Mexico 2023

JJ and I both had some vacation time available and came across this incredible deal for a flight to Cabo in Baja California Sur, Mexico.

We quickly decided to turn this into a roadtrip to explore the coastal area since we haven't been before. From what we read the East coast is less busy, so we were looking forward to check things out there first before heading back. Overall we just booked a few accomodations so we can stay flexible.

leaving to mexico

We started it off by picking up our car and got a some good Mexican food and drinks.

food

Our trip went counter-clockwise, starting in La Fortuna at De la Costa Baja Sur an absolute hidden gem. The rooms are pretty simple, but it's tranquil and next to the beach. The next two pics should give a good impression.

De la Costa Baja Sur night
De la Costa Baja Sur hammock

Our day here was very relaxing with some nice food in the nearby restaurants. Only thing to note would be that the beach is very shallow with big waves coming in, so it didn't seem safe to swim.

Next up was a lunch stop at the 3 star hotel NEST Baja, which was pretty incredible in what feels like the middle of nowhere.

NEST Baja

Driving further North we came across many beautiful beaches. A lot of US tourists who come down here to camp and surf. Also a few uncomfortable experiences like a guy with a gun standing next to the road watching it and when walking on a beach being told by some deranged lady that this her beach and that her dogs would bite.

Anyway, we continued on and arrived for our next stop in Cabo Pulmo for some tacos and beer that were excellent.

tacos and beer
Cabo Pulmo

This town is very famous for its nearby diving sites, too bad we didn't have the certification for it (yet). Instead we did some snorkling at nearby Arbolito Beach.

Once we had enough sun and swimming for the day we headed North to the Buena Vista Oceanfront & Hot Springs Resort where we had booked a night. The room was a decent deal, but sadly the hotel overall was past its prime and in a state of disrepair. We hung out at the pool and tried to make the best of it, but were also happy to move on.

Next day we started exploring some of the hot springs in the area as well as the nice natural pool with waterfall Cañón de la Zorra.

hot spring
Cañón de la Zorra far
Cañón de la Zorra close
us at Cañón de la Zorra

It was a fun time in the pools and great to cool down a bit with the blistering sun.

For the next night we headed to La Ventana, the kite surfing heaven. It was honestly breathtaking coming into town and seeing hundreds of kitesurfers out in the water on that day. We checked in to this neat capsule hotel, which was affordable and a very unique experience. Honestly not that bad for a few days.

capsule hotel

And for dinner some amazing BBQ

BBQ

We also checked out the Natural Hot Springs in town, but it was a bit disappointing in comparison with the previous ones. Very hot though, I burned my feet a bit in some.

Next morning we headed out, first stopping at this cute and unique cafe Pólvora for some coffee and snack (great bread!).

Pólvora

La Paz

Now we were probably at the midpoint of our trip. After another few hours of driving we arrived at Rancho El Camino where Paul McBeth opened a disc golf course that we really wanted to check out. It is located in the hills with its shrubbery vegitation. Everyone was very friendly and showed us around so we could find our way.

Rancho El Camino
disc golf

Then it was time to head into town. La Paz the biggest city in the area and has a great walkable downtown core with many interesting shops and cafes. We ended up stopping for some tacos and drinks before checking into our AirBnB.

jj drink

The drink had so much alcohol that we couldn't drink it, the food was nice though.

La Paz art

The place we stayed at was a separate room in the house belonging to an older couple. It was located on top of the hill overlooking the city and ocean with our private patio. Overall great find and I'm happy to have stayed there for 3 nights since there was so much to explore.

room la paz

Highlights of our stay here we exploring the city and it's shops and restaurants as well as doing a boat tour to snorkle and swim with seals.

island
dress
church

And then there was also more disc golf since we couldn't get enough.

more disc golf

Here La Paz at night. We were feeling very safe in this town, which can be a concern in other places.

La Paz

And of course always some nice food

food

Since we stayed for 3 nights in La Paz we were very packed for the remaining time in Mexico. Next day we drove down to Todos Santos to check out the beach and the town. The swell was very intense that day and waves were crashing in with incredible force.

Todos Santos beach
Todos Santos beach 2

The town itself is incredible for all it's artwork and is a lot of fun to explore all its little corners. On the other hand it is also quite touristy with everyone tring to sell some souveniers.

Todos Santos flags
Todos Santos pink

Then it was time to get back to Cabo for our final night. Our hotel was surrounded by giant walls, which makes you feel safe but also gets you thinking on why it would be needed.

For the night out we found this little roof top cafe to get a coffee and dessert overlooking the city

dessert1
cabo city view night

We were strolling around a bit more and ended up in an American BBQ restaurant for a nice dinner.

It wasn't too late yet, so we decided to explore a bit more with our car. Unsure on what to do I had the idea to check out the beach. Dring there we saw some bollards, but the road was open otherwise. Getting to the parking lot I noticed that there was no parking available we just quickly jumped out to shoot this picture

beach at night

Then on the way back to the car, ready to head back to the hotel, we saw the police rolling in. Multiple cars with police stopping everyone who was there. Apparently the beach is closed at night, so they were ready to make bank on unsuspecting tourists. I think what helped in that moment was the language barrier with us not speaking much Spanish. They threated us with a ~$100 ticket and taking us to the station. Luckily we still had around $50 in case with us, so in the end they just accepted it to avoid the hassle. I felt bad for everyone else there who had to deal with the same and who maybe wasn't that lucky.

Next day it was a quick flight back home. A bit over a week full of adventure!

JJ hat
us


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