Best Things to Do in Cabo San Lucas

The Baja California peninsula’s biggest and baddest theme park, Wild Canyon, is home to a wide array of hair-raising and adrenaline-pumping adventures, ranging from zip-lining and bungee jumping to sling swings and off-road racing. Although it’s easily the top stop in Los Cabos for thrill-seeking teenagers, Wild Canyon does offer slower paced pursuits like camel rides and, most recently, an animal sanctuary. The park is located near Playa El Tule in the Tourist Corridor that connects cape cities Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo. After your tour, grab burgers and drinks at the tropical-themed Lion’s Den restaurant.

Racing fans will be familiar with the legendary Baja 1000, the off-road race that winds down the peninsula from Ensenada to La Paz (or loops back to Ensenada), with everything from motorcycles, buggies, and trucks trying to weather the shock-busting desert conditions. Wide Open Cabo offers visitors a taste of these challenging conditions, with experiences, tours, and races that last from a few hours to three days. A Taste of Cabo is the introductory experience, a three hour adventure that includes up to 45 miles of off-road driving in an authentic $100,000 Baja Challenge race car. The car features a custom made Chromoly chassis, 4-speed manual transmission, 18 inches of suspension shocks and springs, safety harness, and a fresh air supply to combat the desert dust.

The 144′ luxury catamaran Caborey is the premier cruise ship in Los Cabos, best known for its popular margarita and dinner cruises. The premier sunset dinner and show cruise is one of the great local dining experiences, particularly for those who are in town for a short time and want to get a feel for the local landscape, culture and cuisine. Enjoy romantic sunset views of Cabo San Lucas Bay, Médano and Lovers’ Beaches, and the unique rock formations such as El Arco that stretch out towards Land’s End. There are two below-deck areas for dinner, depending upon your ticket preference. There is a buffet on the middle deck, and a sit-down dinner on the lower deck with a choice of entrées. After the sit-down dinner, there is a rousing Las Vegas-style floor show featuring Mexican and Latin American singing and folk dances, headlined by a passionately romantic Argentine style tango.

Puerto Los Cabos opened in 2007 with an irresistible twist: the world’s only composite course from Jack “The Golden Bear” Nicklaus and Greg “The Great White Shark” Norman. Norman designed the nine-hole Mission Course, highlighted by its 213-yard 6th, a par-3 with an elevated tee box that looks down from the equivalent of a 10-story building to a bunker fringed green set against a backdrop of nearly 10 miles of jaw-droppingly beautiful coastline. Nicklaus, meanwhile, designed the challenging nine-hole Ocean Course. The plan had always been for each of these nines to be expanded into its own 18-hole course, a plan which came to partial fruition in 2018 when Nicklaus returned to design his second nine-hole layout. The new addition has been dubbed Nicklaus II, to differentiate it from Nicklaus I, as the original Ocean Course is now known. No dates have been announced as yet for Norman’s second nine, so as of this writing Puerto Los Cabos is operating much like Palmilla, in that visiting golfers can mix and match their favorite 18 from the 27 available holes.

Cuadra San Francisco is one of the Los Cabos area’s hidden gems, offering virtually every equine-related activity imaginable: trail rides over local terrain, romantic rides along secluded beaches, carriage rides for weddings or special events…even polo lessons. The late Francisco Barrera trained under Nuno Oliveira, the Portuguese legend considered by many to be the most outstanding horseman of the 20th century, and his son Valente excels at teaching dressage, and the traditional techniques of Mexican vaqueros. The stables are located in the Tourist Corridor, just off the Cabo Real golf course, and maintain over 60 horses. Pony-sized horses with special saddles are available for kids, who can take riding lessons, as well as studying dresssage, reining, Western pleasure, and other equine arts.

No local tour operator offers more stylish excursions than Cabo Sailing, which over the course of 15 plus years in Cabo San Lucas has assembled an extraordinary collection of boats, including 38′ and 42′ Hunter sailboats perfect for custom snorkeling trips and Champagne aided sunset celebrations, as well as memorable explorations of Land’s End and its distinctive environs. Private tours and shared small group outings are specialties, and Cabo Sailing is renowned locally for its upscale service and amenities, from air-conditioned cabins to first-class food and beverage service. Round-trip transportation service from your resort is an optional upgrade. During whale watching season (mid-December to mid-April), private and shared small-group whale watching tours are available.

Cabo San Lucas was built on big-game sport fishing, and even the most amateur of anglers will want to take their chances with the local population of marlin, sailfish, tuna and dorado. Blue Sky Cabo has become the most popular local charter fishing company, largely because they don’t simply cater to hardcore fishermen. On the contrary, their excursions are as much lifestyle experiences as traditional fishing trips. Yes, the fishing is amazing, but Blue Sky Cabo also offers excellent food and drink service aboard their top-of-the-line fleet, which includes a well-appointed 60′ Bertram. All excursions are exhaustively photographed, and unlike most local activities companies, Blue Sky Cabo sends the best photos to clients without any additional fees. For these reasons, as well as their commitment to inclusivity, Blue Sky Cabo is a popular choice with women and families, and hosts the best bachelorette fishing parties in the region. Snorkel tours and Land’s End trips are also offered.

Playa El Médano is ground zero for the Spring Break madness in March, and remains busy throughout the year. In many ways, it’s the center of social life in Cabo San Lucas. The beach is huge, about two miles long, and filled with restaurants, bars, souvenirs vendors, and water-based activities rentals. Visitors can rent jet skis, kayaks or stand up paddle boards; go flyboarding or parasailing; have a water taxi take them out to Land’s End or Lover’s Beach, or drop them off back at the marina. Or simply relax and soak up the sunshine and muy tranquilo vibes. The water is extremely calm here, and although there aren’t any lifeguards in Cabo San Lucas, areas have been roped off for swimming.

Few local adventure companies can match Cabo Expeditions’ variety of eco-themed activities, which include whale watching and swimming with whale sharks (seasonal), parasailing, snorkeling, kayaking, and day trips to Isla Espíritu Santo off the coast of La Paz. Perhaps the best thing about the company’s collection of land and water-based activities is that they cover a good portion of Baja California Sur, and thus provide visitors with wide-ranging introductions to the area’s incredible biodiversity. The Land’s End snorkel tour is a great introduction to local flora and fauna, both above and below the surface. Adults and kids ages five and up will enjoy the snorkeling at Pelican Rock, where an upwelling effect contributes to the profusion of colorful marine life. Sightseeing stops at the sea lion colony and iconic Arch, meanwhile, offer abundant photo opportunities.

Cabo Pulmo is the heart and soul of the East Cape, accessible via a graded dirt road that connects coastal communities – from eco-bungalows and remote campsites to off-the-grid villages – between La Ribera and Zacatitos. The Cabo Pulmo National Park and its marine sanctuary is the area’s biggest draw, an undersea fantasia of living coral reef with a remarkable concentration of marine life that includes sharks, dolphins, sea lions, eels, leaping mobula rays and endangered sea turtles. For visitors who don’t have time for an East Cape weekend getaway, but don’t want to miss Cabo Pulmo, jeep tours may be arranged through Los Cabos based company High Tide, and day trip diving adventures through Adventures in Baja, Cabo Adventures, and other area dive shops. The park has been protected since 1995, and includes over 27 square miles spanning land and sea. The beach is gorgeous here as well, with beachfront hangouts like Tacos & Beer offering chill vibes and and even chiller refreshments.