Hiring a taxi in Ensenada for La Bufador and Guadalupe Valley?

[Busybears]

Hi, I'm wondering if anyone here has hired a taxi in Ensenada to go to both La Bufadora and Guadalupe Valley for the day? If so, how much approximately? Any suggestions are appreciated.

[SadieN]

How long are you in port?

 

La Bufadora is about 45 minutes south of port and the valley is 30-45 minutes north of Ensenada.

 

If it hasn't been stormy the Bufadora is kindof disappointing.

[Busybears]

We will be in port from 8 a.m to 5 p.m. I keep hearing about the toll road being closed, so that adds another layer of confusion on my intent to plan. Any suggestions on a nice beach? Perhaps we can do either the La Bufadora or Guadalupe Valley in the morning, and then try some fish taco downtown, and then hang out on a beach in the afternoon when it gets warmer. We'll be there next Thursday (1/23/2014). The forecast seems to indicate we'll have a high 70's day. I haven't been able to find much info on beaches in Ensenada...

[artist47]

Hey Busybears,

See my other message to your in your post about going to the beaches....in all I recommend taxis in ALL mexican ports, but especially Ensenada...it's just easier and it's CHEAP...no need to even switch currency.

I agree with Sadie re: La Bufadora....in my experience, my friends have gotten there and said, "We came 300 miles for a hole????" LOL.....winery tours are nice though! And you get a free bottle of wine to take home...

 

But in my opinion, taxis are the way to go.

:) Have fun!

[Busybears]

Thank you, artist 47!! I printed out the tide chart and hoping to see at least some actions from the tide which shows on Thursday, 1/23/2014, the high tide is at 1:30 pm. Guess with all researches I have done, I think we'll maybe do the downtown in the morning, and then head to the blow hold at noon to see if anything is spetacular :). Wish us luck!!;)

[SadieN]

Thank you, artist 47!! I printed out the tide chart and hoping to see at least some actions from the tide which shows on Thursday, 1/23/2014, the high tide is at 1:30 pm. Guess with all researches I have done, I think we'll maybe do the downtown in the morning, and then head to the blow hold at noon to see if anything is spetacular :). Wish us luck!!;)

 

 

You should be able to catch a tour at the info booth at the north end of Big Head Plaza. It is under the Big Flag.

Also there is a taxi stand in the middle of town, Miramar and Ave Lopez (Ave Primera)

Edited January 18, 2014 by SadieN

[Busybears]

Thanks for the info on the tour and taxi. Maybe that's what we'll do. Princess quoted $35/pp for a 4-hour trip to La Bufadora and stop at Riviera del Pacifico. Not sure if it's a good deal. Sounds high to me.

[Dave_Baja]

They usually charge "around" 15 dollars per-person for me i think it's better becuase you get ther quicker, and you can say how much time you want to spend there

 

I recommend using the taxi cabs that will get you inside the port of call, right next to the Cruise .. I know a company taxi company that you don't pay them until you are right next to the cruise (dont know if i can say the name becuase of forum rules)

 

It's also good to look for a taxi driver that speaks a ok English,

 

it's also a good deal becuase if you change your mind you can say to the taxi drivers

let's change plans. ( but you have to deal if thay can keep the same price or you pay a bit) I have done that many times ..when i bring friends a long ..

Edited January 20, 2014 by Dave_Baja

[kornuttle]

Okay, lots of information here and I want to make sure I have it all correct! I am very familiar with the bus tours that go to the wineries and also to La Bufadora for around $15 and if you choose to go on the winery tour that usually includes the tasting and maybe even a bottle of wine from La Cetto?? I would also like to hit La Bufadora. Maybe some don't like it much but I love the water crashing against the cliffs and shopping the market for goods...like to get a knock off handbag (nice quality) and some silver/turquoise jewelery. If we go with a taxi instead of the bus tours will we miss out on the wine package or be charged separately for the tastings? Has anyone done both tours in a day or had a taxi drive them to each place while in port? If we can only do one tour we will go with the winery tour this time for sure, however if this is the case does anyone know where I can find my little novelty treasures downtown? Sorry about all the questions but I'm going to have 4 other women with me, so a little prep goes a long way! Thanks!!

[Dave_Baja]

I have done the 2 of them snd yes you can get all with a private taxi,actually it would be the best choice for what you want, yes you can do all that

[kornuttle]

Do you remember or have any idea of the costs that I can expect if we go the taxi route? Taxi round trip and how much the winery tour would cost separate from the bus tour? Thanks!

[Dave_Baja]

It depends what winnery but like cetto will cost around 2.50 for a wine tour with your basic wine tasting you can buy the blottles there , but you can upgrado your tour for about (I forgot exacly) 5 dollar for a little "Better you might say " wine ( sorry i really hate wines but suuuuuuuuuuper Love the natural grape juice is just to die for ...)

 

Wel remember the bufadora and the wine country are far from each other ..

well around 120 dollars it depends on a lot of things

 

The time you get the taxi, the amount of people . what type of taxi,

etc etc.

 

I suggest you have all of it ready for when you come and don't waste time looking for the tranports and etc ..

that will kill valuable fun time ... and you will probably want to eat at valle de Guadalupe and shop and shop at the blowhole

 

 

not all taxis have the same permmit ,( some can enter the cruise area) of if the taxi driver has good english or you can hire a guide to come with you ) of if the drivers knows really well the tourist areas ( not all of them know that and I really know that for a fact it can make it a better experience and more enriching)

Edited January 24, 2014 by Dave_Baja

[Dave_Baja]

Oops i responded to the questions but insted of edited my last answer.. and added more stuff insted of pushing "reply" to post

[Busybears]

Thanks for all the info but we boarded our ship on 1/20/14 so missed the great info on taxi . What we ended up doing that day was to pay $2.00 and hopped on the shuttle waiting at the pier to go downtown. The person on the shuttle informed us that they also offer tours to La Bufadora for $15/pp. They run the tour every 30 min or so until around noon. The $15 includes transportation, 2-hour viewing and shopping time, bathroom break (otherwise it's 50 cents public bathroom) and a free margarita at a restaurant called something "Banana". It also has the option to include one hour shopping time at downtown and bring us back to the pier. It sounded great and that was what we did. We were very happy with the tour :). Perhaps we will explore Ensenada with taxi next time.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Edited January 25, 2014 by Busybears

[tdcjerry]

Any help here would help, we will be in Ensenada in mid Apr. on the last leg of our 15 day Hawaii cruise and want to take our own tour of the Guadalupe valley wineries in a taxi, any guesses on the cost of a taxi for about 4 hours??

[Dave_Baja]

There is many diferent winneries,

 

The cost of the taxi will depend to how many people will go.

 

Diferent winneries have diferent times for their tours, so if you take a taxi and get there at 12 pm and the tour it's until 2:00 pm that will be a little extra time

 

It can be around 70 dollars, but depends on many factors

 

Yes i done them several times with diferent types of transports

 

Remember not only the winnerys are cool there are some incredible resturants

and good museoums , reservations etc etc etc on that area.

[tdcjerry]

We only plan on going to 2 wineries, Encuentro Guadalupe and Lechuza Vineyards, with plans to stop at a trendy restaurant near Lechuza.

[TxDarlin]

We only plan on going to 2 wineries, Encuentro Guadalupe and Lechuza Vineyards, with plans to stop at a trendy restaurant near Lechuza.

 

I'd like to do something similar to this in Ensenada... how did your day turn out? What type of transportation did you use and for how much? Did the timing of these winery tastings work out for your time frame? And finally, what restaurant did you choose?

 

Sorry for all of the questions, but I thought I'd learn from your experience.

 

Thanks so much

[SDClark5]

What day of the week are you in port? Most of the wineries are open Fri. - Sun. However you can contact them directly and most will open on other days. I would suggest Garza, tres Mujeres, and Vena Cava which are clustered relatively closely. Then have lunch at Corazon de Tierra or the much more casual Troika both of which are located adjacent to Vena Cava. A blog with Valle de Guadalupe news and info. http://thevalledeguadalupe.blogspot.com

[Jotravelnut21]

What day of the week are you in port? Most of the wineries are open Fri. - Sun. However you can contact them directly and most will open on other days. I would suggest Garza, tres Mujeres, and Vena Cava which are clustered relatively closely. Then have lunch at Corazon de Tierra or the much more casual Troika both of which are located adjacent to Vena Cava. A blog with Valle de Guadalupe news and info. http://thevalledeguadalupe.blogspot.com

 

Thanks for the great info. Will check it out.

 

Jo :)

[SDClark5]

Dave Miller's blog offers cruise passengers some Ensenada advice. http://davemillersmexico.wordpress.com/2014/05/19/cruising-ensenada-making-the-most-of-your-shore-time/

 

I have been to the Valle many times and would be more than happy to answer your questions.

[Jotravelnut21]

Dave Miller's blog offers cruise passengers some Ensenada advice. http://davemillersmexico.wordpress.com/2014/05/19/cruising-ensenada-making-the-most-of-your-shore-time/

 

I have been to the Valle many times and would be more than happy to answer your questions.

 

Wow! Just read the link for Dave's blog that you provided.....

Brilliant! It's the first thing that has excited me about Ensenada!

 

I don't know how old the blog is but hopefully it's fairly current.

We would love to do this trip, breakfast, winery, taco lunch maybe with another couple by taxi.

 

Do you know if there's a charge at the winery for tours/tasting?

Is it easy enough to pick up a taxi that would be willing to take us?

 

Last year when in Capri we got a taxi driver for a half day tour of the Island. He quoted us a very high figure but being forewarned we bargained and he dropped below half what he had originally asked!....Is that the same for Ensenada?

Thanks for you help.

 

Jo :)

[SDClark5]

The Dave Miller blog post is only a couple weeks old.

 

I'm not sure what a cab will cost, but i would make sure the driver knows the Valle de Guadalupe well. The wineries can be hard to find.

 

I think I would adjust the Dave Miller plan a bit. Perhaps hit the fish market in the morning and get to the Valle about 11:00 AM. Hit a couple wineries (I suggest Garza, Sol y Barra, Tres Mujeres, Vena Cava, or Mogor Badan. Then have lunch at Troika or Almanzara.

 

You might want to contact Sitara Monica Perez. She's an American winemaker who lives in the valle and does tours. You can contact her here. http://valleygirlbajawine.com/contact/

[TxDarlin]

The Dave Miller blog post is only a couple weeks old.

 

I'm not sure what a cab will cost, but i would make sure the driver knows the Valle de Guadalupe well. The wineries can be hard to find.

 

I think I would adjust the Dave Miller plan a bit. Perhaps hit the fish market in the morning and get to the Valle about 11:00 AM. Hit a couple wineries (I suggest Garza, Sol y Barra, Tres Mujeres, Vena Cava, or Mogor Badan. Then have lunch at Troika or Almanzara.

 

You might want to contact Sitara Monica Perez. She's an American winemaker who lives in the valle and does tours. You can contact her here. http://valleygirlbajawine.com/contact/

Thanks for the excellent information. We'll be traveling with Jotravelnut21 and should be able to come up with a plan based on your suggestions and advise. Should be great fun.