Cabo Tour suggestion..

Myself and a friend (girls trip! yeahhh) will be on the Carnival Miracle in early September. Neither of us have ever cruised the Mexican Riviera before so we're looking for some advice. :D "I think"... we are wanting to do maybe a catamaran cruise to see the Arch etc (any suggestions on a tour company to book this through?) and then probably go to a beach (any suggestions on a nice calm beach w/bathrooms, food, and drinks) and also hoping to see Cabo Wabo. (??) Any other ideas please let me know..

Thanks in advance!!

Medano Beach is really the only nearby beach to spend time nearby.

Other areas would require a longer drive, and are more remote, less resort like with lots of choices for food and drink.

As for tours, it is always good to get first hand reccomendations, but since you posted, and I see no one has replied, I thought I may offer some suggestions:

GOOGLE- there are many tours from glass bottom boats ( can't really see much ), to inflatables, to water taxis, to catamarans and lots of others.

Just use good old GOOGLE, or TRIP ADVISER etc.

The reviews ought to give you a sense of what works or not.

OUR EXPERIENCE: you CAN book ahead with whatever you decide to choose, however, when you get onto the tender docking area, you will see lots of vendors offering whatever you want:

THIS IS THE FUN PART- this is an opportunity to score a great savings.

NEGOTIATE: if you are comfortable, have some PESOS ( about 15-1$ ),

have an idea of what you are willing to pay, say $ 25 person for a ride for an hour out to Los Arcos etc. then offer that amount in comparable PESOS, in this case 25X 15 =375 PESOS.

More than likely the starting price would be $40 person

As for CABO WABO, a map on their web site will show you where it is, and you can decide if you want to walk or taxi. Most places are easily walkable.

To get to Medano Beach, many use the water taxi, it is cheap and easy, however, you need to jump off and be able to climb back in , and at times the water can be choppy and it can be an adventure in itself getting off and on.

If you have any mobility issues, a short cab ride or even a nice walk around the Marina will get you there.

Again. a google search will tell you all about the different places aling the beach.

Many threads on this site make recomendations for rowdy, good food, family friendly, etc. places.

Have lots of fun, enjoy the MIRACLE.

You will probably have similar questions regarding PUERTYO VALLARTA and maybe MAZATLAN, depending on your itinerary.

I am a fan of negotiating and getting a fair price for what we want to do.

As an example, last August in Cabo, my 2 Daughters wanted to para-sail.

The price was $ 50 each. I negotiated in Pesos and got the US price to $40 each.

Best of luck to you.

Thank you so much cruisinitaliano! This really helps! I guess I didn't realize it was better to use pesos rather than US$ in the Mexican Riviera. We typically travel in the Caribbean and always just use the US$. Thanks for that great pointer! Im thinking we will just plan on finding a vendor once we get there and go from there. ;)

again, just our experience:

The key is to get PESOS before leaving on trip, say at AAA, or your bank.

Google searches for best exchange rates work wonders.

Today you can get about 15 Pesos per dollar.

In Cabo and other ports, the exchange rate a restaurant or a vendor or tour operator gives you may vary from 10-13 Pesos per dollar.

So even if you save only 2 Pesos ( 15 vs. 13 ) it is a 15% savings on your dollar.

Now if you save 5 pesos ( 15 vs 10 ) that's a 34% savings.

So even if you paid the full price of what they are asking, by paying in Pesos, you save money.

And if you are going on your own, vs. booking through Carnival, my guess is it's to save money.

So you can pay $99 to para sail on Carnival

Or, you can go ashore and pay $50 on your own..

OR, you Negotiate the fee to $40

AND you pay in Pesos using what you paid ( e.g 15-1 ) not their exchange rate ( 10-13 )

so 40 x15 = 600 Pesos, stick to your guns, be willing to say no and walk away, you most often will get your price.

And, of course, be ready to increase your offer if you really do want the tour.

Also, negotiating does not work in restaurants, at least not that I have ever heard.

Once on Medano Beach, you still pay in Pesos for food and drinks, but negotiate all vendors from the trinkets, hats, sunglasses etc. , to the jet skis and paddle boards.

for water taxi, if they say $5 person, quietly so as to not make it obvious to the other guests boarding, offer 100 Pesos.....

You are not cheating anyone out of a livelihood.

They set prices knowing that there will be haggling.

Do only what you are comortable doing. My wife would never haggle, anywhere, but boy she looks for the SALE items at Target and Wal Mart!!!!

Most bars & restaurants are offering 14 or more pesos to the dollar. The dollar is very strong in Mexico right now, I just got over 17 the other day and at one point this winter, I got over 18. If a bar or restaurant is offering less that 14, I wouldn't stop there. The US dollar is widely accepted in all Mexican Riviera ports, yes, you can save some money paying in pesos, but depending on what your bank charges you for exchange, it may not be worth it. Best to pay cash in bars and restaurants vs a credit card.

One thing to bear in mind in Cabo in September it is hot beyond hot. Walking is not your best option that time of year. Cabo Wabo is a bit of a challenge to find, so if you really want to get there, I suggest either a taxi or a pedicab.

As for catamarans, it will depend on your time in port. Sometimes the Miracle is only there for six hours which is not enough time to do everything you want to do. A couple that are close to the tender pier that you can check out are Pez Gato or Tropicat.

Medano Beach, which is the only swimable beach in Cabo, is lined with restaurants/bars. Some more party crowd and some more mellow.

WOW :D Thank you all for all the great advice!!