Renovations can be tough. The results are well worth it, but the process can be full of frustration. Even if everything on a project goes without a single hiccup, (I’ve yet to hear of that happening!) just living in a construction zone can be really stressful. The kitchen was the last project of this phase of house renovations, and was supposed to be finished at the beginning of August, but as of today we are still working on the last few details.
To celebrate making it to what we thought would be the end of our latest renovation journey, my husband had suggested we get away for a quick weekend. San Diego is an easy drive to a lot of fun places, but living so close to the border has another bonus: really affordable flights to destinations all over Mexico via CBX, the border crossing that makes flying from Tijuana airport a quick ten-minute stroll. It’s not that often we just take off for an adults-only weekend, so I wanted to take advantage and go somewhere new, but it needed to be a short flight and preferably on the water because it’s quite hot this time of year, and we like the beach for relaxing. A friend suggested La Paz, a little town on the Sea of Cortez just a couple hours’ drive from Cabo on Baja. It looked like a slice of paradise with beautiful beaches and a walkable city center to explore.
La Paz did not disappoint: the town has a relaxed feeling about it- sleepy during the hot days but alive during the warm breezy nights when everyone comes out to stroll the Malecón, the promenade along the bay. The promenade is directly next to the water- some areas have a tiny stretch of beach with leafy umbrellas for shade and in other places the water laps at the walkway itself. Sunsets there are spectacular and not to be missed. Across the street are bars, restaurants and museums that get packed on the weekend, but it’s not a touristy party vibe. There are plenty of visitors, as well as locals and families with children.
We stayed in the excellent Hotel Catedral, located just a few blocks from the main road across the street from La Paz’s main cathedral. This hotel is pretty with a modern design, spotlessly clean, and the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. There’s a rooftop pool with dreamy views to the surrounding mountains and it’s a great option for catching the sunset. Breakfast is included in the reasonable price of a night’s stay and it’s no ordinary continental. We were only there for Saturday and Sunday breakfast, but they had fruit, granola, cereal, plus hot dishes including eggs with chorizo, beans, chilaquiles, empanadas, and a pastry bar. On Sunday they set up a grill on the outdoor patio with amazing tacos.
The turquoise waters of the Sea of Cortez are one of the most biodiverse seas on the planet, even today, and conservation efforts seem to have picked up considerably in recent years. There are several small islands off of La Paz, most of which have protected nature preserves and also white sand beaches to visit, and aquamarine coves to swim in. We decided to book a day trip through the hotel. A little yellow school bus picked us up and drove us about 15 minutes away to a small beach where we were provided with our snorkeling equipment and lifejackets. About 25 or so of us boarded a sparkling clean boat and set out for a day on the water. Our first stop was a little rocky outcropping occupied by sea lions where we were invited to jump in and go for a snorkel. I had not snorkeled in quite some time and to be honest the navy-colored water was a little forbidding. But I jumped in anyway and it was so worth it, because under the dark water, we circled the outcropping, peering down at a magical world of coral, sea stars, and beautifully colored fish.
We made quite a few stops that day to visit the place where the sea lions breed and tend to their babies- because the babies were small we could not swim with them but at other times of the year you can. We stopped at some nature preserve areas where we heard a little of the history of the islands, which had fishing and pearl industries for many years, and where descendants of non-native goats still run wild on the hills. The entire time we were on the boat I couldn’t stop staring at the beautiful landscape. The contrast of the rocky red cliffs covered in Saguaro with the wide-open blue sky and the ocean, that turned aquamarine the closer you got to shore, was incredible. Around lunchtime we stopped at a little cove to eat ceviche and sandwiches and snorkel. There were quite a few tour boats there, but I did not want to leave that crystal clear water. It’s the perfect temperature and it is so much fun to swim with those beautiful fish, who come practically right up to your face to look at you, too.
On the way back we took the boat through the Isla Partida, where we were able to jump in for another very quick swim with no one else around, and then slowly head back to our starting point, watching dolphins along the way and stopping to clean up a bag or two of trash we saw floating. This area of Mexico seems very environmentally conscious, with good reason. It’s an absolutely stunning place with perfect water and and such a diversity of marine life. It has suffered from overfishing and there are still problems- this place is home to the last few vaquita, who fall victim to gill nets used to catch the totoaba, and the outlook for them is not good. However, I got the impression in my brief visit that most who live here are concerned with preserving their gorgeous surroundings.
The nicest beaches in La Paz are a short drive out of the town center. Both Balandra and Tecolote were mentioned multiple times by people we met and are about 20-30 minutes away by car. If you don’t rent one, you can easily uber for about $11 each way or take a bus for something like 70 pesos. The bus station is conveniently located on the main road just down the street from the hotel. We went to Balandra first. It’s a totally unspoilt cove with white sand and water that is clear to the bottom and only about shoulder height across most of the bay, so you can easily walk or swim to the famous mushroom rock around the corner from the main entrance to the beach. It was a “crowded” Sunday, and there were quite a few people making their way across the rocks with picnics and also kayaking, but we decided to swim and there was absolutely no one within a hundred yards. The famous mushroom rock of La Paz was there, looking exactly like a mushroom. It took us about half an hour to get out there via the water. The ocean temperature was perfect and I have to admit I couldn’t resist a bit of a skinny dip out where no one could see. After that, we took our uber out to Tecolote beach, which is less than five minutes down the road, and has multiple food & drink options and chair rentals. Sadly for us, we had a plane to catch, but our friends spent the entire day there and said it was an incredible time.
We had so much fun in La Paz! Two days went by way too quickly. I could have easily spent 4 or 5 days there just in the town. I’d have loved to explore the streets next to the hotel a bit more. We went through an area that had quite a few cute shops and galleries but didn’t have time to stop because we wanted to catch the sunset. We ate in some good restaurants but there are definitely many more we missed. I’d like to visit the Museo de Ballena and the anthropological museum. Next time, we’d also rent a car as the hotel has parking and Todos Santos is just an hour and a half and Cabo just a little further. Our uber driver mentioned that it would also be fun to do a 3 day drive from San Diego and make some stops in San Luis Potosi, Loreto, and Santa Rosalia before getting to La Paz, so that’s something we are thinking about for the future. We also want to go back with the kids because it was a very family-friendly place and they would have been able to take part in all the water adventures that we did (I might bring fins for my youngest, because the tour co. had limited small sizes).
Travel Notes:
Flights from San Diego via Volaris (you can book CBX when you buy your ticket)
Accommodations at Hotel Catedral
Day Trip with Punta Baja Tours (booked through Hotel Catedral)