Cabo Advice Please

[PeelBoy]

We are a couple of 60 planning our 4 month winter trip to warmer places, and will stay in Cabo for 3 weeks from November after Thanksgiving. Will stay at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach for the first week, then Sirena del Mar by Welk Resort for the second, and Grand Mayan for the last. Since it is a 4 month trip, budget planning is the first priority.

Not sure if I will have a car; still struggling. I am an experienced driver and have actually driven in Cabo 10 years ago. After reading so many horrible stories, I am not sure if a rental car is he way to go. Please advise where you rent from and how much it will cost me for a small car per week. Is it wise to rent a car, budget wise? I don't want ripoffs. Do I need an international drivers licence to rent a car?

We plan to cook at the resorts with occasional dinners either in the resort or in the town. Where should I pick up my groceries? I read that I can ask the taxi driver to stop by a supermarket without additional fees. I have stayed in Grand Mayan 10 years ago, and I remember there is a supermarket within walking distance. We like seafood, especially shrimp and tropical fruits. Will I find these in Costco or Walmart? Do Costco and Walmart carry items exactly like those in the States? How about the Welks? It is at the middle of the corridor.

We will go for a day trip like once a week. This is the area where we would like to spend money. Is Hotel California worth going? I heard this Hotel California is not associated with the Eagles at all. Is that true? We also want to watch the sharks and swim with the dolphin.

 

[DaveNV]

Is Hotel California worth going? I heard this Hotel California is not associated with the Eagles at all. Is that true?

I went there once, about ten years ago. From what I remember, no, it has nothing to do with the Eagles song. There was nothing exceptional about the hotel that I saw. But it's located in Baja California, so I think the name is just a convenient planned connection. Todos Santos is an interesting town that is worth visiting. Along the route to get there is/was a place called "Art and Beer." Very odd place, with interesting artwork on the walls, and very cold beer. So kind of a weird reason to stop.

Dave

 

[buzglyd]

Hotel California has nothing to do with the Eagles song but it doesn’t stop people from taking endless photos in front of it. There is a place across the street called Tequila Sunrise that has fantastic margaritas and fish tacos. Sit outside and watch all the goofs pose in front of Hotel California.

 

[DaveNV]

Hotel California has nothing to do with the Eagles song but it doesn’t stop people from taking endless photos in front of it. There is a place across the street called Tequila Sunrise that has fantastic margaritas and fish tacos. Sit outside and watch all the goofs pose in front of Hotel California.

^^^ This is what I remember. And if it's the same place we ate, Tequila Sunrise has really good food.

Dave

 

[Karen G]

I didn't feel the trip to Todo Santos was really worth it, although we went in August several years ago when there wasn't a lot of activity. Maybe during the time of year you are going there might be more stuff going on. Hotel California wasn't anything special.

You might want to consider a trip to La Paz and you could go through Todos Santos on your way back and stop if it looked interesting to you. We enjoyed La Paz as it was a larger Mexican city that is not primarily a tourist town. We thought it was interesting to see the downtown and go in some of the stores.
My husband and daughters took a boat to Spiritu Santos Island and snorkeled there. They loved it. Here's some info: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attract...la_Espiritu_Santo-La_Paz_Baja_California.html. We spent one night in La Paz and the drive wasn't bad.

Three weeks is going to be kind of a long time in Cabo, in my opinion. But since you're staying in a different area each week it will probably be fine. Use the free shuttle from Sunset Beach to get to the other two Pueblo Bonito resorts on Medano Beach if you want to swim at the beach or walk to town.

When you're in San Jose del Cabo at the Grand Mayan you can walk the several blocks to the Mega grocery store (it may have a different name now) and take a taxi back once you have all your groceries.

 

[easyrider]

I like having a car in Cabo. Most of the car rental companies are fine but I like Avis, Hertz and Alamo. Avis and Hertz includes the mandatory liability in their rate and Alamo will make the renter purchase the mandatory liability but it is at a higher limit than the others unless you purchase supplemental liability from the others. We use our Amex card to cover the rest of the car insurance. Anyway, the rates are similar and the vehicles are newer. Part of our trip fun times are our excursions to the stores and other places and having a car makes it easy.

The HWY on the Pacific side is now more like a freeway all the way to La Paz. The HWY on the Sea of Cortez side is the same size with more people using it. Most of the right side frontage roads to make a left turn in Cabo are gone. One of the frontage roads we use is the one to get to Costco. I think that is the only one and it is really easy and well marked.

To me, everywhere is worth a visit. Driving in southern Baja is really easy. We would go nuts just hanging out at a resort for three weeks.

Really, taxi's add up. A rental car is about $200 a week for a compact car.

If you don't have a car then maybe go to mega or Costco and stock up between resort changes.

Bill

 

[geist1223]

We go to Cabo every year or two. We rent from Hertz. Arranged online before we go. We turn down the special insurance. We thought Todos Santos and Hotel California were a waste of time. We enjoyed La Paz. We have swam with the Whale Sharks twice. It is cheaper if you drive to La Paz to schedule. Lot cheaper than scheduling with one of the Cabo Firms. We prefer San Jose del Cabo to Cabo San Lucas.

 

[bankr63]

We are a couple of 60 planning our 4 month winter trip to warmer places, and will stay in Cabo for 3 weeks from November after Thanksgiving. Will stay at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach for the first week, then Sirena del Mar by Welk Resort for the second, and Grand Mayan for the last. Since it is a 4 month trip, budget planning is the first priority.

Not sure if I will have a car; still struggling. I am an experienced driver and have actually driven in Cabo 10 years ago. After reading so many horrible stories, I am not sure if a rental car is he way to go. Please advise where you rent from and how much it will cost me for a small car per week. Is it wise to rent a car, budget wise? I don't want ripoffs. Do I need an international drivers licence to rent a car?

We rented from National, and are lined up with National again for March 2019. It is fairly close to the terminal, but does need a quick shuttle ride (free) to get there. I was surprised how much smaller the cars are per in each class. IIRC we reserved a standard/midsize which turned out to be a Nissan March (Micra here). The full size was a Passat. I have a Chev Trax reserved this year. Your Ontario DL will be fine. Value of having a car? We used ours 3 of 7 days for day trips to CSL (were at GM in SJD) shopping and some sightseeing. I can see a car being more necessary when staying on the corridor. I did not find driving overly unnerving, but I can drive in Montreal too; about the same, no signals, no regard for the rules, totally illogical antics (and that was just the tourists). Still valuable enough for me that I reserved again for our stay at PBSB - we expect to be out for meals a lot.

We plan to cook at the resorts with occasional dinners either in the resort or in the town. Where should I pick up my groceries? I read that I can ask the taxi driver to stop by a supermarket without additional fees. I have stayed in Grand Mayan 10 years ago, and I remember there is a supermarket within walking distance. We like seafood, especially shrimp and tropical fruits. Will I find these in Costco or Walmart? Do Costco and Walmart carry items exactly like those in the States? How about the Welks? It is at the middle of the corridor.

The Mega in SJD near GM has changed to a new brand, but appears to be pretty upscale. I've already scoped out several grocery options in CSL - they are clustered together on the North-East side of town. Costco was a lot like hte US and Canada, but we didn't buy much in the way of food there (tequila and limes for margaritas). Most quantities are too big to fit in the teeny refrigerators. WalMart food is more local, lots of brands you won't know, but close to the local supermarkets.
We walked to town most days for either breakfast or dinner, generally ate one light meal in the villa.

We will go for a day trip like once a week. This is the area where we would like to spend money. Is Hotel California worth going? I heard this Hotel California is not associated with the Eagles at all. Is that true? We also want to watch the sharks and swim with the dolphin.

Didn't do Hotel California. The main reason for the association is it matches the song well. There is an old Spanish mission very nearby ("I heard the mission bells") and Colitas are certainly a local plant. No one has either confirmed or denied the association; it remains apocryphal.
Our favorite excursion was the whale watching. We did the smaller experience on Zodiac boats arranged through GM and leaving from the marina east of SJD. Not nearly as luxurious as the bigger boats out of CSL, but you are a lot closer to the action. Also, maybe not for those who suffer motion sickness. We must have zipped off over 1000 photos (camera in sport mode, thank God it was digital and not film!).

My favorite excursion (maybe not DW's) was the X-rail trip in the desert. You can almost see the smile on my face under all that dirt and the bandana. The dirt wiped off easily, the smile took a couple of days.

 

[Cabocowboy]

Agree with all the comments about Cabo. Skip Todo Santos although there is a fabulous Italian restaurant across from the church. Swim with the whale sharks in LaPaz. Take a go pro camera if you can. So much to do in Cabo and very safe. Whale excursions are also popular; take the rubber raft boat if you can. Much softer on the ride out and back.
Rent a water taxi from Medano beach to go over to Lover's Beach area. Try to find a taxi with a ladder on board. Later in the day (after noon) the wind and surf picks up and it can be challenging to crawl back into the water taxi. You tell them how long you want to stay and they'll come back by for the ride back. 2 hours is good. You can snorkel there and there are lots of fish. Careful with the waves and small kids. Need to be a decent swimmer to handle it.
Eagle's song is about the people who move to California and can't leave because they love/hate the place. Not really a place but a mindset. Whatever you do, have fun and tip. We take $100 in singles to tip as we go. They love US dollars.
On the streets and in shops, try to pay with pesos instead of US dollars. The shops will take dollars but give you an unfavorable exchange rate. 19 to 1 exchange rate gives us gringos great buying power. It used to be 10 to 1 not that many years ago.
Try to use a little Spanish for greetings and exchanges and the locals will light up with smiles just for the small effort.
And whatever you do, do not speak to any of the timeshare sales sharks you will confront leaving the airport. Just keep walking; they will try to stop you with all kinds of tricks. Once outside, there are a bunch of taxi services waiting to take you away. We usually arrange for a private shuttle to our resort so we don't have to stop at six places along the way to Sunset Beach.

 

[jlp879]

I love this resource for dining out. We don't like to be caught in tourist trap dining, so we always rely on Trappers List.

http://trapperscabolist.com/index.php

Another thing that has worked well is asking the taxi driver, "where do you take your family for dinner?". Always fun.

 

[davidvel]

Agree with all the comments about Cabo. Skip Todo Santos although there is a fabulous Italian restaurant across from the church. Swim with the whale sharks in LaPaz. Take a go pro camera if you can. So much to do in Cabo and very safe. Whale excursions are also popular; take the rubber raft boat if you can. Much softer on the ride out and back.
Rent a water taxi from Medano beach to go over to Lover's Beach area. Try to find a taxi with a ladder on board. Later in the day (after noon) the wind and surf picks up and it can be challenging to crawl back into the water taxi. You tell them how long you want to stay and they'll come back by for the ride back. 2 hours is good. You can snorkel there and there are lots of fish. Careful with the waves and small kids. Need to be a decent swimmer to handle it.
Eagle's song is about the people who move to California and can't leave because they love/hate the place. Not really a place but a mindset. Whatever you do, have fun and tip. We take $100 in singles to tip as we go. They love US dollars.
On the streets and in shops, try to pay with pesos instead of US dollars. The shops will take dollars but give you an unfavorable exchange rate. 19 to 1 exchange rate gives us gringos great buying power. It used to be 10 to 1 not that many years ago.
Try to use a little Spanish for greetings and exchanges and the locals will light up with smiles just for the small effort.
And whatever you do, do not speak to any of the timeshare sales sharks you will confront leaving the airport. Just keep walking; they will try to stop you with all kinds of tricks. Once outside, there are a bunch of taxi services waiting to take you away. We usually arrange for a private shuttle to our resort so we don't have to stop at six places along the way to Sunset Beach.

I think the advice about a shuttle is the best one can give. You'll pay a bit of premium with only 2 people, but it's well worth it. You'll feel like a VIP.

For groups of 4 or more it's not really more expensive than alternatives.

 

[oldbuyer]

I can add another option to consider.
Shared ride from Airport to PBS (about $19/pp) can be arranged in advance.
Walmart delivers groceries anywhere in Cabo or San Jose for 50 pesos.Book on line for delivery to PBS (website is a little strange just like the US version
Use the free PBS shuttle to get to PB Rose as it is a great base for seeing Cabo. On checkout day take the 10:00am bus(earliest) to Rose after checkout and pick up your 1 or more day rental car in town (across from the mall at the fountain) Then drive back and pick up your luggage and then drive to Welk. There is an Avis or National counter at PBS that is usually a little higher that might be good if you can drop the car in town (or Rose) vs taking it all the way back to PBS. You can call PBS to check. This would give you a full day of site seeing as you wait for check in which is typically 4:00pm at Welk. Why? Rental car is $35/day and a taxi from PBS to Welk is 25-30.Cabo taxis are a rip off even if you pay in pesos. Now you you have the afternoon to pick out groceries or maybe a side trip. Welk is close to Cabo but it's a bit isolated in that it is only serviced by taxi or by walking out to the main road and taking a collectivo bus. (it's safe, it's cheap but it's very basic- it's how we get around Cabo).

From Welk you'll have to take a $30-35 taxi to get to the Mayan but once there you do not need a car as it's walking distance from the Mayan to town and groceries. There is a new Chedrui Express that opened up in San Jose that is at the main road round about that intersects with the airport toll road. FANTASTIC. The Mayan can arrange a shared taxi back to the airport for you.

Couple of more tips.
Pay in pesos and save money (except for the taxis), get your pesos from a real bank owned ATM as the exchange rate is governed by the forex exchange rate of that day. (the stand alone machines are private and are set at exchange rates that are often usury)
Leave any bling at home
Learn and use the basics courtesies in Spanish even though everyone speaks English. Trying is appreciated as there are many ugly Americans that visit Cabo.
Avoid buying most of your meals at the resort. If you are willing to spend $6 for a small bottled water just get to town and make a local restaurant owner happy as you can get an entire meal for under $10/pp and it helps keep the towns alive. Or have Walmart deliver you a case of water and a six pack for the same $6. (there is a Walmart is across the main hwy from Welk)
Medical needs: ask for directions to Similares on Moralas (big pharmacy). There is a walk in clinic next door where an office visit is 60 pesos ($3) with prescriptions filled next door. Docs are female and we use Google translate to convey medical symptoms or terms.
We spend at least 4 weeks a year in Cabo for the last 10 years. If you have any specific needs PM me.

 

[easyrider]

We are a couple of 60 planning our 4 month winter trip to warmer places, and will stay in Cabo for 3 weeks from November after Thanksgiving. Will stay at Pueblo Bonito Sunset Beach for the first week, then Sirena del Mar by Welk Resort for the second, and Grand Mayan for the last. Since it is a 4 month trip, budget planning is the first priority.

Not sure if I will have a car; still struggling. I am an experienced driver and have actually driven in Cabo 10 years ago. After reading so many horrible stories, I am not sure if a rental car is he way to go. Please advise where you rent from and how much it will cost me for a small car per week. Is it wise to rent a car, budget wise? I don't want ripoffs. Do I need an international drivers licence to rent a car?

We plan to cook at the resorts with occasional dinners either in the resort or in the town. Where should I pick up my groceries? I read that I can ask the taxi driver to stop by a supermarket without additional fees. I have stayed in Grand Mayan 10 years ago, and I remember there is a supermarket within walking distance. We like seafood, especially shrimp and tropical fruits. Will I find these in Costco or Walmart? Do Costco and Walmart carry items exactly like those in the States? How about the Welks? It is at the middle of the corridor.

We will go for a day trip like once a week. This is the area where we would like to spend money. Is Hotel California worth going? I heard this Hotel California is not associated with the Eagles at all. Is that true? We also want to watch the sharks and swim with the dolphin.

My plan for a six week stay included driving to Cabo from Washington State. I may still do this. The roads are pretty good now. There are plenty of nice places to spend the night on the way down to Lands End. My first stop after leaving the USA would be Rosario for a couple of nights. Then I would drive the 8 - 9 hours to Loreto for a couple of nights. Then I would drive to Cabo from Loreto which I have driven in 7 hours or so.

If you haven't been to Todos Santos the first visits are pretty cool. Hotel California is worth at least one visit, imo. Their restaurant is as nice as any in the area. Todos Santos is the town which has tourist attractions and restaurants. Then there are the beaches. A fun beach to do a short stop to is south end of El Pescador. This is where the fishing fleet is. There is no marina and the pangas ride a wave in. A fish buyer is at this location and there are many different catches to view. Some of the fisherman will sell their catch to tourists. We bought a few dorado but no one would sell us tuna. It seems like the fish buyer needed them. Shore fishing is decent in this area and there are usually people shore fishing this area.

Cerritos Beach Club was a surfing destination that has grown into a resort area. The beach restaurant makes really good fish tacos. I like to watch the sun go down here. You can get a $25 massage here on the beach.

There is a dolphin center in Cabo. The only sharks I ever saw were the ones we caught.

Cabo is a fun area.

Bill