• Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Live and Let's Fly
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • Flight Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Lounge Reviews
    • Trip Reports
  • About
    • Press
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Award Expert
Home » Mexico » Photo Essay: Downtown San José del Cabo
MexicoPhotos

Photo Essay: Downtown San José del Cabo

Matthew Klint Posted onJanuary 4, 2024January 4, 2024 12 Comments

a flag on a pole in front of a building

My first trip to the southern tip of Baja California was brief but fun. I enjoyed a pleasant evening stroll through the historic colonial streets of San José del Cabo.

San José del Cabo – A Photo Essay

Mission San José del Cabo was established in 1730, about 200 years after Hernan Cortés first explored the area. A bustling city grew around it.

It felt like the entire city wear geared around tourism, with dozens of souvenir shops, bars, massage parlors, and restaurants in the downtown area. The town square included many street vendors as well as a giant flag of Mexico flying in the center.

a street with palm trees and bushes

a street with palm trees and buildings

a flag on a pole

a building with a clock tower

a building with a clock tower

a building with trees and benches

a group of people standing in front of a christmas tree

a large christmas tree in a plaza

a group of people walking in a park

a group of statues of people in a cave

a building with a church and cars parked in front of it

a group of people walking in front of a building

a large square with a flag and people sitting on benches

a large square with a flag and a tree

a church with pews and a chandelier

a church with benches and people walking in the background

a christmas decoration in a church

a large colorful sign outside of a building

a street with cars and flags

a street with colorful flags over it

a table and chairs outside of a building

a street with colorful flags over it

a bar with a boat in it

a restaurant with tables and chairs outside

a street with colorful paper garlands and parked cars

people sitting on a stone pillar in a plaza

a group of people sitting on a stone pillar in a plaza with a christmas tree

One thing I like to do when I travel (as I just did in Sweden) is to check out local supermarkets or in the case of Cabo, hypermarkets. Within a short distance of my hotel was both a Chedraui and a La Comer. I enjoyed browsing both of them.

a parking lot with cars and a motorcycle

a grocery store with shelves of vegetables

a store with shelves of products

a shelf with bottles of juice and drinks

a display of pastries in a store

people standing at a counter in a cafe

a woman standing in a store

a plastic container with food in it

a group of chips on a shelf

a group of bottles of juice on a shelf

a display case with drinks and fruit in it

a building with a sign on the front

a display case of drinks and beverages

people in a grocery store

a store with baskets of food

plastic containers of berries on a shelf

a coffee shop with a checkered floor and a black lamp

I quite liked walking though and browsing the selections and had my stay been longer I would have purchased groceries or ready-made-meals here. The 155 pesos for a whole chicken (about $9) was reasonable and would have been a great dinner.

But I noticed everything was quite expensive – at US levels or higher here. And in fact, this was true most just in these grocery stores but everywhere in town. I suppose that is not a surprise in a highly-touristic place…but nothing was “cheap” here. Even the coffee was Los Angeles prices.

One cultural observation: the grocery store was full of “white” Mexicans (and foreigners like me). I’ve read about this in the past and just found it interesting.

CONCLUSION

I had a nice visit in San Jose del Cabo and will return when the Park Hyatt hotel opens. It’s a fun city. Perhaps a bit too touristy, but the weather is nice and it was a better “mileage run” for me than going to Las Vegas.

Get Daily Updates

Join our mailing list for a daily summary of posts! We never sell your info.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Previous Article How United Airlines Is Exacerbating Its First Class Meal Service Downgrade
Next Article Review: Hyatt Place Los Cabos

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

Related Posts

  • Marrakesh Photo Essay

    Photo Essay: Marrakesh After Dark

    April 16, 2025
  • Copenhagen After Dark Photo Essay

    Photo Essay: Copenhagen After Dark

    February 28, 2025
  • Eaton Fire Photo Essay

    Photo Essay: My Reflection On The California Wildfires

    January 31, 2025

12 Comments

  1. Tony N. Reply
    January 4, 2024 at 5:59 pm

    More pictures than I ever taken! And I visit my condo there 4 times a year. The city square near the church always has music and performances every weekend. It’s very family oriented. Those dollar signs you see on the price sticker is actually Mexican pesos. They denote their pesos with the dollar sign ($). So the $216 you see on the price tag at the store is actually about $12 USD. Be careful, don’t get scammed!

    • Tony N. Reply
      January 4, 2024 at 6:02 pm

      Yes, it is expensive and very touristy. Not your typical Mexican economy. More like a hybrid American-Mexican economy.

  2. Christian Reply
    January 4, 2024 at 7:01 pm

    Baja, California is in Mexico?

    • Matthew Klint Reply
      January 4, 2024 at 7:04 pm

      Correct. California belonged to Mexico before the U.S. stole it. 😉

      • Alert Reply
        January 4, 2024 at 8:12 pm

        @Matthew … I don’t think U.S. “stole” California . Why did Mexico attack the Alamo in Texas ? To “steal” it in return? To take compensation for California ? That sort of thing .happened in the past . If Mexico wants it back , give them Olvera Street .

        • Matthew Klint Reply
          January 4, 2024 at 8:14 pm

          I was being somewhat facetious, hence the wink emoticon.

          • Alert
            January 4, 2024 at 8:55 pm

            @Matthew … Thank you . I have poor vision .

  3. Santastico Reply
    January 4, 2024 at 9:23 pm

    Funny to see you visit local supermarkets. That is one of the first things I do when I visit a different country. I simply love to learn about local products and check trends in food. You learn so much about different cultures just by checking what they eat.

  4. Jerry Reply
    January 5, 2024 at 10:00 am

    I’m surprised to learn Chedraui had US level prices. That’s not the case in most of Mexico. I work for largest retailer in Mexico, and I find Chedraui is usually competitive, if not often cheaper, than our low prices. By nature of geography, Baja is disconnected from the rest of Mexico, so they must not benefit from the robust distribution network in the rest of the country.

  5. dee Reply
    January 5, 2024 at 4:12 pm

    Visited Cabo last month and have noticed it has gotten even more $$$$ than in the past! The tourist tax/the VAT tax the service charges added up to 35%..Crazy.. If you put an extra tip(service charge already 18 % on all bills) of $10 USD with all taxes it came out to be >??$22

    • LAX Reply
      January 8, 2024 at 3:34 pm

      Yup. Was there last month and one cocktail from the poolside bar at our hotel was $18. We were at the same hotel three years ago and it was $10 then.

  6. Nathaniel T Russell Reply
    January 5, 2024 at 4:52 pm

    That grocery store blew my mind! It was like a whole foods and Sax Fifth in one, lol

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Search

Hot Deals for May

Note: Please see my Advertiser Disclosure

Capital One Venture X Business Card
Earn 150,000 Miles Sign Up Bonus
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Earn 100,000 Points
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles!
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Earn 75,000 Miles
Chase Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card
Earn $750 Cash Back
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Earn 120,000 Membership Reward® Points

Recent Posts

  • Turkey Fine Passengers Unbuckle
    Impatient Flyers, Beware: Turkey Will Fine You For Standing Up Too Soon May 28, 2025
  • Korean Air First Class Lounge ICN Review
    Review: Korean Air First Class Lounge Seoul (ICN) May 28, 2025
  • a group of people in blue uniforms
    United Airlines’ Uniforms Get A Facelift—And A Political Filter May 28, 2025
  • Dog Diversion Delta
    Delta Flight Diverts To Care For Sick Dog. Justified? May 28, 2025

Categories

Popular Posts

  • United Airlines Polaris Lounge Chicago Review
    Review: United Polaris Lounge Chicago (ORD) May 1, 2025
  • United Airlines Refresh Polaris Lounge Chicago
    First Look: United Airlines Reopens Renovated Polaris Lounge In Chicago (ORD) April 29, 2025
  • a hand holding a blue card
    Chase Sapphire Preferred 100K Bonus Offer Ending Soon May 2, 2025
  • Aegean Airlines Feast
    A Feast Fit For A King On Aegean Airlines May 23, 2025

Archives

May 2025
M T W T F S S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Apr    

As seen on:

facebook twitter instagram rss
Privacy Policy © Live and Let's Fly All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Live and Let's Fly with appropriate and specific directions to the original content.