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Los Cabos may not have a whole lot of homegrown wares, but the stores are filled with beautiful and unusual items from all over mainland Mexico. You can find hand-painted blue Talavera tiles from Puebla; blue-and-yellow pottery from Guanajuato; black pottery from San Bartolo Coyotepec (near Oaxaca); hammocks from the Yucatán; embroidered clothing from Oaxaca, Chiapas, and the Yucatán; silver jewelry from Taxco; fire opals from Queretaro; and the fine beaded crafts of the Huichol tribe from Nayarit and Jalisco.
Los Cabos manufactures good times under plenty of sunshine but very few actual products. One exception is glassware from Fábrica de Vidrio Soplado (Blown-Glass Factory). In addition, a burgeoning arts scene has national and international artists opening galleries and, in fact, a large number of galleries now abound throughout Los Cabos, with many in San José del Cabo's rapidly evolving city center and more dotted throughout Todos Santos's historic downtown. Dozens of shops will custom-design gold and silver jewelry for you, fashioning pieces in one to two days. Liquor shops sell a locally produced liqueur called damiana, which is touted as an aphrodisiac. A few shops will even create custom-designed bathing suits for you in a day or so.
No longer hawking only the requisite T-shirts, belt buckles, and trinkets, Cabo's improved shopping scene has reached the high standards of other Mexican resorts. Its once-vacant streets are today lined with dozens of new shops, from open-air bazaars and souvenir shops to luxury malls and designer boutiques.
Brilanti Fine Art is a showcase for the stunning jewelry and design works of famed Taxco silversmith Ana Brilanti, in addition to a number of other contemporary jewelry artists—including Ana’s son and the store’s proprietor, José—whose work shares the same dramatic aesthetic. Be sure to look at the silver tea services and other functional pieces. You'll also find selected stone carvings and bronzes from local artists.
Get your organic fix at the Mercado Orgánico every Saturday 9–3 between November and May. Jewelry, artwork, flowers, soaps, fruit, and vegetables are a few of the goodies you’ll find here. Food stalls serve everything from tacos to pizza, and entertainment is offered for kids. You will surely leave with a bag full of fresh veggies and local art.
Explore works of art by Mexico's top contemporary artists such as Eduardo Mejorada, Javier Guadarrama, Jorge Marín, Luis Filcer, and Trubaik, among others. All of the artists represented here are known nationally and internationally in important collections and museums.
This bookstore stocks La Paz's best selection of English-language works, mainly about Baja and México, as well as laminated nature field guides and works of popular fiction. A new owner and location has led to an expanded inventory, a new coffee bar and courtyard seating area, and a more central downtown setting.
This lovely boutique sells designer clothing, silver jewelry, candles, art, books, and more at Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal. If you’ve been admiring the glass-blown hearts dangling from leaf-barren Torote Trees throughout Cabo, this is the place to buy them. The women’s line of beach-elegant clothing includes linens, silks, hats and loose-knitted flowing wraps. Some of their highly recognized designers include Chan Luu, Gillian Julius, Minnie Rose, Tom Ford, Jade Tribe, and Roberto Tirado. The store is open to the public; simply notify security at the main gate.
Antigua California has the nicest selection of Mexican folk art in La Paz, including wooden masks and lacquered boxes from the mainland state of Guerrero. Hats, T-shirts, and other souvenir apparel are also sold.
This small boutique at Casa Natalia has jewelry, handbags, and art made from recycled metals. Artwalk also has a good selection of brass jewelry from Mexico City.
Bazar Casa Ramirez sells high-quality Talavera pottery and other ceramics, paintings by local artists, jewelry from Taxco, wooden carvings, and papier-mâché figurines. Everything here is made in Mexico. Be sure to check out the displays upstairs.
Sculptor Benito Ortega’s studio and gallery showcases evocative, often sea-inspired works in wood, bronze, stone, and other materials.
The area's best organic grocery store, California Ranch Market, offers a good selection of imported wines, cheeses, and other gourmet delicacies, as well as American food brands. Freshly squeezed juices and handmade paninis are also available at their second location, in the Corridor-based shopping center The Shoppes at Palmilla.
Casa Dahlia Fine Art Gallery features contemporary artists from Mexico and abroad, and invites visitors to linger in its beautifully renovated historic building.
More than just an art gallery, Casa Paulina inspires decorating ideas with items for the home. Candles, lamps, chairs, throws, and enormous clay pots are a few of the treasures you might find.
Curios Carmela displays an almost overwhelming array of Mexican textiles, pottery, glassware, hammocks, clothing, and souvenirs, but with a bit of searching you'll find some great bargains.
Certified master jewelers are on staff at Diamonds International. This store sells impressive diamonds, designer jewelry, and luxury timepieces.
Dos Lunas is full of trendy, colorful sportswear and straw hats, as well as a large selection of handcrafted accessories, bags, and gifts.
Calling itself "the cutest shop in town," El Amario offers a selection of Mexican folk art, ceramic pottery, candles, clay figurines, and papier-mâché—plus fresh coffee out on the patio.
El Tecolote Bookstore is the best bookstore in the Los Cabos region. Stop here for Latin American literature, poetry, children's books, current fiction and nonfiction, and books on Baja.
Fábrica de Vidrio Soplado. A beautiful glass mosaic over the entrance to Fábrica de Vidrio Soplado (Blown-Glass Factory) welcomes Los Cabos' most famous artisans every day. Founded in 1988 by engineer Sebastian Romo, the factory uses a glassmaking process close to the one first developed in western Asia 4,000 years ago, later refined into glassblowing during the Roman empire. At the factory, 35 artisans produce more than 450 pieces a day from hundreds of pounds of locally recycled glass. Visitors watch while crushed recycled glass is liquefied in gas-fired ovens and, seconds later, transformed into exquisite figures. Secrets for making the thick glassware's deep blues, greens, and reds—the result of special mixtures of metals and gold—are passed from generation to generation. You are sometimes invited to make your own glassware by blowing through a hollow rod to shape a glob of molten glass at the end. The results are usually not impressive, but it's good fun nonetheless. Lazaro Cardenas s/n Edificio Posada, Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, 23410. Drive toward San José on Av. Cárdenas, which turns into Hwy. 1; the fábrica is 2 blocks northwest of Hwy. 1, near the bypass road to Todos Santos. 624/143–0255. www.glassfactory.com.mx.
Frank Arnold Gallery has two big draws: it's arguably the best gallery space in town, in a modern building by local architect Alfredo Gomez; and it holds Frank Arnold's dramatic, widely acclaimed contemporary paintings that have been compared to de Kooning, Gorky, and Hans Hofmann. The gallery also features bronze sculptures and fine-art prints.
The vibrant contemporary paintings of Arturo Mendoza Elfeo are the main attraction at Galería AR.
Galería Corsica is in a spectacularly dramatic space. The gallery, which has two sister galleries in Puerto Vallarta and one in Mexico City, shows museum-quality fine art with an emphasis on paintings and large, impressive sculpture pieces.
Galería de Ida Victoria has been designed with skylights and domes to show off the international art contained within its three floors, which includes paintings, sculpture, photography, and prints.
Since opening in 1994, Michael and Pat Cope's galería has represented a diverse group of Mexican and American painters and sculptors working in a variety of artistic mediums. The gallery's terrace opens as an Asian restaurant, Michael's at the Gallery, on Friday and Saturday evenings.
The namesake gallery features the work of Jill Logan, a Southern Californian who has been in Todos Santos since 1998. Jill does bold oil-on-canvas paintings and complexly layered multimedia pieces.
The Ibarra family oversees the potters and painters at their namesake shop. Their geometric designs and glazing technique result in gorgeous mirrors, bowls, platters, and cups.
This is the best place to find quality Cuban and international cigars, lighters, and ashtrays as well as tequila and Cuban rum. You can schedule a tequila tasting or try one of their signature mojitos while you shop for cigars.
Near L.A. Cetto, Dona Lupe's boutique sells organic jams, chili marmalades, olive spreads, cheeses, salsas, oils, wines, and other local delicacies. Products can be shipped to the United States.
La Sacristia has a fine selection of Talavera pottery, traditional and contemporary Mexican jewelry, blown glass, and contemporary paintings. The glassware is incredible.
Las Tiendas de Palmilla is across from the posh Palmilla Resort. There is a smattering of shops and galleries, a couple of restaurants, a coffee shop, a nice terrace with a peaceful fountain, and a view of the Palmilla development with the Sea of Cortez beyond.
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