La Paz, Santa Rosalia, Loreto Questions

[TxnAquarian]

I just booked a 10-day cruise out of Los Angeles on the Crystal Harmony. Besides the usual suspects, such as Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta and Mazatlan, this cruise is scheduled to call at La Paz, Santa Rosalia and Loreto on the Sea of Cortez. Can anyone give me some information on these ports. I am not familiar with them and am wondering what to expect. I can imagine there is not too much there, but I would love some info. Thanks in advance!!

 

 

Michael

[kroozroo]

I returned from a 10 day Sea of Cortez trip on HALs Ryndam a few weeks ago that included the ports of Loreto and La Paz. Loreto was one of my favorite ports. If you want to spend a "lazy day" this is the place to do it. The town is small, not touristy, and much more laid back than Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan or Cabo San Lucas.

 

The main part of town is an easy walk from the tender port and is centered around a plaza and Mission church. There is a nice cobblestone walkway with trees shaped into arches over it with the church and shops surrounding it. There are fewer touristy stuff type shops and several nice shops with some unique and good quality things. There are also restaurants around the plaza with outdoor seating. We were there on a Saturday and there was live music in the plaza. We just spent the day walking around, shopping, and then got an outdoor table at one of the restaurants and ate and drank listened to Mexican music and people watched. Everyone we encountered was very friendly.

 

If a lazy day is not what you have in mind, there were kayaking and snorkeling excursions available. There was also a walking tour, but I think it would be a waste of money as you could easily do this on your own.

 

La Paz is also not as touristy as PV, Mazatlan or CSL. But, it is much larger than Loreto. It is the capital of Baja California Sur. The cathedral, plaza and malecon were all nice and we encountered many locals who were all friendly. There are many restaurants with outdoor dining and there is a Burger King with a big blow-up Sponge Bob on the top - you can’t miss it! We bought some unique items at an arts and crafts center. We spent about half the day walking, shopping, eating and drinking. A lot of other passengers spent the day at one of the local beaches, but we live at the beach, so we went back to the ship and spent the rest of the day there. There are also quite a few excursions available in La Paz. Our ship had snorkeling, scuba diving and other excursions that visited artisans or other local attractions.

 

Again, these towns were both very different and much quieter than Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas, but you can definitely have a good time in both of them.

[trinidad]

When in Loreto, do not miss an opportunity to go to Isla Coronado. You may be able to take a ships excursion or there are some local tour companies that will take you there. It is one of the most beautiful places I've been, including Tahiti and Hawaii. The sand is clean and white; the water crystal clear. There are a lot of fish to see snorkling and sea lions on the rocks on one side of the Isla. The whales winter there so depending on what time of year you are going you may see them also.

In La Paz, you can walk to the mexican market. It is interesting to say the least. This is not a tourist destination. I don't know as you will want to shop there but it is full of local color.

[Cauvet]

I recently cruised the Sea of Cortez for the second time. Our first cruise did stop in Santa Rosalia. There isn't much there, not touristy at all. We took a side trip to Mulege because I heard from friends here in San Diego that it is beautiful. We were a little disappointed and then learned that there is an area on the beach where the Americans go that is beautiful. We tried to talk our tour guide into taking us there, but they wouldn't. I wouldn't care to go back to Santa Rosalia.

 

Loreto and La Paz are two of my favorite ports in the Mexican Riviera. As the first responder wrote, Loreto is a sleepy little village. We took a tour to San Javier Mission which was quite interesting and still had time to shop and have a beer in the little village. One thing we couldn't understand was that a lot of businesses and hotels which were open a couple of years ago are now closed and boarded up. Such a lovely place.

 

In LaPaz we took a side trip to Todos Santos which is between LaPaz and Cabo. That was a very very interesting town with many artists and galleries. Unfortunately we were there on a Sunday and most were closed. This is where the famous Hotel California from the Eagles song is located. LaPaz seemed much more built up from the first time we were there two years ago. They have redone the entire mallecon and it is quite nice. I remember it was a sleepy little place a couple of years ago but seemed very bustling this time, but still lovely.

 

Glad to hear Crystal is now doing the Sea of Cortez. Used to be only HAL. Makes the Mexican cruise more interesting with the stops in the Sea of Cortez.