Mexico

San José del Cabo is a charmingly authentic village that still has the soul, spirit and look of a colonial town. Century-old buildings line the breezy central plaza where locals promenade, kids play and tourists rest in the shade of lofty trees.

Before the 20th century

Baja California was occupied by humanity as long as 10,000 years ago, a fact attested to by radiocarbon-dated shell middens and locally unearthed stone tools. These native peoples occupied themselves with the usual hunter-gatherer activities and also created many stunning petroglyphs and cave paintings in remote areas all over the peninsula. The first European, a Spanish mutineer, arrived in 1534, and was followed a year later by conquistador Hernán Cortés, who a decade earlier had claimed mainland Mexico and now saw Baja as the next unopened treasure chest. Cortés returned to Spain six years later, without his hoped for nest egg, blaming the hostility of the Indians and the harsh landscape.

The assorted tribes belonging to the peninsula's three main linguistic groups - the Yumano, Cochimí and Guaycura, with the latter occupying the cape region - managed to weather the early years of European contact fairly well. They were no match, however, for the fervour of the Jesuit missionaries who arrived in the late 17th century and within 70 years had established two dozen permanent missions all along the peninsula. Unfortunately, the Jesuits also managed to introduce European microbes, against which the tribes had no resistance, and by the end of the missionary period in 1767 the entire indigenous population had been more or less wiped out.

San José's mission was founded in 1730 by Jesuit priest Nicholas Tamaral, who instantly made himself unpopular with the local Indians by outlawing polygamy, a practice that had long been a local tradition. After the Indians attacked and killed Tamaral, the Spanish decided to set up a military fort, partly to quell future uprisings and partly in order to put an end to the buccaneers who used the local estuary to launch raids on treasure-laden Spanish galleons travelling between Acapulco and the Phillippines.

US troops briefly occupied the area around San José del Cabo during the Mexican-American War (1648-48). At the war's resolution, Baja (Lower) California remained under Mexican control but Alta (Upper) California became a new US state.

Five years after the Mexican-American War, an ambitious American called William Walker attempted to capture the peninsula for the US. He landed at La Paz, not far from San José del Cabo, in 1853 with a small army of mercenaries, arrested the local governor, and attempted to establish the Republic of Lower California - ostensibly a new US state under his control. When reinforcements failed to arrive, the venture failed and Walker fled the country.

Modern history

After WWII, US pilots regaled the folks back home with stories of the perfect weather and the hauls of big fish just waiting to be hooked in the rich waters of the Sea of Cortez. Eventually this launched the modern-day tourist industry.

The region's first resort was built near La Paz in 1948 by a group of wealthy American actors, who included Bing Crosby and John Wayne. Eight years later the Hotel Palmilla (still operational) opened just outside San José del Cabo. The town's international airport opened in 1986.

Recent history

San José del Cabo is today the gateway to the most developed and heavily patronized stretch of coast on the peninsula. The town itself, however, has managed to hold on to its colonial roots and preserve the narrow streets, Spanish-style buildings and shady plazas that drew the tourists here in the first place. The giant development of Puerto Los Cabos has permanently altered the San José estuary, and the construction of more resorts along the beach at San José has no end in sight.

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  One&Only Palmilla, Mexico

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Hot, sunny, with low humidity and an average of 10 days of rain per year, San José del Cabo enjoys a desert climate beside the sea. Average temperatures drop no lower than 15°C (60°F) and can reach 35°C (95°F) during July to September. Chances of rain are greatest during these months, which can even bring the occasional chubasco (tropical storm).

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Transport

Getting around

Footpower is the locally preferred mode of transport around San José del Cabo, due to the town's compact dimensions and the relatively short walk (30min) between Plaza Mijares and the Zona Hotelera. If you're heading out of town to one of the beaches along the Corridor, you'll need to choose between catching a bus or taxi. All the major international car-hire firms have local representatives, but don't expect any bargains. Getting full insurance is essential otherwise having an accident can land you in jail. The nearest place that hires out mountain bikes is the trailer park at Zipper's Beach.

Getting there and away

Los Cabos International Airport is 10km (6mi) north of town and handles the significant tourist arrivals for the entire cape region, including San José del Cabo, Cabo San Lucas and the Corridor. Domestic airlines such as Mexicana and AeroMéxico fly direct to/from a number of Mexican mainland destinations and to North American cities such as San Diego, Los Angeles and Denver, while several US airlines connect the southern end of Baja California directly with airport terminals in San Francisco, Seattle, Phoenix, Dallas and Houston.

You can taxi from the airport into town or walk 25mins to the Transpeninsular Hwy to catch a bus. Los Cabos Express operates a shuttle bus service from the airport.

From the main bus terminal on Valerio González you can take a 30min trundle to Cabo San Lucas, a 2hr ride to Todos Santos and a 3hr ride to La Paz. Buses to La Paz connect with onward services to Tijuana (25hr).