Best Day Trips From Los Cabos

Todos Santos

For a respite from the bustling crowds of Los Cabos, head 45 minutes north of San Lucas along Highway 19 to this small, laid-back town. The Águila bus that leaves the San Lucas terminal every two hours is more comfortable and less expensive than trips offered by tour operators -- though a cab to the bus station can cost $8 from downtown San Lucas. No announcements are made, so get off when the bus stops at Pilar's Fresh Fish Tacos, or you'll wind up in La Paz. Cross the street and walk up Avenida Zaragoza to Benito Juárez.

Continue along Benito Juárez to the gorgeously restored Hotel California. Turn left at the corner of Calle Máquez de León to see the Misión de Nuestra Senora del Pilar (Mission of Our Lady of Pilar). Off to the right, on Calle Centenario, is the Café Santa Fé, one of the first buildings in Todos Santos to be renovated, starting a trend that revived the area. The café has a beautiful garden and serves organic dishes. Along any street, explore interesting cafés, shops, and galleries. Stop by El Tecolote Bookstore, on the corner of Benito Juárez and Calle Hidalgo, for a free copy of El Calendario de Todos Santos, with articles on local artists and reviews of restaurants, shops, and galleries.

To take the bus back to Los Cabos, walk east toward the ocean on Benito Juárez to Avenida Zaragoza, and turn left. Walk one block and wait on the corner in front of the park. You can pay ($9) on board in pesos or dollars. Take a taxi back to your hotel from the San Lucas station.

The East Cape

The Sea of Cortez coast between La Paz and San José del Cabo is a favored hideaway for anglers and adventurers. The area consists of fastgrowing gringo communities at Buena Vista and Los Barriles and beloved settlements at Cabo Pulmo and Punta Pescadero. Hotels and small lodges are scattered along the coast. Most offer packages that include meals and activities; a good idea since they're usually isolated. The East Cape is renowned for its rich fishing grounds, good diving, and excellent windsurfing. The area makes a good day trip or a nice place to overnight, especially if you're into water sports.

La Paz

La Paz may be the capital of Baja Sur and home to about 200,000 residents, but it feels like a small town in a time warp. It's the most traditional Mexican city in Baja Sur, the antithesis of the gringolandia developments to the south. Granted, there are plenty of foreigners in La Paz, particularly during snowbird season. But in the slowest part of the off-season, during the oppressive late-summer heat, you can easily see how La Paz aptly translates as "the peace," and its residents can be called paceños (peaceful ones). The city sprawls inland from the curve of its malécon along the Bahía La Paz, which, through some strange feat of geography, angles west toward the sunset.

Travelers use La Paz as both a destination in itself and a stopping-off point en route to Los Cabos. There's always excellent scuba diving and sportfishing in the Sea of Cortez. La Paz is the base for divers and fishermen headed for Cerralvo, La Partida, and the Espíritu Santo islands, where parrot fish, manta rays, neons, and angels blur the clear waters by the shore, and marlin, dorado, and yellowtail leap from the sea. Cruise ships are more and more often spotted sailing toward the bay as La Paz emerges as an attractive port.