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The beautiful Los Cabos area of Mexico has only become a famous tourist destination in the last fifty years or so. The first outsiders to stumble upon the area’s pristine beauty were Spanish missionaries in the 17th century and the town they settled, San Jose del Cabo, was the only settlement for centuries. It’s said that airborne World War II pilots spotted the confluence of the cool Pacific Ocean and the warm Sea of Cortez in a large swirling patter off Land’s End, and posited that these were good fishing grounds. Indeed, they were, and the Los Cabos boom began. In the 1960s, several luxury big game fishing lodges were built, leading the way, and today the entire region-from San Jose del Cabo to the tip of Land’s End at Cabo San Luca-has been developed and promoted by the Mexican government as the tourist paradise of Los Cabos. What was once desert has now been replaced by dozens of manicured luxury resorts, champion golf courses, spas, hotels and restaurants.
Cabo San Lucas is the hub for most tourist activity in the region. Sportfishing is still huge and the largest fleets are found here. The IGY Marina offers visiting yachtsmen first class amenities, billing itself as a “destination marina,” with 380 slips, room for vessels up to 200-feet, charter offerings, and provisioning services, as well as repairs and fuel.
Cabo San Lucas is also home to some of the regions great golf courses. The Tom Weiskopf designed eighteen-hole Desert Course at Cabo del Sol is one of six championship golf courses to open in the area. There’s also a Jack Nicklaus designed course of twenty-seven holes at the One & Only Palmilla resort. If it’s nightlife you’re after, Cabo has plenty to offer. In Cabo San Lucas, people party like they’re in Vegas and the town has a reputation for bar-hopping hedonism.
In San Jose del Cabo, the pace of life is slower, but you’ll still find plenty to do, there is enough fine dining to keep you busy for weeks. The town’s center here is more authentically Mexican-feeling. Adobe buildings line the dusty, quiet streets, offering a more low-key get away for those who crave it.
Beyond sportfishing, golf, and nightlife, there are plenty of other things to do in Cabo. Come to watch the gray whales mate in winter. Visit the stone Iglesia de San Lucas, established in 1730, and the San Jose Museum to learn about the region’s indiginous people. Come for the kayaking, scuba diving, surfing, swimming and sunbathing on miles of gorgeous beaches. The biggest attraction of the Cabo area remains the area itself.
