Hello Travelling Foodies! Last month I visited “Los Cabos” for the first time and decided to make this post about this popular destination in Baja California Sur.
Photo by Jules Clark
Los Cabos is a coastal oasis located at the southmost tip of the Baja California Peninsula, the contrast of the stunning beaches and desert landscapes creates a dreamlike atmosphere. No wonder why it’s one of the top three tourist destinations in México.
Jet setters and celebrities have sought out its famous and exquisite gourmet restaurants, world-class golf courses, and resorts. It is also known as the world capital of Marlin Sport Fishing and the nesting place for gray whales.
Photo by Ivan Stecko
Los Cabos has two main cities: San José del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas.
TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS
Los Cabos International Airport, located about 7 miles north of San José del Cabo, receives millions of travelers every year from different countries, and it’s one of the busiest airports in the country along with the ones in Mexico City and Cancun.
To get to the different destinations in Los Cabos, you can use the “Dessert Drive” Bus line that goes on Federal Highway Number 1, known as the “transpeninsular highway”, all the way from the airport to Cabo San Lucas and back, another option, of course, is to get a rental car at the airport.
Photo by Peter Fazekas
Having a rental car can give you much more freedom to explore around so that’s what we did on this trip, but, from our own experience I have some advice to share:
First, competition between Car Dealers at the airport can be fierce and they will be screaming at you with different prices and rates, try to be patient and keep your cool, and talk to all of the vendors one-on-one so you can decide which one is the most convenient for you.
Second, my grandfather used to say “Knowing how to drive is 10% controlling your car and 90% watching out for how badly everyone else is driving”- this is PARTICULARLY true in Los Cabos. Once you get on the highway, drive carefully and watch out for reckless drivers.
Taxis and Uber are also available as transportation options.
SAN JOSÉ DEL CABO
Depending on the traffic it can take around 15 minutes to get from the Airport to San José. San José del Cabo is well known for its laid-back vibes, colonial architecture, art galleries, and great places to try traditional Mexican food.
Photo by Eating With Carmen Food Tours
During the day, the downtown area seems almost deserted around the “Mission San José del Cabo” at night, however, it’s a whole different story. Many food stalls and artists set up shop in the main square, you might enjoy some live musicians, and particularly on Thursday nights, around the gallery district they do the “ArtWalk” closing the streets for car traffic allowing only pedestrians. On these nights many artists display their artwork on the streets creating a massive open-air art gallery in the whole area. If you’re looking for a bohemian ambiance this might be the right spot for your vacation.
Photo by Ana Sofía Bustamante
CABO SAN LUCAS
Following the Transpeninsular highway, about 20 miles from San José del Cabo you’ll find Cabo San Lucas. This stretch of highway is known as the “Turistic Corridor” and all along this corridor you’ll find several bars, hotels, restaurants, beaches, golf courses, and more.
In contrast, Cabo San Lucas is a much busier place, more like a modern, touristic city with a busier vibe than San José del Cabo.
Eating fresh seafood in Cabo is a must, there are several restaurants that you have to try. An important mention goes to “Los Claros” where I ate the best Baja Style Fish taco I’ve ever had.
Photo by Eating With Carmen
There are a lot of things to do in Cabo, the most iconic one is visiting the famous rock formation known as “The Arch of Cabo San Lucas”, to visit it you have to either hire a tour or get your own boat because it’s inaccessible by land. Alas, mine was not a leisure trip so visiting the Arch will have to wait for my next visit, but if you’ve been there let us know in the comments how was your experience.
Photo by Bruno Storchi Bergmann
One thing I was able to do was a quick visit to the Jazz on the Rocks at Sunset Point, where I enjoyed a spectacular presentation with local musicians, so if you’re into live music you must give this place a visit, the food and drinks are amazing and the view is just extraordinary.
Source: jazzontherocks.com.mx
So that’s my quick review of Los Cabos, a place that exceeded my expectations by far, and one that I will definitely be coming back to more than once.
I hope you have enjoyed this post as much as I did on my trip.
See you on the next one!
– Juan, the Juan and Only!
