True Blue Shores of Golden Sand – The Blue Flag Beach Guide to Los Cabos

(Photo Credit: Medano Beach courtesy of Breathless Cabo San Lucas Resort & Spa)

Los Cabos is famed for its beautiful beaches, glorious sun-kissed swaths of golden shoreline that stretch from the Pacific Coast of Cabo San Lucas to the East Cape north of San José del Cabo. Tourists and winter snowbirds have been flocking to this tropical hundred-mile-long arc of pristine playas for more than fifty years, their sights set on beach walking, hammock swinging, margarita sipping, and spectacular up-close views of both the Pacific Ocean and Sea of Cortés. Many have raved about the area’s soft, fine-grained sand and majestic offshore waves, but now for the first time it can be objectively stated: Los Cabos has the best beaches in all of México.

How does one quantify such a claim? In Blue Flags, of course.

How Does a Beach Become Blue Flag Certified?

The Blue Flag program was birthed by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), a non-profit organization that began in Europe in the 1980s, but now numbers over 60 member countries around the world. In essence, it’s an eco-certification system, with prospective Blue Flag beaches required to meet and maintain strict environmental standards for things like cleanliness, water quality, safety, services and sustainability. When you visit a Blue Flag beach, for example, you’re guaranteed to find ample parking, well-kept bathrooms, ramps for handicap access, recycling bins, and a rarity in México…lifeguards.

Los Cabos now boasts 19 of Baja California Sur’s 20 Blue Flag beaches (The capital city of La Paz is home to the other, El Coromuel). It truly is an astounding number, particularly when you consider that México as a country has only 64. Los Cabos, a modestly sized municipality, now has more Blue Flag beaches than any other single state in México. Only Quintana Roo, home to Cancún and the Riviera Maya, is even close with 17.

The Growth of Blue Flag Beaches in Los Cabos

(Photo Credit: Chileno Beach courtesy of Chileno Bay Resort & Residences)

As recently as three years ago Los Cabos had only three Blue Flag beaches: Palmilla, Chileno, and Santa María. Each of these Tourist Corridor based gems sparkles with its own distinctive attractions. Palmilla’s protected offshore cove is so renowned for its serene swimming conditions, for instance, that the swim leg of the local Ironman 70.3 is held there; and the offshore bays of Chileno and Santa María are favored sites for local snorkeling tours, thanks to calm waters and a colorful abundance of marine life.

But there were far more than three beaches in the area deserving of attention, so a concerted effort was made in recent years to shine a spotlight on them. A significant percentage of the new Blue Flag certified beaches–16 more since 2016–are in effect portions of Playa El Médano, the largest and most popular beach area in Cabo San Lucas. Over two miles in length, Playa El Médano is the social center of the Land’s End city, hosting over a dozen beachfront luxury resorts, as well as boisterous beachfront cantinas like Mango Deck and The Office on the Beach. It was these Médano resorts that spearheaded the effort to have their own beach adjacent areas Blue Flag certified, and guests at these scenically situated properties (see the full list below) can now expect the same level of detail-oriented maintenance and service on the sand as they can in their exquisitely appointed suites and pampering spas.

Other local beaches, too, have been Blue Flagged in recent years. Acapulquito, a beautiful beginner-friendly surf beach near San José del Cabo, is now a member of the Blue Flag family; as is La Ribera, site of the new Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos at Costa Palmas; and Las Viudas (in English, The Widows Beach), a stretch long favored by photographers due to its strikingly shaped volcanic rock formations.

The Complete List of Blue Flag Beaches in Los Cabos

(Photo Credit: Santa Maria Beach courtesy of Montage Los Cabos)

For those who’d like to visit all of Los Cabos’ Blue Flag beaches, here’s the complete list in alphabetical order:

• Acapulquito
• El Chileno
• El Corsario
• La Ribera
• Las Viudas
• Médano Breathless
• Médano Casa Dorada
• Médano Club Cascadas de Baja
• Médano Hacienda
• Médano ME Cabo
• Médano Pueblo Bonito Los Cabos
• Médano Pueblo Bonito Rose
• Médano Riu Palace Los Cabos
• Médano Riu Santa Fe
• Médano Villa Del Palmar
• Médano Villa El Arco
• Médano Villa La Estancia
• Palmilla
• Santa María

Don’t forget to bring sunscreen!

Windermere is one of the most respected names in North American real estate, with over 300 offices and 6,000 agents in the Western U.S. and México. The company has deep roots in Los Cabos, where its agents have over 100 years of collective experience, as well as an exhaustive knowledge of available local listings and the intricacies and legal requirements of buying and selling property in México.

Call us from the U.S. or Canada at 011 52 (624) 228-3509 for more details.  We’ll help you find and buy your dream home in Los Cabos.  Contact Us today