Cerritos Beach was high on our list of Baja destinations, thanks to the many friends who had visited and fallen in love with the area. We can see why they loved it…because we loved it too!

About Cerritos Beach

Cerritos Beach (Los Cerritos) is 30 miles north of Cabo San Lucas and 10 miles south of Todos Santos. Located in the little farming town of El Pescadero, it has a charming mix of farmland, little restaurants and shops.

Cerritos Beach is very rustic and small but is rapidly growing. In most parts water is trucked in, solar power is heavily relied on, and dirt roads are the norm. However, people have started bringing in power lines to more and more areas and some are even doing underground electricity.

Where we stayed

We stayed at the beach boonndocking lot, which is a large lot that they allow RVs to dry camp in, not far from the water. It was a good spot for our big rig. (42ft.) They charge 200 pesos/night for RVs. We enjoyed being steps from the beach and camping here with friends. Our kids played soccer in the lot and it’s the closest parking option to the water. It is a sandy parking lot and people park there during the day to access the beach. Certain times of the year the sand is deep and soft in some areas, but most of the time there are plenty of spots with compacted sand to park RVs on. Sometimes its very crowded and other times it’s very open. 2024 UPDATE: A beach club has opened in between the lot and the beach, giving it a different feel. More restaurants are working on opening in front of the lot as well. There is often music and a generator noise coming from the club, so it might not be a good choice for those who want to hear the waves and have a peaceful stay!

For those wanting to stay on the beach side but not wanting to boondock, there are a few small RV parks in Cerritos Beach that provide full hookups. Casa Caravan, Cerritos Boutique RV, (which doesn’t accept kids under the age of 12) and Camp Canada. Small rigs that have solar could check for availability at the quaint and rustic Clay Cactus Campground. If you want to stay across the highway a little further from the beach and have more room to spread out closer to the mountains, our friends run a campground called Rancho Escondido RV with water and sewer you could check out. There are a handful of smaller camps that have some hookups that are in the process of opening and putting up public listings so be sure and check iOverlander for all current options.

The Beach

Cerritos Beach is one of the only swimmable beaches in the area and is the best surfing beach in Baja. The water is a comfortable temperature year round, (although some prefer wetsuits in the winter months) making it perfect for lots of water activities. You can rent surfboards and boogie boards, as well as take surfing lessons from one of the many surf shops at the beach. Beach massages are available from the massage therapists who are set up on the sand as well! There are beach chairs and umbrellas for rent in the main area, and thanks to a few pop up cocktail stands, you can easily grab a drink if inclined.

What to do

The town of Todos Santos, a more upscale and established area, is just a 20 minute drive away, so we enjoyed exploring the city, visiting the Hotel California, and browsing at the many cute shops there. There are many highly rated restaurants in Todos Santos, but we didn’t get to eat at them this time. Check out our Todos Santos reel HERE.

We got see a baby leatherback turtle release, which was incredible! Check that out HERE. There are turtle releases EVERY DAY Dec 10- Feb 28 at sunset and occasionally in March at sunset. You can get more info HERE.

The local Instagram page for Visit Cerritos Beach is always posting special events in their stories, so give them a follow to stay in the loop of what’s going on! They also have an Instagram highlight of “where to stay” in case you have friends or family members coming in to visit who aren’t RVers. You can find links to some nice lodging options there.

There are several other beaches close by that have a completely different feel and are unique if you want to venture to another beach. San Pedrito is another popular surfing beach, but it is more for skilled surfers as opposed to newbies. Cerritos is the best place to learn. Playa Las Palmas is another beach that is really special. You take path lined with wild, gorgeous palm trees that ends at the beach. Wild horses live here and are often hanging around! They aren’t friendly and shouldn’t be approached or fed. They are really cool to watch from a distance. The water at this beach always seems to be a bit warmer and we love playing in the waves here.

Where to eat

Fun places to eat at Cerritos Beach include Shakas, Baracuda Cantina, Don Nacho and Pizzeria el Portrero. They all have a super cool, laid back beach bar vibe. Cerritos Beach Inn on the south side, right on the water, has amazing margaritas that are 2 for 1 from 4-6 daily and on Thursdays has food specials as well.

Shakas also has a 4-6 happy hour with drink specials and often has live music and has multiple TVs for sports viewing.

Baracuda is actually a taco truck with a bar, bathrooms and dining area. All are outdoors and underneath a huge palapa.

Big Fun Beach Club right on the sand offers draft Pacifico deals starting as low as 10 pesos/beer from 12-1pm! Each hour the price goes up 10 pesos.

Same Same But Different Cafe and Baja Beans are both great little spots for coffee, wifi, and breakfast. Restaurants on the beach side of the highway are more expensive than the ones in Pescadero, so if you’re looking for a more local experience that is lower cost and more rustic, drive into town and try one of the restaurants there! Carnitas Miguel and Pollos y Costillas are two to check out!

Cell signal and Wifi

Cell signal is strong with Telcel, and many of the previously mentioned restaurants have decent wifi (under 10mbps). ATT and other providers defaulted to the throttled Telcel signal, which was ok for calls and texts but not much else. Once we had Starlink on our second trip down, it worked perfectly. We also switched cell phone carriers to T-Mobile and got great service in Baja.

Other necessities

There are several grocery stores and many convenience stores in town, although the product offerings are small. The biggest and best place for groceries is Salgado's on the main street in El Pescadero. All of the fancy high end conveniences of Cabo are less than 45 miles away if anything major is needed (Home Depot, Costco, Walmart etc.). 2024 update: A new grocery store opened on the beach side called Mercado del Sol, and it is very well stocked! If you are a boujee shopper and enjoy more specialty items, check out Agricole. It’s kind of like the Whole Foods of the area. It isn’t cheap, but you can find organic and gluten free options here as well as a large wine selection. I really like their salsa, which is reasonably priced!

Right across the street from Salgado’s in town is a huge water supply store where you can refill 5 gallon jugs, 60 gallon water bladders, or your entire RV’s water tank (I recommend you drive there in your smaller vehicle first to make sure you can navigate the smaller streets.)

Propane refills are available nearby in Todos Santos at Baja Gas and Oil (there are locations in the Cabo area as well if you are down there).

If you are boondocking like we did and need your tanks dumped, there is a honey truck that comes around Cerritos Beach Club every so often. You can text him on WhatsApp at +52 612 139 2218 and he came out the next day (although he was about two hours late, so be flexible!) His name is Christian!

My favorite laundromat is Titi Lavandaria. You drop off your laundry and they usually tell you it will be ready in a day or two. I’ve never lost any items at Titi, which is rare for Mexico!

If you need a vet for your pet, Marisa Metaca is in Pescadero and can be reached at +52 612 220 5982

Emergency and Medical Services

Dial 911 in case of an emergency. You should know Spanish or have a translator with you. The closest hospitals are in Cabo and La Paz, and there are lots of them in these cities. You can also find any type of specialist you may need in both locations. The cost of healthcare in Mexico is very affordable. Sharp International Patient Services will help you get back to the U.S. in an emergency. It doesn’t matter whether or not you are a Sharp Patient. The 24-hour hotline is 888-265-1513.

St. Jude is a clinic in Todos Santos that we have used before and received excellent care there.

We use Smile Up for dentistry needs in Todos Santos. They are very affordable and bring in na children’s specialist about once a month. You can make an appointment by contacting them on Facebook.

Our future in Cerritos Beach

A lot of growth is happening in Cerritos Beach right now, and property prices are going up, up up as it’s being viewed as the new up and coming hot spot in Baja. We certainly can see why, as we fell in love with it too. People are buying up lots, opening up shops and really developing the area. 

We actually decided to jump on the bandwagon and felt like we couldn’t leave without making a little piece of this paradise ours, so we purchased a lot with our good friends, the Smiths! We bought a half acre lot that we will divide and each get 1/4 acre. It’s up on a hill, with incredible views of the beach and surrounding mountains. 

Mexico is a cash society, so we plan to develop the land slowly, with the goal of putting a fence, driveway, road (yes, we have to put inn na road!) some utilities and one day a house that we can use and rent out when we’re not there. It will be done step by step, as we save money to put towards it, and we can’t wait to work on this project with some of our very best friends by our sides! 

Summary

If you ever get the opportunity to visit Cerritos Beach, we can’t recommend it enough! You can drive down in an RV like we did, or fly into either San Jose del Cabo or La Paz. The locals are friendly and welcoming, and it’s a place that many fall in love with. It’s our new winter home, and we hope to see you there!