Todos Santos: a Quiet Respite from Cabo

We enjoyed our trip in June 2007 to the famous surf town and quiet Cabo San Lucas neighbor to the north: Todos Santos. The drive north to Todos is pleasant enough, but definitely keep your eyes on the road for the stray cattle, disabled cars, highway repair and 18 wheeler trucks devouring the road when traveling anywhere in Baja, California. The passenger will enjoy a view of the real Baja, with plenty of huge, treelike cardon cactus.

When you get to Todos, be sure to go up and down the handful of streets on foot to fully appreciate the town. We liked the charm of the pretty brick buildings and abundant artistry in the little town. Getting to the beach is best done with excellent directions as the rambling, dusty roads wander about.

 One day we visited the beach and the panga fishermen were cleaning their fish, much to the delight of the virtually tame pelicans, which waited patiently right by the butcher table for scraps of fish.

Shopping is good in Todos. In fact, I liked it better for variety of products and better pricing than Los Cabos. We saw a number of handcrafted products not normally seen in Baja coming from more remote areas of Mexico.

Todos Santos is an agrarian area where Mexicans, American and Europeans live in a comfortable, friendly way together. Due to having more water in this location, the area is comparatively green with lots of fruit trees.

You should definitely not miss the now restored “Hotel California”.  The food and drinks are fine, not excellent. However, the ambiance is very colorful, charming and goes a long way to capture the romance you’d expect from this legendary little hotel.

Nightlife is virtually non existent. Grab dinner at a reasonable hour. This is a quiet place and great for a few days of relaxation or for the surfing crowd, getting a good night’s sleep to be able to tackle the great waves early the next day.

Two eateries we liked: Miguel’s – great breakfast and coffee with open air dining. And “Shut Up Frank’s” – more than decent hamburger in surf relic style.