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I already tried this thread without any luck but I thought I'd re-try. Anyone every vacationed in Cabo San Lucas? Is it just beach and more beach? We're thinking of going with our four kids (all under 6).
My husband has some insane idea to drive there from Southern California. I don't think it's safe or even possible but he begs to differ. Any comments (besides my husband is a little crazy)?
It's possible, but I'd put it in the perspective of some very long driving days with not much to do for the kids, with lots of rather slow driving on some not very good roads.
I have friends with a house in Loreto, and it takes them two very long days to drive down there from the border. It's slow going, and they've been Baja travelers for over 35 years, so they know the roads, the travel stops, the "better" places to stop overnight at beaches/towns with a large American local vacation/retirement community.
It's not an easy drive at best, and they do it with a self-contained camper on a 1 ton 4x4 diesel pick-up ... so they can stop and eat, camp, etc., at their convenience along the way. They tell me that you cannot safely drive this route after dark due to the traffic and drivers down there. Loreto is only about 1/2 way to Cabo, and they usually make a tour down that way for a New Year's fishing derby ... which takes them about a week and a half, round-trip, with just a few days in Cabo.
They've invited me to join them for fishing at San Lucas for the past several years, and I still can't justify the time/expense of driving there from San Diego when I can catch a charter party boat out of San Diego in an afternoon and be fishing 100 miles South the next morning .... yellowtail, dorado, yellowfin, bluefin, albie's ... the only fish I can't go for are the billfish they have running in Baja at the time.
Unless you're really into some serious adventure with the family and have a vehicle with enough room for all the supplies, play spaces, and luggage you'd need for an extended driving trip to Cabo, I wouldn't do it with 4 youngsters in a car. It's a long haul down there and back, unless you plan on taking a month to do it and being very leisurely about each day's traveling goal.
I already tried this thread without any luck but I thought I'd re-try. Anyone every vacationed in Cabo San Lucas? Is it just beach and more beach? We're thinking of going with our four kids (all under 6).
My husband has some insane idea to drive there from Southern California. I don't think it's safe or even possible but he begs to differ. Any comments (besides my husband is a little crazy)?
He's not crazy at all. We drive all the way from the Bay Area to Guadalajara, Jalisco every december. Takes us about 2 1/2 days. Its pretty fun, gives you a chance to a ot of Mexico. Since you have little kids it would be in your best interest to stop every 3-5 hours for 30 minutes to stretch/eat.
The drive from San Diego to Cabo is 3 VERY LONG DAYS! Just check out how long it takes those that compete in the Baja race in dune buggies. YIKES!!! If your only going to be there a short time it would be just as cheap to fly if you can get a good airfare. Flying into Cabo is a BREEZE! We vacation there often and you will see TONS of license plates from Canada but they come down for months at a time so the drive is worth it for them to have a car. With kids I don't know if I'd do the drive as there is NOTHING much between S. Cal and the tip of Baja.
Now once your there it is totally different. My kids LOVE Cabo as do I . I'm very comfortable running around Cabo by myself or w/ my girls. We have rented a car and driven around and don't have a problem w/ driving there as you will see SOOOO MANY tourists or 1/2 year residents do drive there.
I'm not sure how much you know about the beaches in Cabo but you can NOT GET IN THE WATER on the Pacific side. As of September there had already been 7 people missing and presumed drowned on the Pacific side. The rip currents and undertows are REALLY BAD! The hotels on the Pacific side even have their guests sign waivers that if they are caught even wading in the water/surf they will be kicked out (at least this is what we have been told by those that stay on that side). You only go out a few feet and the shelf drops off DRAMATICALLY several hundred feet. On the Sea of Cortez side the water is much kinder but it still has a bad under current. Just sit on the beach people watching as people get sucked out and then thrown back in. Some lose their sunglass, bottoms/tops come off or get moved around, etc. Talk about "body surfing". You have to get out just far enough before the waves "break" to avoid the really bad currents. The kids play around in it and they know and so they are careful. One time while out on a fishing charter boat the kids got to snorkel. We stopped at one of the really nice beaches and the kids got in the water. They ended up swimming to shore but they could not get back. The waves would catch them and throw them back to the beach. Our youngest ones were not big enough to get thru it so some adults on the beach swam them out just past where they could get past the bad waves coming in. After that they were fine. We were about to go in for them but these guys on the beach saw them crying and helped them. So the beaches are basically for walking in the surf, laying out on, listening to the waves crash and watching the water. Just stay at a place that has a really good pool .
There are some AWESOME restaurants in Cabo that I highly recommend.
La Palapa - mexican seafood
La Dolce - Italian (some of the BEST Italian you can find anywhere)
Romeo & Juliets - again another VERY GOOD Italian place
Zippers - on the beach in San Jose - good seafood, ribs and hamburgers
Cabo Wabo - Sammy Hagar's club w/ a good restaurant, I like the Sammy's Tequila Shrimp
Pancho's - has some VERY HOT Shrimp Diablo
Mi Casa - good authentic mexican food
Lenny's - a Cabo Institution
I could eat my way thru Cabo and be perfectly happy
I would NEVER put that crappy Mexican fuel in my car!
Well, one would not drive a high performance vehicle down there in the first place. If I were there for an extended period of time and bought a vehicle it would be a "beater" or at least a decent running older small SUV. Then it would not need the high octace gas that high performance cars require. The cars there do just fine on the gas they have. TONS of Americans live in Mexico and use their gas just fine.
I drove from Cabo to San Diego. It's quite a trip with about a dozen army checkpoints. The drive is beautiful but locals say not to do it at night because animals cross the road. I would make sure someone in the cars speaks spanish. I don't have any kids but I don't think driving down with them would be a great idea.
I never saw an "army checkpoint" the entire time I was in Mexico (god I hope I'm not jinxing myself for next time?)...
must be a Baja thing..
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. I'm very comfortable running around Cabo by myself or w/ my girls. We have rented a car and driven around and don't have a problem w/ driving there as you will see SOOOO MANY tourists or 1/2 year residents do drive there. 
If I were there for an extended period of time and bought a vehicle it would be a "beater" or at least a decent running older small SUV. Then it would not need the high octace gas that high performance cars require. The cars there do just fine on the gas they have. TONS of Americans live in Mexico and use their gas just fine.
