Most guides to this town list the same six stops and skip the part that actually shapes your trip. Todos Santos is a Pacific town, not a resort bay. The ocean in front of it is beautiful and mostly too rough to swim. The best meals are down dirt roads. Half of what people come for runs in a season.
This guide covers the best things to do in Todos Santos with all of that built in: what is worth your time, when it is actually available, which beaches you can swim at, and how to plan a day so you are not driving back and forth on Highway 19 three times.
Why Visit Todos Santos?
Todos Santos was founded as a Jesuit mission in 1723 and grew rich on sugarcane in the 1800s, with eight working mills by 1900. When sugar collapsed, the town went quiet for decades.
Artists started arriving in the 1980s, drawn by cheap studio space and the light off the Pacific. Painter Charles Stewart moved here full time in 1986 and is usually credited as the start of the expat art community. Chefs followed in the 2000s. Surfers had been coming since the sixties.
In 2006 the federal tourism department named Todos Santos a Pueblo Mágico, the first town to get the designation. It still has around 7,000 residents, cobblestone streets in the historic center, and a working agricultural valley behind it.
What makes it different from Los Cabos, an hour south, comes down to four things:
- It is a town people actually live in, not a resort strip
- The food scene is far better than the population would suggest
- The Sierra de la Laguna mountains sit directly behind it, so you can go from beach to pine forest in a morning
- Nothing here is built for cruise ship crowds
One honest caveat before you plan anything. Todos Santos is not a swimming town. The beaches closest to the center have powerful shore break and rip currents, and people drown here. There are safe places to get in the water and they are listed further down.
Where Is Todos Santos?
Todos Santos sits on the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, in the municipality of La Paz, roughly 70 kilometers north of Cabo San Lucas on Highway 19. The Tropic of Cancer runs right through this stretch of coast.
The town center is about a kilometer inland, on a rise above a palm-filled huerta, or orchard valley. The Sierra de la Laguna range rises behind it to the east. The Pacific is a five minute drive west.
| From | Approximate drive time |
| Los Cabos International Airport (SJD) | 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes |
| Cabo San Lucas | 1 hour |
| La Paz | 1 hour |
| El Pescadero | 10 minutes |
| Cerritos Beach | 15 minutes |
| Km 82 area, south of El Pescadero | 20 to 25 minutes |
Highway 19 is paved, well maintained, and easy to drive in daylight. The speed bumps in the small towns are severe and often unpainted, so slow down whenever you see houses.
If you want the wider regional picture before you commit to a base, the Southern Baja California Sur travel guide covers the whole corridor from Cabo up to La Paz.
Map Location
The town center sits at roughly 23.45 degrees north, 110.22 degrees west. Search “Todos Santos, B.C.S.” in Google Maps and you will land on the plaza, which is the reference point most local directions use.
Download offline maps before you arrive. Cell coverage is solid along Highway 19 and in town, and it disappears on most of the dirt roads heading west toward the beaches.
Top 18 Things to Do in Todos Santos
Start at the historic plaza and Teatro Márquez de León
The plaza is small, shaded, and the easiest place to get your bearings. Everything in the historic center is within a five block walk of it.
The Teatro Márquez de León sits on one side. It was built in the early twentieth century, fell into disrepair, and has been restored. It still hosts films and concerts, so check the schedule before writing it off as a photo stop.
Step inside Misión Nuestra Señora del Pilar
The mission church anchors the plaza and traces back to the 1723 founding of the settlement. The building you see today reflects generations of rebuilding rather than original Jesuit construction, which is normal for Baja missions.
It takes ten minutes. It is free and it is a working parish, so if a service is underway, wait outside rather than wandering in with a camera.
Get the Hotel California story right
You will hear that the Eagles wrote their song about this hotel. They did not.
The hotel opened under that name in 1950, changed hands and names over the years, and was rebranded by new owners in 2001. The Eagles sued in 2017 over the implied association. The case settled in January 2018, the hotel dropped its US trademark application, and Don Henley has said the song was inspired by the Beverly Hills Hotel.
Go anyway. The courtyard is worth ten minutes and the bar is fine for one drink. Just skip the guide who tells you otherwise.
Spend a morning gallery hopping
The gallery scene is the strongest cultural argument for Todos Santos, and it is walkable. Most spaces sit within a few blocks of the plaza and the owners are usually the artists.
Worth building a loop around:
- Galería de Todos Santos, a long-running space showing regional painters
- Galería Logan, on Juárez near Hotel California, showing Jill Logan’s oils and acrylics
- Galería Indigo, mixed regional work, generally open Monday through Saturday
- La Sonrisa de la Muerte, a print shop on Calle Militar with affordable, packable work from artists across Mexico
- Charles Stewart Gallery, at Centenario and Obregón, the founding studio of the local expat art scene
Hours are loose. Most places open around 10am and close by 4pm or 5pm, and many reduce hours or close entirely from July through September.
Shop the markets and the town stores
The markets are where you see the farming side of this valley. Days shift by season, and most run strongest from November through May, so confirm locally before driving out.
The regulars:
- Baja Beans, El Pescadero. Sunday market with produce, crafts, food stalls, and live music from late morning. The coffee is roasted on site.
- Organic market near the Cultural Center, Todos Santos. Produce, cheeses, baked goods, and a strong local turnout.
- Las Tunas community market. Vegetables, bread, ferments, plants, and local makers.
- Mercado municipal, Calle Horizonte. The everyday traditional market, open most weekdays, is good for honey, eggs, tortillas, and produce.
Bring pesos in small bills and a tote. Almost nothing at a market takes cards.
For shopping beyond produce, the center is compact and worth an hour: Librería El Tecolote for Baja books and maps, the Brilanti family’s silverwork, textiles and ceramics along Juárez and Centenario, and affordable framed prints from the print shops. Almost none of it is mass produced.
Watch the pangas land at Punta Lobos
This is the most quietly interesting hour in Todos Santos and nobody puts it on a list.
Punta Lobos is the working fishing beach south of town, off Highway 19 near the Km 54 marker. In the early afternoon the pangas come back in and run straight up onto the sand at speed, which is the only way to land through that shore break. Pelicans and sea lions crowd the shallows waiting for scraps.
You can usually buy fish directly off the boats. Bring cash and a cooler if you are self-catering.
The rock point gives Punta Lobos more shelter than the open beaches, and locals do swim here, but the undertow is still real. Watch the water for ten minutes before you decide.
Hike the old sugar port trail above Punta Lobos
The trail starts near Hotel San Cristóbal at the south end of Punta Lobos and climbs the cliff above the beach. It follows the route used when Todos Santos shipped sugar out by boat.
It is short, exposed, and steep in a couple of places. Allow 45 minutes round trip, go early or late, and bring water. There is no shade and no railing. The view back over the panga landing and north along the coast is the payoff.
Catch the sunset at Playa La Cachora, then walk to La Poza
La Cachora is the closest beach to the town center and the default sunset spot: wide, mostly empty, and fully exposed to the Pacific. Do not swim here. The shore break is heavy and the currents are strong even on calm-looking days. Walk it instead, and note that olive ridley turtles nest along this stretch at night from August through December.
Walk south and you reach La Poza, a freshwater lagoon held back from the ocean by a narrow sandbar. Herons, egrets, and migratory shorebirds work the water, and it is one of the better birding spots in southern Baja. Bring binoculars.
Drive out to Playa Las Palmas
Las Palmas, sometimes signed as Playa San Pedro, sits at the end of an unpaved road off Highway 19 near Km 57. A palm grove backs the sand and a rock headland shelters the south end, which makes it one of the few beaches near town where swimming is sometimes reasonable. Sometimes is the key word: when the water behind the rocks is flat it is excellent, and when it is not, stay out.
There are no services and no lifeguards. The surrounding land is private, access is daylight hours only, and camping is not permitted. Bring water and shade, pack out your trash, and leave the wild horses alone.
Spend a beach day at Cerritos
Playa Los Cerritos, about 15 minutes south of town near Km 64, is the one reliable swimming and beginner surf beach in the area. A rock point on the north end knocks down the swell and creates a protected zone.
It also has services: beach clubs, restaurants, bathrooms, board rentals, and parking, which makes it the sensible choice with kids.
Swim on the sheltered side near the point, not out in the surf zone. Currents can still pull along the beach on bigger days.
Take a surf lesson, or paddle out on your own
Cerritos is where nearly everyone learns. It is a forgiving right-hand point break with sand bottom, several surf schools on the beach, and gear rental by the hour or day.
Experienced surfers have better options nearby:
- San Pedrito, a punchy reef break south of town, for confident surfers only
- La Pastora, a right point north of town, better on winter northwest swell
- Pescadero and Cerritos on a big day, when the crowd thins and the wave stands up
Winter northwest swell lights up the points from November through March. Summer south swells are smaller, warmer, and better for learning. If you would rather someone else handled boards and transport, the local adventures page lists the operators working this coast.
Watch gray whales from shore
Gray whales migrate down the Pacific coast to Baja every winter, and this stretch of coast puts them close to land. From roughly December through April you can watch blows, breaches, and mothers with calves from a beach chair, no boat required. Peak density is January through March, and humpbacks share the same window.
Boat tours run out of Todos Santos, Cabo San Lucas, and La Paz. Choose operators that keep their distance and never advertise touching the animals. The big lagoon nurseries at Ojo de Liebre and San Ignacio are a separate trip north.
Join a sea turtle hatchling release
Tortugueros Las Playitas runs a hatchling protection program on the beach just north of town at Las Playitas. Volunteers patrol for nests, incubate them in a greenhouse, and release the hatchlings at sunset.
Releases usually run from early December into March or early April, most evenings, and they are open to the public and free. Donations keep the program running.
A few practical notes:
- Arrive around an hour before sunset to see the greenhouse and hear the briefing
- Releases get cancelled when the surf is too rough, so check their page the same day
- No flash photography, no handling the hatchlings unless a volunteer hands you one
- This is a conservation program, not a show, so follow the volunteers’ instructions exactly
Check current dates at todostortugueros.org before making the drive.
Hike into the Sierra de la Laguna
The Sierra de la Laguna was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1994 and it is a genuinely strange country: pine and oak forest sitting on top of a desert peninsula, with more than 900 plant species and a high concentration of endemics. Picacho de la Laguna, at 2,161 meters, is the highest point in the state.
The western trailhead is at La Burrera, reached by dirt road from the Todos Santos side. From there you can day hike as far as your legs allow, or do a multi-day traverse to the East Cape with guides and pack mules.
Two things people get wrong. You need a permit wristband from the CONANP office, easier to collect in Todos Santos than at the gate. And the summit is not a casual afternoon, so hire a local guide unless you are experienced on remote, unmarked terrain.
The best hiking window is October through April. Summer is dangerously hot below the treeline.
Eat lunch in the huerta
The farming valley behind town is why the food here is so good. Several restaurants sit inside working gardens and orchards, and the menus move with what is ripe.
Long lunches in the shade are the point. Jazamango, Hierbabuena in El Pescadero, and the farm restaurants around Pescadero all work on this model. Book ahead in the high season.
Work through the coffee shops
Coffee is taken seriously here, which is not true everywhere in Baja.
- Taller 17 for pastry and espresso in town
- Doce Cuarenta for a proper roastery cafe
- Jazamango Café for a slow breakfast on a shaded patio
- Baja Beans in El Pescadero, which roasts on site and hosts the Sunday market
Most open early and close mid-afternoon. Very few serve dinner.
Ride, drive, or fish
Beyond surfing, the standard menu here is horseback riding on the beach at sunset, side-by-side and ATV tours through the arroyos and dunes, and panga fishing out of Punta Lobos for dorado, tuna, and wahoo.
Fishing trips leave before sunrise and are arranged the day before, through your host or with a captain at the beach. On land, use operators who provide helmets and keep off the nesting beaches.
Time your trip to a festival
Todos Santos runs an unusually full events calendar for a town this size. Dates move year to year and some events have shifted seasons entirely, so confirm before booking flights around one.
| Event | Usual timing | What it is |
| Todos Santos Art Festival | Winter, often early February | Town-wide art event with exhibitions and street programming |
| Artists’ Open Studio Tour | February | Self-guided tour of private studios from Pescadero to Las Playitas |
| Todos Santos Film Festival | Has run in March and in late autumn | Long-running Latin American and Mexican film festival |
| GastroVino Baja Food & Wine | Has moved between spring and late autumn | Local chefs paired with Baja California wineries |
| Fiestas Tradicionales | Around October 12 | The town’s patron saint festival, the most local event of the year |
| Mango Festival, with Fiestas de San Ignacio | Late July into August | Mango everything, plus dancing, horsemen, and pageantry |
| Day of the Dead | October 30 to November 2 | Altars, processions, and cemetery visits |
Best Beaches Near Todos Santos
Read this table before you get in the water anywhere on this coast. The Pacific here produces heavy shore break and lateral currents, and the beaches without services also have nobody watching.
| Beach | Access | Swimming | Best for |
| Playa Los Cerritos | Paved then short dirt road, Km 64 | Yes, near the point | Beginner surf, families, beach clubs, a full day out |
| Playa Las Palmas (San Pedro) | Dirt road, Km 57, daylight only | Sometimes, behind the rocks | Palm shade, picnics, quiet, tidal pools |
| Playa Punta Lobos | Sandy road, Km 54 | Sometimes, with caution | Fishing boats, sea lions, buying fresh catch, the cliff hike |
| Playa La Cachora | Short dirt road from town | No | Sunset walks, whale spotting, turtle nesting season |
| Playa La Poza | Adjacent to La Cachora | No, ocean side | Birding on the lagoon, photography |
| Playa San Pedrito | Dirt road, Km 59 | No | Advanced surf on a reef break |
| Playa La Pastora | Rough dirt road north of town | No | Experienced surfers, empty sand, sunsets |
| Playa Las Playitas | Dirt road north of town | No | Turtle releases in season, long walks |
Practical rules that locals actually follow:
- Never swim alone on this coast
- Watch the water for a full ten minutes before entering anywhere unfamiliar
- If you get caught in a current, swim parallel to the beach rather than against it
- Keep small children out of the shore break entirely, because the sand drops off fast
- Ask locally about conditions that day, since they change constantly
Day Trips from Todos Santos
All of these work as a day trip with dinner back on the coast.
| Day trip | Drive | Why go |
| La Paz and Balandra | 1 hour north | Shallow turquoise bay with almost no waves, the opposite of the Pacific beaches. Entry is capped daily, so arrive early |
| Espíritu Santo Island | Boat from La Paz | Sea lion colonies, snorkeling, boat-access beaches, seasonal whale shark tours under strict regulation |
| El Triunfo | 90 minutes northeast | Old silver and gold mining town with a brick smokestack, a piano museum, and two good restaurants |
| Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo | 1 hour south | Marina, the arch, sportfishing, and the Thursday art walk in San José in winter |
| Sierra de la Laguna | 1 hour to the trailhead | Pine and oak forest above the desert, covered above |
