Nearby Areas and Day Trips

Explore nearby areas and other cities and towns of Baja California Sur, Mexico.

Daytrips and longer trips to small towns and nearby areas from Los Cabos include:  Agua Caliente (Ejido), Cabo Pulmo, Todos Santos, Pescadero, La Paz, The East Cape, Los Barriles, Caduaño, El Triunfo, Miraflores, San Antonio, San Bartolo, Santa, Anita, Santiago, Puerto Los Cabos, and San José del Cabo to name a few.

Don’t miss the Baja adventure. There are several options for Cabo San Lucas Day Trips to nearby areas of Baja California Sur, Mexico. A visit to Pescadero, Todos Santos, La Paz, the East Cape or Los Barriles is an easy drive of one to two hours driving time from Cabo San Lucas and the Los Cabos area. Photo: Todos Santos Catholic Church.

You will discover a part of Mexico a little different than the tourist areas with different types of architecture and people, colorful town atmospheres and even different preparations for the regional foods.

Agua Caliente, Ejido
Agua Caliente (Ejido) or “El Chorro” Ranch.  There are a number of spaces dedicated to this in Baja California Sur. In the northern part of the Los Cabos Municipality there are beautiful areas with water resources with high mineral content. One of these is the Agua Caliente Ranch (Hot Water) which takes its name from the thermal waters in that area. A bit north-east are San Jorge Ranch and Santa rita Ranch that also have mineral waters.

Cabo Pulmo
Located on the East Cape of Baja California Sur, Cabo Pulmo is the only living coral reef in North America. It is a shallow bay along the Sea of Cortez with 5 miles of pristine beaches running from Los Frailes to Pulmo Point. Cabo Pulmo has been designated in 2005 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to the abundance of tropical water species and the coral reef.  It is world renowned for excellent scuba diving, snorkeling, kayaking and fishing.

Caduaño
A tiny town located about 25 miles from San José del Cabo. You will reach a row of rustic houses situated around a small plaza. This will be followed by an abandoned sugar mill that hasn’t been operational since the previous century, when the village was a prosperous sugar cane producing community.

 

East Cape, Baja
While Los Cabos and the beaches that made it famous are enjoyed by many, there are other stretches of idyllic bliss in the Cape region, not far from the explorer’s reach. The East Cape extends from several miles east of San Jose del Cabo along the Sea of Cortez, to north of Punta Pescadero, Los Barriles and Rancho Buena Vista. All are names long popular with fly-in fishing diehards; but perhaps not so familiar to many others.

El Triunfo
About 4.5 miles north of San Antonio you will find El Triunfo. Gold and silver were first discovered here in 1862 and soon prospectors from Mexico and the United States set up a camp and a mining operation. A hurricane flooded all of the local mines and the area was soon after left almost deserted. There is talk of some larger mining operations returning to El Triunfo.

La Paz, Baja California Sur
The Capital of Baja California Sur and a very quiet city. A history steeped in adventure and legend. La Paz is a city founded in 1535 by Hernán Cortés. La Paz, an ideal getaway, is only a few hours by car from Cabo San Lucas and Los Cabos. Crimson sunsets accompany picture postcard views of the bay; pristine waters await the visitor; fishing is among the world’s finest. La Paz is a perfect place for sailing, diving, fishing and kayaking expeditions. Renowned for its dramatic skyline and spectacular sunsets, its aquamarine water, diverse restaurants and authentic Mexican nightlife, it’s an exciting city—one that can grab you and never let you go.

Los Barriles
Small Baja town along the Sea of Cortez with a laid back style. Small Baja town along the Sea of Cortez with a laid back style. It is situated along Highway 1, 40 miles (64 km) north of San José del Cabo and 65 miles (105 km) south of La Paz. Punta Pescadero Airstrip is 9 miles (14 km) to the north; Rancho Leonero, a vacation resort, is to the south.

Miraflores
The town of Miraflores is located about 5 miles down the road from Caduaño. This village is populated by ranchers and farmers who have become famous and world renowned over the years by making fabulous leather and furniture handcrafts. The town’s history dates back centuries when a half-dozen young Englishmen supposedly deserted a whaling ship after having been shanghai’d from back home.

 

Nature’s Hot Tubs (Thermal Springs) of Los Cabos
Hot tubs in a more natural environment, away from the busy tourist areas. For these visitors, Los Cabos has some hidden gems close by where natural warm thermal springs bubble up from the ground.There are many thermal springs within the Sierra de la Laguna Biosphere north of Los Cabos. The Mexican government has identified this large area as a “reserve” dedicated to protecting the environment. Although the Biosphere is not off limits to visitors, it is guarded against activities detrimental to the local flora and fauna. Many of the thermal springs are inaccessible. But, there are two that are easy to find, are located close together and are easily accessible by a regular 2-wheel drive rental car.  Article by JoAnn Hyslop, 17 October 2008

 

Pescadero
A small rural village located at Km. 64 on Mexico 19 is only 8 Km. south of Todos Santos in Baja California Sur, Mexico. Pescadero is about 62 Km. (a 45 minute drive) north of Cabo San Lucas, has a pleasant climate, and has been undergoing some changes in the last few years.

 

Puerto Los Cabos
This 2,000 acre master-planned community everything: hotels, marina, golf course and residential neighborhoods. It also has a combination of what nature provided to Los Cabos. Located only five minutes from downtown San Jose del Cabo and twenty minutes from Los Cabos International Airport, Puerto Los Cabos boasts three miles of white sand coastline and is nestled in the foothills of the Sierra de la Laguna Mountains in the semi-arid desert of Los Cabos.

San Antonio
A mining town in bygone years. San Antonio, small mining town, is 18 miles north of San Bartolo. Once in past years, San Antonio served briefly as the capital of Baja California Sur when Loreto was destroyed by a hurricane. Many old buildings, the church, and the remains of the exhausted mines make San Antonio a great choice for some photos. There’s some abandoned mines that they give off large smoke stack that dominates the town skyline.

 

San Bartolo
A scenic tropical village, complete with thatched roof homes, 10 miles north of Los Barriles as you begin your climb into the hills. This is a great place to stop and buy mangos, avocados, locally made candies and some of the most incredible of the local treats, fruit filled empanadas. A large, spring fed, arroyo runs along the base of the valley, and provides this pleasant town with a bountiful supply of fresh water. The locality is distinguished by its great variety, in the sale of regional sweets, and especially the regional food of burritos of machaca, meat pies with red chile, tamales, seasonal fruits, and others.

San Jose del Cabo
 A quaint town that has an almost fantasy land quality about it. San Jose del Cabo is the county seat of the municipality of Los Cabos, located 20 miles northeast of Cabo San Lucas. With a rich and colorful history dating back to the 1700’s, the laid-back community of San Jose del Cabo offers an abundance of Mexican charm and hospitality with its Spanish colonial character, much different than its livelier sister city of Cabo San Lucas located 25 miles south. San Jose del Cabo is best enjoyed on foot.

Santa Anita
The town of Santa Anita is situated within the Municipality of Los Cabos (in the State of Baja California Sur). It is located north of San Jose del Cabo on the right bank of the Arroyo San José along Federal Highway 1.There are 687 inhabitants. Santa Anita is 76 meters above sea level. it is the first town north of the San Jose del Cabo International Airport.

 

 

Santiago
Santiago is located about 35 miles from San José del Cabo in Baja California Sur. You will delight your eyes as you see the colorful agriculture farms and fruit orchards surrounded by thousands of majestic palm trees, which represent an important source of palm leaves for making palapa roofs throughout the Cape region. The town was founded as “Misión de Santiago el Apóstol” in 1723 and the natives celebrate its patron saint day, the feast day of St. James, on the 25th of July. Santiago has a small rustic museum located next to the church with interesting exhibits such as colonial artifacts and local fossils.

Todos Santos Baja
A quaint, tranquil, quiet, relaxing small Mexican town, Todos Santos is another world, only one hour from Cabo San Lucas. Historic Todos Santos is an easy hour’s drive on the scenic Pacific coast highway from Cabo San Lucas. A palm-fringed oasis brimming with creative souls, this gentle sanctuary has captivated many with its peaceful, laid-back flavor. Set back several miles from the Pacific ocean and nestled under the towering Sierra de la Laguna mountains, this small, intimate town boasts chilly, enervating nights in the winter months and cooler weather than Los Cabos for much of the year.

Tropic of Cancer Monument Tourist Plaza
Plaza Turistica Trópico de Cáncer, Santiago, Baja California Sur, México.
The new Tropic of Cancer monument is located just outside of Santiago on Highway 1, at Km 81.5, and celebrates the northernmost of earth’s three important lines of latitude. This monument replaced smaller, less impressive markers that had previously denoted the 23.5N parallel, and it currently serves as the center piece for a tourist attraction, Plaza Turística y Artesanal Trópico de Cáncer.