Where to Camp in Baja

Tucked high in a canyon overlooking Laguna Salada, and just south of the border, Guadalupe Canyon Oasis features some of the few hot springs to be found in Baja and is a great first stop.

An iconic, beach-front RV park in San Felipe that features the unique two-story palapas, good for camping and great views and easy access to the malecon.

Cataviña looks as if they dropped Joshua Tree into a Doctor Seuss novel, and is the geological heart of the Baja Peninsula. There’s a small restaurant at the nearby airstrip.

The beginning of the “real” Baja: Gonzaga Bay is vast, desolate, and beautiful, and the last fuel for 200 kilometers.

Bahía de Los Angeles is a detour off Highway 1, but it leads to one of the most beautiful and unique areas of the Peninsula. Volcanic islands, vast schools of fish, and an estuary right out of a Cousteau documentary.

Tucked away on a remote peninsula south of Guerro Negro, Bahia Asuncion sits perched on dramatic cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean with easy access to beaches, tide pools, and surf breaks.

A Baja expert-level destination, requiring some 200 km of dirt-road, no-cell service, inaccurate Google Mapping to one of the most beautiful and fantastic experiences you can have anywhere. Don Oscar and his family are a joy, and the entire experience is akin to time traveling 250 years into the past.

The first of the beaches of Bahia de Concepcion, the “jewels” of the Gulf of California and of Baja. The first time you see this beach is an experience that stays with you, even if there are others nearby you come to love more.

Beloved for the views, the dolphins, the schools of tuna, the sunsets, the hot springs, the fantastic bar/restaurant across the highway, Playa Coyote is a gem. Even NOLS has their school nearby.

It can be a little confusing to make it to this beach, and recently they closed access to camping on the beach, but for many this is the first “off road” beach they visit in Baja, and for good reason.

We almost feel guilty for listing this place, as it’s right in downtown Loreto just off the main square. The hardest part is navigating the weird alleyways to get there, but once you do you’ll be all-grins.

Agua Verde is an experience on par with the most beautiful places on planet earth. It’s as if they took Zion and dropped it into the ocean. The road is harrowing, and it can be confusing to get out to some of the beaches, but, yeah nevermind, don’t go there.

Four private rooms and an amazing parking space for vans. Three hot showers and bathrooms, as well as a BBQ pit and firepit. Shared kitchen and a couple of bikes for rent.

There are endless beaches around La Paz, but for our money (and ease of access) we love El Saltito, named for the giant rock outcropping on the south end of the beach. Be careful driving onto the sand in 2WD as it can be deep.