azcarraga's vision and determination to create a unique, desert resort experience." Water elements throughout Las Ventanas forge a connection with the Sea of Cortez. A serpentine network of three drop-edge pools flows from the lobby down several levels to the beach. At certain times of day, the blue water of the "infinity" pool seems to merge with that of the Sea of Cortez, an illusion SWA created by choosing building materials to match the sea's shallows. Vegetation an Integral Element Desert, not tropical, vegetation abounds throughout Las Ventanas. SWA capitalized on another great opportunity "to fulfill our environmental responsibility and also improve the project," says Thompson, by rescuing desert plants from an area that was slated for destruction by a landfill operation. Consequently, SWA completely redesigned its landscape plan on-site to make use of those plants. Date palm trees line the drive leading to the lobby. Torote, a desert tree also known as the elephant tree, has been used throughout the resort as a canopy. Myriad plants such as prickly pear and pitaya cactus, aloe, Tequila Agave, and century plants, burst into vibrant color in the spring, providing a counterpoint to the soft desert hues. "Living walls" of vines and flowers, beach hammocks beneath huge palm-frond thatched roofs called palapas, a meditation courtyard, and open flame torches that light the pathways at night, are some of the many special landscape features found at the resort. More of a Good Thing Burillo Azcarraga also is building 114 residential units on the hill behind the resort. They curve around the hotel, and separate it from the highway, creating a beautifully integrated development that feels like a small village. The two-and three-bedroom condominiums are stacked in low-rise villas with eight to ten units per building. Their design reflects the resort's Mediterranean-Mexican architectural style as well. Many of the artisan features of the resort, such as floors with hand-set river pebbles, are echoed in the Villas. They are selling so well by word of mouth that there is virtually no formal marketing. By any measure, Las Ventanas is a huge success. Its privileged guests indulge themselves in the ultimate in exclusivity and privacy. The project marries landscape artwork, artisanry, architecture, service, and amenities with a beauty and luxury that places it far ahead of its many competitors. "Las Ventanas is not the last of its kind, it's just the start," claims Hal Thannisch, Jr. "The way Las Ventanas has captivated the travel industry, means there will be more developments like it throughout the world, if I can do anything about it." lasn