Visiting Baja California, Mexico
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Visiting California Baja, Mexico
Nov 2003
Can anyone recommend a place to stay in or near Rosarita, Baja
California over Xmas? Looking for something clean, inexpensive,
near the beach, suitable for a family of four. Thanks!
It's been a while, but I think the Rosarito Beach Hotel might be
what you're looking for. Look at
http://www.rosaritobeachhotel.com/indexeng.html
Tenga Diversion (Have Fun!)
Monica
August 2002
We are thinking about driving to northern Baja for a low-key
week-long vacation before or after Thanksgiving with a very
active 18 month toddler (21 months, then). Any suggestions of
baby-friendly beach places to stay would be very much
appreciated. We don't need nightlife or fancy, although a
refrigerator or kitchenette would be great. Any other Baja
advice (driving time is a major factor) would also be greatfully
received. The web site info on baja is weighted South and
camping. Anyone with advice for some used-to-be-more-
adventurous parents?
Thanks,
Ann
Check http://math.ucr.edu/ftm/baja.html. Tons of all sorts of
Baja north info. We stayed at the Best Western El Cid in
Ensenada, on Lopez Mateos, which is the main strip, and
had a kitchenette in our single room, and a balcony, for
maybe $35/night. There isn't beach within walking distance,
but you can drive down to the point, which is pretty nice.
Ensenada's a little bit more than an hour's drive from the
border, and there's not a whole lot between towns. We
stopped at several beaches along the way, but I don't know
the names of any, and be warned: there doesn't appear to
be any sort of litter collection service there, and there's trash
*everywhere* except the tourist spots, so watch what the
kids are playing with.
Also: we got a bunch of money changed at the border, but
ended up changing it back because everywhere we went
takes American, and actually you get a slightly better price
paying in dollars.
More of my bookmarks from research last summer:
http://www.baja.com/lugares/info_sanfelipe.htm
http://www.sanfelipe.com.mx/ [official town site, lots of good stuff]
http://www.timsbaja.com/ [lots of pictures]
http://www.x-rates.com/index.html [exchange rates]
Gwen
It's been many years, but my family has vacationed in both
Ensenada and San Felipe. Based on my memories, I recommend San
Felipe as the huge tidal flats would be a wonderful place for a
toddler to run around. Unfortunately I can't help with places
to stay as we camped. If you can drive a bit farther, consider
Bahia de los Angeles too. There are (or were) a couple of
hotels in the town, but being off the main highway it's
generally uncrowded and un-touristy and everyone we encountered
there was a pleasure to meet.
Holly
(I did this trip without a baby about 4 years ago.) I found
Ensenada to be very touristy (evenings filled with college-aged
drinkers and mornings filled with cruise passengers docking for
the day.) This disappointment led to a drive across Baja to San
Felipe. The highway was pretty deserted and had more potholes
than road. We were stopped at one checkpoint by bored-looking
soldiers with automatic weapons who searched our car for drugs
and guns. San Felipe was a pretty typical beach town, filled
mostly with Mexican families. We camped on the beach and
watched the stars at night.
Cindy
November 2001
We're thinking of going to Baja with our kids (ages 1.5 and 3) over
the winter holidays. I know Mexico quite well, but I've never been
to Baja. Any suggestions or recommendations about where to go and
what to do? The image in my (uninformed) mind right now is a sleepy
fishing village with a few hotels, some yummy fish restaurants and
a nice beach where the kids can swim, but maybe there are other
activities that I haven't considered. Whalewatching? Kayaking?
Hiking? Cultural activities? Museums? I don't really know what there
is to see and do. I'd be happy to hear any thoughts that anyone has
to offer. Thanks in advance. Judith.
Judith
We went to Baja over the Christmas holidays, camping in the back of our pickup truck, about 8 years ago. We enjoyed ourselves immensely but didn't do anything organized or spend money on anything but campgrounds and groceries, so I can't make many recommendations. I'm writing just to warn you about a couple of avoidable pitfalls that might other wise dim your enjoyment:
(1) the Sea of Cortez is full of stingrays. Do not wade in it or let your kids do so. My husband was instantly, and badly, stung by a stingray, and the resulting infection and allergic reaction had him completely disabled for several weeks. Our neighbor, travelling separately, had the same experience in the same week, and says that this hazard is not posted because it would discourage tourism. (2) It can get surprisingly cold at night, and there can be a very strong, unrelenting, cold wind during the day. No problem at all if you are prepared.
We had a lot of fun, and can't wait to go again. We will never forget the
festivities in the town square for New Year's Eve. I think we were in
Bahia de Los Angeles, and the party was outdoors in the center of town. Kids, grandparents, everyone was there and dancing (admirably well!). I guess caution #3 is in order here: *Do* go to the party! On the stroke of midnight, the menfolk blasted away at the surrounding hills with handguns, and the only place the bullets couldn't land was in the town square they were fired from.
sreilly
There is a great place called Cabo Pulmo in southern Baja
on the sea of cortez. Very kid friendly and small. They
have a web site. We totally loved it.
Note from Myriam:
Web Site is here:
http://www.mexonline.com/caboplmo.htm
Kelly
We have JUST returned from Baja last night, my partner and our 16 month old
son and I, that is. We stayed for 9 days in a town called Todos Santos,
which seems to fit your description pretty well. We flew to San Jose del
Cabo and drove up (1.5 hours-ish) from there. Todos Santos was recently
featured on the cover of the Sunday Chron's travel section. It is a small
sleepy town with an expatriate community and a focus on arts. The
surrounding countryside is vast and beautiful -- green cactus desert,
blossoms galore. The town is near the beach, but not ON it. Lovely beaches
5 mins. drive away. This is the Pacific side, so the surf can be rough, but
our boy greatly enjoyed playing in natural "wading pools" created by
estuaries and along the edge in shallow water. We stayed in a very kid
friendly cottage on the grounds of the home of an expatriate family with a 6
year old girl, about $45/night, with small kitchen, portacrib and high chair.
"The Garden Casita," run by Howard & Janice Ekman, they have a web site, and
publish the town's newsy English language monthly, El Calendario. The
cottage is very comfortable, with a lovely garden too, and includes
housekeeping service every 2-3 days. There are lots of good eating choices
in the town, and no major resorts whatsoever, therefore no snorkeling
facilities, etc. HOWEVER, Cabo and LaPaz -- and the easy to swin in Sea of
Cortes -- are within an hour's drive.
Susanlubeck
I love Baja!!! In my opinion the best way, although extremely
time-consuming, to see Baja is to go by RV and camp at some of the beautiful
and peaceful coves around Bahia Concepcion (one of the most strikingly
beautiful beaches in the world! in my humble opinion). There are also a
couple of small, rustic hotels: see Hotel Serendidad (Welcome to the Hotel Serenidad
) & Hotel San Buenaventura. Further south, Loreto is a wonderful,
smallish fishing village. Three years ago, we stayed in a B&B there called
Las Trojes (Las Trojes Bed and
Breakfast...) which was on the beach and within (somewhat) walking
distance to the main plaza. It was very quiet but had no kitchenettes which
might be difficult with kids--although it included breakfast in its small
cafe on the beach. There are many other hotels in Loreto to choose from and
the main plaza has a beautiful mission to visit. The problem we found with
Loreto was that the beaches were not very good. However, we took a boat out
to an island nearby where the beach was pristine and beautiful and did the
majority of our kayaking there. Last year we rented a house (townhome) in
San Jose Del Cabo. It was a bit more quaint and charming than it's
consumer-driven and chaotic sister city Cabo San Lucas. There are some
lovely beaches in between the two cities, in particular Bahia Chileno &
Bahia Santa Maria. Depending on how old your children are, we find that
kayaking and snorkeling are the best activities in Baja. Best of luck and
feel free to email me directly if you have any further questions. Liz
2001
Greetings. We are thinking about piling the family into our van and
heading to Baja California for the New Year's holiday. We are fairly
adventurous and camp often, but have never been south of the border.
We'd really appreciate any advice on where to go, where to avoid, where
to stay, concerns about illness or other safety issues, and any other
experiences that might enhance our experience or spare us from something
avoidable. Our kids are 4 and 6.
Baja is mine and my husband's favorite place in the world and now that we
have a little girl we cannot wait to share it with her. You are so lucky to
be able to share it with your family. Our favorite places are all along the
Sea of Cortez side of the peninsula. Loreto is a wonderful "larger" town
with lots of shopping (if you are "in" to that sort of thing) and great
seafood. It is a fishing village. Mainly, the stretch of land between
Loreto and Mulege is the most beautiful to us. In particular, nothing can
compare to Bahia Concepcion. There are dozens of coves that you can just
pull into and camp right next to the clear, aquamarine waters. In
particular there is Buenaventura and El Requeson, our favorites. Both safe
and gorgeous. I've included a website for Mulege....Enjoy!! Click Here: Mulege & Bahia Concepcion -
Baja
California Sur By the way, there has only been one negative word spoken
to me about Baja and it was regarding the town/area of El Rosario on the
Pacific side of the peninsula. A family I met had been mugged along the
highway there...BUT they even agree that it was a very, very rare and freak
occurrence.
Baja with kids in a car - it works. Evey Memorial Day weekend we drive to
San Felipe and camp out on the beach in the center of town with about ten
other families with kids. I am not really excited about the beach in the
center of town, but everyone else likes the proximity to fish tacos and
margaritas and the kids love all the excitement of fireworks and music.
Be sure to camp near a public bathroom. We prefer the beaches to the
campsites because the campsites are too crowded. The problem with the
beaches is the noise and the lights. They never end - either one. But
the ocean is wonderful and the kids have a great time. We usually drive
to LA leaving Berkeley at night and arrive in LA before the morning rush
hour. We spend the day in LA at a friend's house and sleep. Then we
leave the following night for San Felipe arriving in the early morning
hours on Friday. We always get insurance as soon as we cross the border.
Mexico just passed a new regulation for brining foreign cares across the
border more than 15 miles. You have to give a large but refundable
deposit. Check it out in last week''s papers. The drive back is the
most difficult. We drive strainght for 15h hours during the day through
the desert, getting back Monday night. We always buy water. The stores
have everything.
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