BAJA PLANNING
Originally published the week of Feb. 24, 2010 in Western Outdoor News
So, you’re finally going to make that trip to Baja that you’ve been putting off. Maybe it’s your first time. Maybe you’ve been south before, but it will be a new destination. Now that you know where you want to go, you have to start somewhere. Airlines? Hotel? An outfitter or charter company? Reading Western Outdoor News? (good start!)
There are alot of ways to go. But there are things to be careful about as well.
To begin with, do a little research. Forewarned is forearmed and an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of pain!
Assuming you know the dates of your vacation and that you’re going to be flying instead of driving to your destination, make sure there are flights. It does no good to make all these plans then find out there’s no airplane to ride!
Once you’re sure there’s flights, don’t book them just yet! What if there’s no hotel rooms available or all the boats are sold out? There’s a little juggling to do here so hold on if you can before buying those tickets!
Assuming you plan to fish, dive, kayak, etc. or one of the numerous activities afforded in Baja, I would go to the company that offers that activity. Choosing a company takes a bit of doing but it’s worth it.
Ask friends. Go to online message boards on the internet and ask for suggestions. Check out the ads in places like Western Outdoor News. You’ll notice that many of the same outfits advertise year-after-year and in the same places year-after-year.
That doesn’t mean they’re good. Anyone can be a bozo operation and place an ad or ads can be deceiving, but at least it’s one indication of an operation that isn’t fly-by-night. It’s a tough business and idiots don’t usually last long out there. By the same token, there are those that are popular enough and have enough of a track record that they don’t need to advertise. And that’s where asking friends or searching online comes in.
If you’ve chosen an outfitter (check out several), make sure they can accommodate what you want to do on the days you want to do it and the way in which you want to do it.
For example, if you’re set on fishing for marlin and the company doesn’t fish for marlin or there simply are no marlin there, then you need to re-adjust. If the company only uses cruisers and you want to fish in a panga, again, you’ll have to re-think. Same for any activity. For diving, if you’re an experienced diver and want to wreck dive or dive with sharks, but the area only has shallow reefs, then oops…better re-think the plans!
One good idea is to ask how long folks have been in business. Ask if the person answering your question is just a booking agent or really knows their stuff. There are alot of folks out there just answering the phones sitting in offices who have never even been to the location they are selling and are really just ticket agents!
Ask hard questions. Be specific. It’s YOUR vacation. It’s too important to put in the hands of people who don’t know a tuna from a roosterfish or whether you can eat the street tacos or not. How fast do they get back to you with your answers? How often has that specific person been where you want to go? Do they live there? Or are they just visitors themselves? Maybe they have NEVER been there! Your gut will give you a good feel.
Assuming the company can handle you, ask them about lodging. Many can put the whole package together and work closely with hotels. If not, at least they can recommend some places or offer suggestions. Even after they make suggestions or tell you which hotel they work with, check out the place online. If the place has no online website, then I’d probably pass on it. All good places have websites these days.
Once you have your activities and lodging locked in, now go get your airline ticket.
If you let the airlines or the hotels book everything for you, there are some real hazards that can happen. Not always, but why take chances? If you go through the airlines, the person answering the phones probably cannot answer questions about the fishing, diving, etc. or the hard questions about the hotel you really want to know. Is the room near the beach? How much are dinners at the restaurant? Are there child services? How far to town? They book airline tickets and that’s what they want to do and are best at.
At the hotel level, it’s the same thing. They want to put head-on-beds. That’s their top priority. Sure, they can book your fishing, diving, kayak trip, etc. , but 9-out-of-10 times, I bet that person booking the hotel room for you can’t tell you the name of your captain; what gear you will need; what the water temperature will be; if you will be able to catch a tuna, roosterfish, etc. It’s not their fault. But, they sell hotel rooms.
Also, beware of the internet. It’s your worst friend and enemy. It is indeed the information super highway, but it runs in two directions. You can find lots of helpful and useful information, but like online dating (ha-ha), what you see on the internet is not always what you get!
Of course, the online website won’t tell you that their hotel is right next to the busiest highway or that it was built on a beach next to the garbage dump or that “secluded” really means it’s a 25 dollar cab ride from town or that “rustic Mexican” really means they are on a generator that shuts down at 9 p.m. The website will never show you that nor will the booking agent for the hotel.
Unless you’re really adventuresome, the worst thing you can do is “wing it.” That might work going to Disneyland or Vegas. Granted, chances are you’ll have a great time on-the-fly, but so many things can also go wrong. Your boat might break down (or not even show up!). Your luggage might get lost. You end up with a 100 dollar cab ride. Your room has no running water or faces an alley. And then what? There’s no accountability. No one to bitch at. Your vacation is worth more than that.
A little planning will help insure the very best time!
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Jonathan is Baja Editor for Western Outdoor News and his column appears twice monthly in the paper. You can contact him directly at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com
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