Day 2 itinerary for Los Cabos: Cabo San Lucas Walking Tour & Medano Beach
If you can resist going to the beach for a few hours, then our proposal is to do a quick tour of downtown Cabo San Lucas to orient yourself and understand what the town has to offer.
After that, you will have a chance to go to the beach, actually the most famous beach in Los Cabos: Medano Beach. The westernmost side of Medano Beach is party central. You will find lots of people, mostly Americans and Canadians, but also quite a few Europeans. There will be comparably few Mexicans, however.
If this party side of the beach is too wild for you, then we still recommend going, but walk to the east. The farther you walk, the fewer people you will encounter. Tomorrow, we will actually go to the eastern side of Medano Beach.
At the end of the day, our recommendation is to take a sunset cruise. There are several options, but our favorite is the sunset cruise on a pirate ship.
Here at Backpack and Snorkel Travel Guides, we typically promote self-guided walking tours.
But we realize that not everybody likes to walk by themselves in a foreign city. So, just in case that you rather go with ab guide: NO PROBLEM! Please see the Viator tours below.
Self-guided walking tour of downtown Cabo San Lucas
Your self-guided walking tour of downtown Cabo San Lucas starts at the Puerto Paraiso Shopping Mall near the IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas. This is a good starting point for your tour, as the mall has a large parking garage, but parking there incurs a fee. If you are lucky, then you can find some free street parking in the area.
Puerto Paraiso Shopping Mall in Cabo San Lucas
Located in the heart of Cabo San Lucas, and right next to the beautiful IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Paraiso Shopping Mall is a very popular, very diverse, and large 3-story 540,000 sqft (50000 m2) shopping mall.
It has everything from luxury restaurants, and designer stores, to souvenir stores and Burger King, a 10-screen movie theater, and a 12-lane bowling alley. Due to its popularity, lots of events take place here, like concerts, art exhibitions, wine tastings, etc.
Spend some time here to browse the stores, or buy some ice cream, or souvenirs.
#Cabo Sign in the IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas
Exit the mall at its southern end towards Marina Cabo San Lucas, and you will come to a beautiful plaza with the red #Cabo sign.
Cabo Sign
Follow the waterfront along to the west (right). Pass the Hard Rock Café, and many more restaurants until you see a restaurant with a lighthouse.
Shortly afterwards, you see the colorful Cabo sign – this was a 2,520 ft (770 m) walk from the #Cabo sign.
Swordfish Statue
Keep walking for 360 ft (110 m) until you come to the Swordfish Statue.
Surfer Monument / Monumento Surfista
Keep walking another 830 ft (250 m) and you come to Surfer Monument / Monumento Surfista. This is another popular photo spot.
Cabo Sign
After another 600 ft (185 m), you will come to another colorful Cabo sign.
Letras kilometro 0 and Amelia Wilkes Ceseña Park (Parque Amelia Wilkes Ceseña)
Now make your way back to the Swordfish Statue. When you get there, turn left and follow the directions from your favorite GPS to Amelia Wilkes Ceseña Park (Parque Amelia Wilkes Ceseña) with the KM 0 (Letras kilometro 0) sign.
The park is named after Amelia Wilkes Ceseña, an educator and community leader in Cabo San Lucas, who made a name for herself helping the locals through the effects of cyclones that hit the area in the 1930s and 1940s.
The KM 0 sign is a popular photo spot which signifies the beginning (or end) of the Carretera Federal 1 (Federal Highway 1), which runs the length of the Baja California Peninsula.
Mi Casa Restaurant
We ate dinner at Mi Casa because of all the positive reviews on TripAdvisor. Finding a parking spot near the restaurant is difficult. We ended up parking in a parking garage about 2 blocks away. To get to the restaurant, you first have to go through a souvenir store. The blue painted exterior of the restaurant reminded me of Frida Kahlo’s house: Museo Frida Kahlo in Coyoacan, Mexico City.
The interior of the restaurant is beautifully painted and decorated and contribute well to the good atmosphere.
Our server spoke good English and, to our surprise, the food and drinks came within a few (!) minutes of placing the order. The food was authentic Mexican, plentiful, and tasted well, but it was a bit on the expensive side. But this is to be expected for such a popular establishment.
There was a mariachi band that went from table to table and asked if they could play a song or two for a tip. They were very good!
Long story short: This is a very nice, but little expensive restaurant. Finding parking can be difficult and driving in this part of town can be a challenge with all the unmarked one-way streets. A GPS is definitely recommended.
#Los Cabos Sign and Lighthouse
About 2,600 ft (800 m) away is a small plaza with the #Los Cabos sign. Across the street is the El Faro Outlet with a lighthouse.
This concludes your short walking tour of downtown Cabo San Lucas.
If you like to do some grocery shopping, there is a Walmart (map) about 430 ft (130 m) away, and a Chedraui (map) is 890 ft (270 m) away.
Medano Beach (Playa El Medano) in Cabo San Lucas
Medano Beach is by far the most popular beach for tourists in Cabo San Lucas. Its western side is known for its lively atmosphere and beautiful scenery, while its eastern side is much more quiet and serene, and a great place to relax on the sand and enjoy the sunshine.
Medano Beach has many access points. Here are two that we have used:
For the western end of Medano Beach: park at the Plaza Puerto Paraiso or try to find a free parking spot in this general area and walk down Callejon Pescadores or Avenida del Pescador to the Medano Beach entrances
For the eastern end of Medano Beach: Park at the visitors parking lot at Riu Palace Cabo San Lucas or on the street before you get into the premises and follow the signs to the beach
There are designated swimming zones on the western side where you can swim in calm waters. Since people sometimes feed the fish, you can do some limited snorkeling there.
For many, the biggest attraction of the western side of Medano Beach is that there are plenty of activities to keep you busy, such as jet skiing, parasailing, and paddleboarding. There are also many restaurants and bars along the beach, serving food and drinks for much for the day.
At night, the western side of Medano Beach comes alive with music and dancing, making it a great place to party.
Whether you're looking for relaxation or adventure, Medano Beach has something for you, either on its eastern or western side.
Parking will likely be difficult to find nearby, so be prepared to walk a couple of blocks.
Western Part of Medano Beach:
Eastern part of Medano beach:
Spend a few hours on this beach today.
Buccaneer Queen - Sunset Cruise on a Pirate Ship
The Buccaneer Queen was built in 1968 and is a 95 ft (29 m) replica of an ancient galleon. It looks so real that it has been used in commercials and movies e.g. in 1995 it made its Hollywood debut in the movie “Cutthroat island”.
The ship embarks multiple times per day on snorkeling, whale watching, sunset, night party and private cruises from the IGY Marina Cabo San Lucas.
The 2h sunset cruise sails by El Arco, and Divorce Beach, and includes a barbeque dinner and a pirate show with swordfights and fire dancers.
In addition to that, you will enjoy beautiful views of Cabo San Lucas by day and night, and listen to nice music. We loved it!
We think the tour is money well spent!
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Author: Rudy at Backpack and Snorkel
Bio: Owner of Backpack and Snorkel Travel Guides. We create in-depth guides to help you plan unforgettable vacations around the world.
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