3 Towns Worth Road-Tripping in the Baja Peninsula of Mexico

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Get ready to add road trip through Baja California, Mexico to your never-ending bucketlist!

Mexico. One of the most popular destinations for American travelers. Also one of the most controversial destinations. And as far as tourists go– the Baja Peninsula of Mexico sees few.

The constant turmoil happening at the border. Gang violence sending murder rates soaring. Over-tourism creating cliche and cheap tourist attractions that cater to the spring break crowd.

In recent years, this has left many Americans steering clear of their southern border.

Which is an awful mistake.

Mexico is home to some of the most stunning coastlines, delicious food, breathtaking sunsets, and cozy Airbnb’s. Stucco and tile paired with the brightly painted walls of homes and shops dot the coastal side of the Baja California peninsula. These small towns between Tijuana and Ensenada are well worth the road trip across the border.

Which I might add was completely hassle-free.

Here’s how to plan your perfect Baja California, Mexico road-trip.

Crossing the Border

Relations between the US and Mexico are strained to say the least. Yet arriving at the border nothing seemed out of the ordinary. No obscene walls, no crowds of people waiting to get through security, they didn’t even as for a passport as we drove on through.

With a quick wave past security, we were all good to hit the open road.

Need a car?

If your road trip is starting in the United States (or in Mexico), I highly recommend starting your search on DiscoverCars.com. They compare rentals for you & you’ll have the best chance at scoring a deal.

Want To Try Vanlife on for Size?

Campervans are the future of road trips. Check out this post on the benefits of vanlife & book a rental with Traveller’s Autobarn for your Baja road trip. They offer cheap campervan rentals complete with a kitchen, bed, and loads of storage.

You will need Mexican auto insurance if you plan on doing any driving on the Baja Peninsula (or anywhere else in Mexico). The cheapest and most customizable plans can be found on

Tijuana, Mexico

This is the city that scares most people away from a Mexican road trip. Border cities have a bad habit of attracting the worst kind of people. Smugglers, sex traffickers, drug cartels, and gangsters frequent land borders all over the world and likely this border is no different. But driving into the town you are confronted with poverty and homelessness instead of violence.

With mass amounts of impoverished unskilled workers, Tijuana streets are filled with people selling whatever they can find. Slums dot the hillside and people make do with the little that they have. The humanitarian crisis became very evident rapidly, but not in the way American politics would have you think.

We didn’t stay in TJ long. We had a more scenic, coastal road trip in mind.

Recently, the Tijuana-Ensenada scenic hwy was completed and if you’re okay with a few tolls along the way it’s a much-preferred route.

The First Beach

Drive time from TJ to Ensenada is only an hour and a half, but you should stop at every single beach along the way.

Most beaches had similar tourist-driven amenities. Coconuts for hydration, Micheladas served in red solo cups–apparently the socially acceptable way Mexicans drink in public, and horses staged and ready for rides along the shore.

We sampled some Mexican candy from the first cart I saw and found that most of the unidentifiable snacks tasted like Tajin. Plums soaked in it, tamarind sprinkled with it, candy rolled in it.

Ensenada

Tacos, more tacos, and horchata.

The main street is tourist central. Shops selling leather shoes, jewelry, Mexican blankets, and tequila (loads of tequila) sent us quickly searching for the taco trucks. A few fish tacos and carne asada tacos later, we jumped into the first tequila tasting offered to us.

Mexico Fact: I found that the tequila and other agave spirits they were serving up had an ABV of 28%-35% alcohol content. The same brands sold in America have an ABV of around 40%. I was unable to find anyone online or in person who can tell me why . For whatever reason, it appears when selling within the country of Mexico the companies dilute their product slightly more.

On the advice of a local (really solid advice) we visited La Comadre taqueria for the best tacos in town. Cheaper and better than any of the places on the main strip we stuffed our faces with Pollo de Mole tacos.

For more foodie tips check out our full Enseneda Itinerary.

The beaches of Ensenada were our next stop. Scenic, quiet, and filled with pelicans. Pure relaxation.

With only two days on the peninsula, we figured that Ensenada would be the furthest south we could comfortably reach. So, we headed back up the scenic highway to the north.

Puerto Neuvo

Lobster Village. What makes this small town more famous for lobster than any of the others? Not particularly sure. But one thing is for sure, even if you aren’t a big lobster fan (me) the $18 USD dinner of three lobster tails, tortilla soup, rice, beans, handmade tortillas, and a margarita is well worth the trip.

In addition to the food, there were some amazing street artists, spectacular sunset views from all the restaurants, and plenty of crickets for eating. If this sounds like your kind of scene, I have a full guide on Puerto Neuvo.

Travel Tip: Unlike us, I recommend locating your accommodation in the daylight before your exhausted and wandering around in the dark. After many calls and wrong turns we finally found our home.

Another tip–Find accommodation away from the city center. You can find some great homes in the area on Airbnb or Vrbo.

There are some amazing homes hidden away in the hills. Our Airbnb was a white stucco mansion filled to the brim with intricate tile design and jungle plants. When we first arrived the power had been turned off and we relaxed on the balcony enjoying the nighttime lights of the city below.

After the picture-perfect relaxing day enjoying the scenic coastal side of Mexico it’s easy to completely disregard the reputation Mexico has gotten over the past few years. The soft repetitive semi-automatic gunfire echoing from Tijuana below was a quick reminder that this country isn’t all lobster dinners and sandy shores. The razor wire wrapped around the homes courtyard walls and chairs propped against the balcony doors were further reminders that even in beach paradise it’s best to keep on guard than be caught off it.

Rosarito

Small coastal town turned party town as it grew in popularity with spring breakers. The rows and rows of beach clubs boasting two-for-one drink specials and music straight from 2001 had me reminiscent of my spring break years. I recommend grabbing some margaritas to go and walking the beach.

Away from the bumping bass and the crowds of people getting their hair corn-rowed on the sand.

The peak of our time in Rosarito was spent exploring Mercado del Mar and marveling at the seemingly endless varieties of tequila and Mezcal. Eating at El Nido, a restaurant that puts you smack dab in the center of the jungle (and fills you with some authentic Mexican food). And finally, a fish market that we stumbled upon while trying to find the best Tamale.

Spoiler: We did find the tasty tamales, but the fish market remained the highlight.

You can also spend time with some of the locals. Local camels that is. Some farmers in the area have started tending camels in response to the growing numbers of tourists. We turned down camel rides but we did get up close and personal to some of the 7-foot tall cuties.

We waited until sunset to start the trek back to the states. Which was probably a mistake. But we just couldn’t pass up the opportunity for one more Mexico sunset.

Back to the USA

We hit traffic at the border and had to wait for an hour and forty-five minutes in traffic. While you wait in the border crossing line TJ locals and migrants wander between the cars selling blankets, churros (I got some, so worth it), ice cream, window washes, and various lighted objects.

Without the border wait, the drive time would have been 7 hours–over the course of two days. A perfect weekend road trip from Los Angeles or even an extension to the popular Highway 101 coastal route.

And with these views, it’s well worth the trip.

Planning your Baja Mexico road trip? Here are some more helpful links.

• A complete guide to visiting the Popotla Fish Market.
• The best eats in Rosarito, Mexico.
• Puerto Neuvo. Why you should try the famous Mexican Lobster.