My first time in Cabo and I need some help!
 

I am going with my mom to Cabo in a week and I need help tying up some last details. Help Please!

-Do I need to get some pesos beforehand?
-What are good places to shop for authentic mexican wares?
-And some good places to eat a relaxing dinner?
-Also how dangerous is Cabo? My mom is kind of freaking out about that.

Thanks for all you fodorites help in the past. It is through this posting that we planned our trip to Africa previously! I really appreciate any help you can give!!! :)
-Marisa

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g...Vacations.html

Good info for you Visa CC taken widely

always best for me to use my www.capitalone.com

no foreign exchange fee Visa and ATM pesos there

for best rate...

on safety overall safe if careful

rare petty theft your biggest risk

www.insuremytrip.com always wise

if you like Lobster/Shrimp Maros is the place...

www.cabo-review.com/Maros_Shrimp_House.htm

Where are you staying?

I ask that first because Cabo is a very spread out area. There's Cabo San Lucas (downtown, Marina, Medano Beach). Then there's a long tourist "corridor" that stretches along the coast with all the resorts. And the town of San Jose del Cabo back nearer the airport.

I felt Cabo was safe enough. I was there for a week alone (female 50's) last year and loved it. I stayed right downtown.

My favorite restaurants for breafkast were: The Office on Medano Beach, and Mama's Royal downtown.

For dinner: Misiones de Kino, Maros Shrimp House, and Capo San Giovanni were all very good.

About money, as long as transportation to your hotel/resort is arranged and paid for you don't need pesos until you are settled in.

You can get them by:
1) using an ATM machine at Santanders (or other) banks with your debit card
2) going to a "cambio" (exchange office) and exchanging USD for peso
3) exchange cash or travelers checks at your own hotel front desk

Marisa, If you want more advice and tips, hop on over to the Trip Advisor, Los Cabos forums. There's a very friendly and active group of people posting there daily. My 1st trip went really smooth because of all their help. Print off "Trappers Restaurant List", it's very good.

Thank you all so much...
Maros is definitely on my list now.

I am staying over in Medano Beach at the Pubelo Bonita Los Cabos Blanco. Is there anywhere that is a must eat there?

I'll head over there to check their info out. Where can I find Trappers Restaurant list.

I am glad everyone thinks it is safe. I'll definitely keep a tight hold on my belongings though!

suze do you have the link to trapper's restaurant list?

I have stayed at PB Blanco with some girlfriends and loved it. Right on the main swimming beach and next door is PB Rose, which you can use also. We also have a timeshare at PB Sunset Beach. We LOVE it and look forward to our stay every other year. You will be able to also go to Sunset Beach and use their ammenities also.

At Blanco is a restaurant called Cilantros - very good food and we usually ordered from them at the pool. We usually ate a late lunch at the pool, then had a lite snack later on.

Down the beach is a place called Tabascos. Great food, better prices than the Office or Mango Deck and it is happy hour all day. Good place to eat with your toes in the sand.

We also like in town: Mi Casa - good food, great atmosphere and margaritas.

Golondrinas- very close to PB Blanco with outdoor dining, lots of choices and can be very expensive. But good for a special night out.

El Farrallon is supposed to be very upscale and excellent. I have not been but others have reported as the best.

Cabo is safe as long as you use your common sense and don't get too wild. Which doesn't sound like your case with your mom :D Plus the PB resorts don't really attract a party crowd.

Just be aware: everyone who wants to help you is actually a timeshare shark, trying to get you to go to a timeshare presentation. Remember: EVERYONE is suspect. Avoid the guys at the airport who say they will get you a cab or they can arrange a ride. PB can help you pre-arrange your airport transport so you don't have to deal with these sharks at the airport.

You will not need pesos ahead of time. Dollars are accepted, but watch for the proper change from the larger $10 & $20 bills. You can use ATM's to get pesos. PB has ATM's and I have also used Santander Bank in town to get pesos.

There are lots of shopping choices. From the beach vendors, to small shops, to larger more upscale stores. Everything from junk to jewels. I would not buy silver at the beach or tent shop. I have gone to Blah, Blah,Blah and been happy with my silver jewelry. Lots of ceramics and price ranges, depending what you can afford. You will also see lots of the native Huichol bead art, which can be a nice gift. San Jose del Cabo also has some nice shopping, if you get that way.

Check out the board at tripadvisor for more info on Los Cabos. And don't worry - you will have a great time!!

Click on my name if you would like to read some of my old Cabo trip reports.

I went to Cabo last year, and it really is very safe. Most of the areas where you are walking for shopping and restaurants are in very busy areas. It's a good idea to take some pesos with you, or you can wait and get some from one of the ATM machines there. Either way, you will be getting the US conversion rate. I've been to Mexico 4 times in the last two years, and I have found it best to try to pay for everything with my Mastercard or Visa. That way, you will get the best conversion rate. While you can use US dollars almost everywhere, you will not get as good of a conversion rate as you would from using your bank card. I just got back from Cancun last month, and I found this to be very true. When I used US cash, I usually got a rate of 10 pesos per dollar, but when I used my bank card, I got a rate around 12.75 to 13 pesos per dollar. When I was in Cabo, I stayed at the PB Pacifica, which is near the PB Sunset. The Pacifica has an awesome spa if you are interested in that kind of thing. There is a van that visits each PB location, so you are free to visit all of the other facilities.

La Ricazon is a local style restaurant over 'behind' Medano beach that's very popular.

Let me see what I can do to find you Trapper's List from over at Trip Advisor...

The "pay for everything with Mastercard or Visa" is often debated because there are many reports of credit card fraud at various restaurants and bars. Not just in Cabo, all around Mexican tourist resort areas.

It's true, you can spend USD directly, but US cash may liekly only get you a 10 to 1 rate as mentioned. But CHANGING your own peso will get you 12.0 to 12.5 at a cambio or hotel. So basically for the convenience of not changing money you're payingn a 20% surcharge every time! That's why people use peso.

OK here ya go! w/ a big ole muchas gracias to Trapper and the regulars at the Cabo Trip Advisor forum who assist in his 'research' :-)

http://www.trapperscabolist.com/

Taking an envelope with a bunch of USD 1's and 5's works well in addition. Because you can use them for tipping, and hang on to your smaller peso notes & larger peso coins (which are a bit hard to come by). Because when you use an ATM or change money typically you get given large notes, which are difficult to break for taxi rides or if you are bartering w/ beach vendors, etc.

You get the best exchange rate at ATMs. One of my favorite restaurants is the Stoplight downtown; Pancho's is also good, and if you want pizza, go to La Dolce!