The Most Luxurious Part of Glamping Is a Near-Total Immersion In Nature
Todos Santos Eco Adventures makes it easy to experience the best of Baja California Sur in a way that puts the area’s stunning landscapes front and centre.
As originally published in TRAVELLIFE.CA SPRING 2025 BY DIANA BALLON
When I was a kid, my dad shirked family camping trips because he said he liked to sleep in a bed. While we disagreed on many things, around creature comforts I thought he had a point. I like rugged and I like adventure, but for me the best way to enjoy both is after a good night’s sleep. So when I learnt that Todos Santos Eco Adventures offers two glamping experiences-one in the mountains of Mexico’s Baja California Sur and one on a deserted island (both entirely solar powered)-I was sold.
For our week-long experience co-owner Bryan Jauregui curated a three-part adventure. We would spend our first two nights glamping in the mountains of the Sierra Laguna Biosphere Reserve; our last three nights on Isla Espiritu Santo, an island in a national marine park and UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Sea of Cortez; and the middle two nights at the charming Los Colibris Casitas, a boutique hotel just outside the town of Todos Santos.
From the airport in San Jose del Cabo we drove about 75 minutes, the last half hour on windy roads through the desert and then into the mountains. Eventually, we turned off in a clearing and discovered an open-air palapa with comfy sofas and a long table where-minutes later-a delicious grilled chicken lunch appeared. Bryan had told me, “A lot of people don’t even know that Baja has mountains, nor that it has a strong ranch culture, with ranchers that are great, great grandpas of the American cowboy.” Admittedly, this mountain ranchero experience was also new for me to discover. Following lunch, we were shown to our tents. Ours was nestled between rock with the long spiky arms of the cardon cactus and two rocking chairs in front, a compost toilet behind and cozy beds with solar-powered bedside lamps inside.
Over the next two days we had a guided nature walk, a morning hike and then later, a swim in a small crystal clear swimming hole sunken into the rocks. On our last afternoon, we did workshops to make leather bracelets and then tortillas with the ranchero couple who owned the property.
We then drove to Los Colibris Casitas, a place that Bryan and her husband and partner Sergio loved so much that they decided to live there, as well as build a hotel. Of the 11 rooms and suites, our two-storey villa, Casa Colina, is one of the most luxurious with three terraces, two bedrooms, a full kitchen and colourfully painted walls adorned with local artwork. With unobstructed views of the Pacific Ocean from my upstairs bedroom, I drifted off to sleep each night with only the sound of waves lulling me to sleep. One day we sat around the pool and then later did a cooking class with their hilarious lawyer-turned-chef, Iker Algorri, who had us dancing with spatulas and dipping tortillas in hot oil and then shaking them out to the rhythm of KC and the Sunshine Band’s “Shake! Shake! Shake” blaring from speakers. We also learnt secrets to making the best guacamole and margaritas-which of course we had to sample.
Another day, we enjoyed a taco tour with Sergio to three local taco joints in the town of Todos Santos about a five-minute drive away. Then he gave us a detailed historical tour of the village, an artist’s colony filled with galleries and shops showcasing its pottery, silver jewellery and clothing, as well as funky restaurants. Our final adventure and grand finale was glamping on Isla Espiritu Santo, an hour’s boat ride from La Paz on the eastern side of the peninsula. I didn’t know what to expect, having heard that new park rules require any campsites to move every two to three days. But any potential logistical nightmares were not at all apparent. As we approached land, we saw green tents lining the beach and a dining tent with a long communal table next to the kitchen where we were to experience amazing meals cooked entirely on a three-burner stove!
Over the next three days we hiked, kayaked and snorkelled, including-and this was my favourite-swimming with sea lions. As we snorkelled, the pups frolicked and dove in and out of the water, grabbing onto our snorkels and pulling on a rope hanging from the guide’s buoy, like a new prizewinning toy. A mother nursed her wee pup on the shore, while hundreds of others barked as they lay sunbathing on the rock. On the last day, heading back to camp, as the big waves hit the bow of my solo kayak, I couldn’t help feeling grateful-for the warmth of the sun, the cool wind at my face, the cozy bed and delicious dinner that awaited me on shore and the fact that-while big waves and paddling solo might another time have felt intimidating-here and now I felt like I could do anything.
