First trip into Mexico

I have heard repairs are coming along well. Baja is actually a good into to RVing in Mexico.

Baja got nailed with a hurricane and the southern tip won't be at it's best for a while.

Do what you want but I live in La Paz down near the tip. Yes the hurricane was hard on us but you'll never see a greener lusher Baja than this year. If you want to see Cabo at it's best and you like tourist resorts - then by all means wait until all the hotels and shops are fully rebuilt.

But if you want to see the most spectacular desert blooms and the greenest Baja hills ever this year is like no other I have ever seen. The roads are passable and things look pretty darn good. The whale sharks are in the Bahia de La Paz already and the snorkeling is amazing because the water is warm and crystal clear.

Maybe use a caravan for your first trip

The La Peñita RV park runs a small caravan one way to the park 40 miles north of Puerto Vallarta. They will leave the Tucson area on the 27th of October. You can Google the park for more information.

I agree with San Carlos, one day drive a pleasant and friendly place to stay. Stay there a week at least then if you want to venture further head for Mazatlan. We went to Rocky Point once and came back early, it was barely Mexico by our standards.

We like what Canadian Rainbirds said. Take it slow, do the mainland. Baja got nailed with a hurricane and the southern tip won't be at it's best for a while. We recommend a leisurely trip down the toll roads, with the Guide to Mexican Camping in hand, and the on line updates, and making Mazatlan your goal. Maybe you'll go further, maybe not.
Get your TIP on line, all of the instructions are on this forum site. Maybe we'll see you on the road with our two weimaraners!

You might PM "MEXICOWANDERER" & get some tips on safety etc. I would think he'd be more than willing to advise you.

Good for you. We have a good friend who travelled in Mexico in a motorhome as a single woman without a large dog for many years--into her 70s. She had to stop driving when her eyesight gave out.

We don't know Baja, but we know the mainland very well and wintered in Mexico without major issue until last year. I won't get into that here.

Here is a link to our blog Don't dwell on last seasons problems. Go back and browse previous posts.

An absolute must is A Travelers Guide to Mexican Camping by Mike and Terri Church. Available at major book stores and Amazon. Here is a link. http://www.rollinghomes.com/

You should also get a good Mexican Road Atlas. Guia Roji's Por Lass Carretrras de Mexico is the best one. Also Garmin has a good Mexico map. SOME of their new ones (the RV one for example) include Mexico maps with the rest of the North America City Navigator map.

I think you might prefer the mainland west coast. The roads are a little wider it think and there are a lot more larger cities.

For the first few days there will be LOTS of driving. You can make Nogales to San Carlos in a day--a long one though.

San Carlos is a pleasant place, lots of Gringos too.:)

San Carlos to Mazatlan is really long--10 to 12 hours depending on your driving speed. There are a couple of options for overnight stops but they are an hour or so out out the way.

Mazatlan is a good place to settle for a while though not our cup of tea. Same goes for Puerto Vallarta, which we prefer for the climate--hotter.

Our first trip 13 or 14 years ago was to PV. We travelled in company of friends to Mazanlan then ventured on our own to PV.

For us, from the border to San Carlos was a White Knuckle drive, getting used to there being NO shoulders on the road and how close the oncoming trucks were. The lanes aren't always as wide as we are used to. On to Mazatlan we fared a little better and by the time we got to PV we felt quite comfortable.

I am sure that you will get lots more encouragement here. O course there will be a few idiots who will tell you how dangerous it is.

We envy you, perhaps will see you next season--we are not going this year because of an ill dog. After paying out all that money getting the new Jeep set up for towing. :(

Lynn,

We did our first trip to Baja because we didn't need the TIP and that made things simpler. We were also coming from the west coast and having grown up in San Diego, I was more familiar with the border crossings for Baja as well as some of the towns.

We like staying at the Thousand Trails RV park in Jamul (just east of San Diego) the night before we cross (or sometimes a few days) and then crossing a Tecate and going through the wine country toward Ensenada.

You can get the Church's book on traveling the Baja and they have a lot of the campgrounds in it with information about hookups.

We like camping on the beach and don't really care if we have hookups for a few days because we have a generator.

After Ensenada, you won't come to any very big towns on the Baja until you get to La Paz. There are some towns that have decent services like Loreto, Guerrero Negro, etc. all of which are wonderful towns to visit, stroll through, etc.

We prefer the Sea of Cortez for kayaking, snorkeling, etc. but others prefer different parts of Mexico for equally valid reasons. There is a lot to do and see no matter where you choose to go.

My husband and I actually made La Paz our permanent home after our first trip down the Baja - so we actually live here in Mexico now and love it.

I'm glad you have a big dog and that will give you greater security. If you want details of some of our favorite places to stay - should you decide the Baja is where you want to go, PM me and I'll be glad to share our entire list of RV parks, restaurants, sites, etc. with you.

Hi Lynn....I would recomend San Carlos Sonora, it is about 240 Mls. south of Nogales, the Totonaka RV Park has full Hooh-ups, wifi and is very close to Guaymas a city that has a Walmart and Sam Club......it is a easy one day drive from Nogales just start early from Nogales to get your TIP.....temporary importation permit at Km. 21....

Kino Bay 60 miles west of Hermosillo same distance as San Carlos many RV Parks with full Hook-ups this is a mall town but greas slow easy going place with a beautiful beach....

Rocky Point will be your other destination there are plenaty of information on this place on this forum, many RV Parks.....closer of all to Arizona and requires no TIP.....

So I recomend to get on the web and check....San Carlos Sonora
Kino Bay Sonora
Puerto Peniasco Sonora.