Baja California is the 1,300-kilometre peninsula that hangs south from the US border between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California. It is mostly rugged, arid, and sparsely populated — a spine of mountains running through desert, with the sea on both sides. For travelers willing to make the drive, it is one of the most dramatic landscapes in North America.
The northern border at Tijuana is the busiest land crossing in the world. Beyond the border city, the Transpeninsular Highway runs the full length of the peninsula through increasingly empty country. The Pacific coast is wild and windswept; the Gulf side is calmer, warmer, and fringed with islands.
Ensenada, about 100 kilometres south of Tijuana, is a busy port city and wine region — the Valle de Guadalupe nearby has become one of Mexico's most interesting wine-producing areas. Hussong's Cantina on Avenida Ruiz in Ensenada is the oldest bar in Baja, and one of the claimants to the invention of the margarita. Further south, the central desert opens up: the Desierto Central is stark, beautiful, and home to some of the tallest cacti in the world, the cardón.
La Paz, the capital of Baja California Sur, sits on the Gulf side and serves as the base for exploring the southern peninsula. It is a relaxed city with good seafood, a long malecón, and easy access to the islands of Espíritu Santo — a UNESCO-protected area where you can snorkel with sea lions.
At the southern tip, Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo form the Los Cabos resort corridor. Between November and March, grey whales migrate into the lagoons along Baja's Pacific coast — Guerrero Negro and Bahía Magdalena are the main watching spots, and the encounters are remarkably close.