Last month in december, California was starting to get chilly and both of us were so tired of our hectic work schedule during thanksgiving as we both work for the eCommerce giants! So we decided to slice out a custom long weekend and go to a nice warm beach destination. Beach vacations are our favorite :) We really wanted to go to Miami, Keywest but due to the Zika virus threat and super expensive ticket prices and lack of vacation days left we decided to go somewhere close. And Cabo San Lucas Mexico emerged to be our best choice.
San Jose Del Cabo Mexico is just a 3 hr flight from San Jose California.
Planning:
* Bought tickets on Alaska airlines, non stop flight. Got a steal deal with companion fare discount on our Alaska Credit Card.
* Booked Solmar Resort from Groupon Getaways. The resort is near lands end, walking distance to marina and very close to most of the attractions in Cabo San Lucas.
* No car rental since we wanted to avoid the hastle of driving and getting insurance internationally. Most of the attractions were close to our resort.
* Taxi is cheap in mexico and always available to your hotel doorstep.
* Booked a shuttle to/from airport to resort from http://www.bestday.com.mx
Things to note:
* Visa - No visa is needed if you have a valid US visa already stamped on your passport (for Indians)
* Forex Cash - At least 200-300 Mex Pesos
* Forex Card - Credit card with 0 fees on foreign transactions.
* Carry USD in cash about 200-300 USD. As most of the places happily accept USD.
* Ensure you carry some change in your wallet, you would need that for TIPS! where ever you go. We noticed mexico has a lot of tipping culture.
* Lot of time-share guys will try to lure you to attend one of their presentations and offer you discount or free activities. Beware of them as its a waste of time and spoils your vacation time. Although they will offer you all kinds of lucrative offers!
Highlights of the trip:
Day 1:
* Fly from one San Jose to another ;) SJC ===> SJD
* Checked in to Solmar resort.
* Walked to the marina, took a glass bottom boat (pretty hyped!) to Medano beach.
* Had early sunset dinner at "The Office". Really a great location with amazing views and delicious food!
* Strolled around the Medano beach, checked out a few vendors selling amazing handicrafts. Got a nice Tortuga (Turtle) souvenir for a dollar.
* The portion size in mexico is pretty large. We were so stuffed with the food, but our sweet tooth was still craving for desserts. So we found a really nice place called Senor Sweets and had some choc lava cake with strawberry icecream. Umm, It was delicioso!
* On the way back to our hotel, we had some amazing flavored tequila tasting in one of the local shops.
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| On the glass bottom boat |
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| Dinner at "The Office" |
Day 2:
* Breakfast at Villa Del Palmar on the Medano beach.
* Walked on the Medano beach, where I got my hair braided by one of the local vendors on the beach.
* Spotted a few open air beach massage cabanas and added that to our list for the next day :)
* Had lunch at Tabasco Restaurant on the beach. Amazing chicken tacos and shrimp cocktail. Slurp!
* Post lunch, we had our ATV ride planned at the Wild Canyons theme park.
* The ATV ride was one of the wild attractions for 2016 for both of us. It started with full of fun initially and then moved on to an adventure ride!
* By the time we returned, it was already evening. We went to the resort's jacuzzi and had drinks and dinner at the Tejban hotel in the resort which was also hosting a Mexican festival on that night.
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| The Wild Canyons adventure on the ATV! |
Day 3:
* Breakfast at Solomon's landing at the marina. Had their veggie omelette and cafe mocha!
* Did some mandatory hat shopping at the marina. We found really nice hats for both of us for just 20 bucks!
* We did the Snorkeling cruise in the afternoon that included authentic mexican lunch, unlimited drinks and dance at the cruise with Cabo Escape.
* After the cruise, we went back to the Medano beach to get the Massage on the beach experience at one of the cabanas. Will go back again for this !!!
* I wanted to have some non-mexican dinner that night and we stopped by at Wicked Pizza after looking at their yelp reviews. That was the biggest mistake we made :( When in mexico, eat only mexican!
* Unsatisfied from the Pizza place, we strolled around the city and came across some amazing-looking mexican food joints on the way to our hotel. We stopped for desserts at Las Guacamayas, Authentic mexican restaurant and very reasonable prices. I wish we came here for dinner.
Day 4:
* Breakfast at Mamma's Cafe. Must say it was mouth watering breakfast! Mexican chilaquiles & French Toast. Must visit place while in Cabo!
* After breakkie, we took the much hyped Glass bottom boat to the most awaited trip to the Lover's beach. While on Gbb, we saw the Arch (which is locally know as El Arco and is extremely scenic and is a gathering spot for sea lions), the window to the pacific ocean (this is where the sea of cortez meets the pacific ocean) and an amazing snorkeling spot while on the Gbb. I wish we had known that earlier. But, next time! We got down at the lover's beach, strolled around and the other side of the lover's beach was the divorce beach. We did spend some time on both sides of the beaches.
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| At the lover's beach |
PS: Please feel free to read my yelp reviews of all the places we have been to in Cabo - https://www.yelp.com/list/cabo-san-lucas-mexico-cabo-san-lucas-2
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